Oh duo Inverse Fadocomposed of Ana Roque (voice) and João David Almeida (guitar), has just released its first album “Avenida da Liberdade”, interpreting traditional fado themes and adding other originals.
This musical project has been dedicated, in recent years, to exploring the fado universe and, after recording in the studio, the new work now appears in the light of day, with a name that was not chosen at random.
“‘Avenida da Liberdade’ for two reasons: the first, and the most important, is that all the themes and poems that we have tried to address in this project have freedom as a starting and ending point. They are a kind of tribute to this aspiration greater than being ourselves and something else beyond what we imagine our potential can allow”, begins by explaining musician João David Almeida to Renaissance.
“The second has to do with our trajectory. It’s a space where we end up working many times and we are linked to the avenue itself. We think this play on words has everything to do with this phase that is the culmination of a great deal of work in together”, he emphasizes.
Singer Ana Roque comes from a path established in the country’s fado houses and lends not only her voice but also some of the lyrics to this album.
“These are some poems that I compiled over several years. João chose the ones that made the most sense and ended up composing the music that supported these words. I really liked João’s work, which also ended up being a kind of retreat, on his part, to delve into the words and bring out their musicality in this way, which was surprising for me. It brings not only a lightness, but also an elegance to the arrangements”, he points to the Renaissance.
João David Almeida dedicated himself to training in jazz guitar and lyrical singing, but guarantees that the work he has done in jazz “has fado inside”. He assures that this is “an old passion” and remembers that the great fado singers also tried new musical languages.
“It is interesting to note that, even the oldest references, which we are used to respecting as part of the history of fado, are themselves people who have had great curiosity in relation to other musical genres throughout their lives. They themselves knew how to cross their own borders. I find that quite fascinating for the time. It is very interesting to delve deeper into these experiences that were made in the past and learn from them in as free a way as possible and discover other flights”, he says.
Ana Roque adds that the duo is already thinking about a new album.
“We are always in process. Now we are still enjoying this arrival, but we have so much work already done that yes, we can think about the next step. We already have some repertoire”, he says, looking ahead to the next phase of the project.
This debut album also features guest appearances by musicians Paulo Ferreira (Portuguese guitar), Susana Castro Santos (cello) and Miguel Menezes (double bass).
“Avenida da Liberdade” is available on CD and can also be heard on the following platforms:
Source: rr.sapo.pt
