Evora, Cesaria

▪ 1997

      After performing for many years for little or no pay in local bars and taverns, Cape Verdean singer Cesaria Evora captured the international limelight when her album Cesaria Evora was nominated in 1996 for a Grammy award in the category of best world music album. With a rich, husky voice, she captivated audiences when she sang mornas, sorrowful folk songs passed from generation to generation of Cape Verdeans as part of their cultural heritage. The emotion-charged songs chronicled the country's long and bitter history of isolation, slave trade, and native population loss due to emigration.

      Singing in Creole-Portuguese without much embellishment, Evora was accompanied by such acoustic instruments as guitar, piano, violin, accordion, clarinet, and the cavaquinho, a four-stringed instrument similar to a ukelele. The barefoot diva—she never wore shoes while performing—was often compared to singers Billie Holiday and Edith Piaf for her ability to transcend language and spellbind audiences with haunting interpretations of songs about suffering and yearning. Evora's spare, elegant style was also reminiscent of one of her own favourite performers—Mahalia Jackson. Though the morna was her specialty, she did record a few coladeiras, mornas with a faster tempo.

      Evora was born in 1941 in Mindelo, a port city on the island of São Vicente, Cape Verde, off the west coast of Africa. She sang with her father's band before launching a solo career, and though her artistry was not monetarily rewarded, she developed a huge following. In 1988 concert promoter José da Silva took her to Paris, where she recorded La Diva aux pieds nus, which was followed by a steady stream of new material. It was in 1992, however, after the release of Miss perfumado, that Evora achieved popularity with European audiences.

      Her other albums include Mar azul, Distino di belita, and Saudades. Though she maintained a Paris base while on tour, the singer continued to live in Cape Verde surrounded by her family—a daughter, a son, and two grandchildren. While commenting on her success, Evora reflected, "In all the years when I sang in bars and in front of foreigners, I sometimes had an idea that I might someday be successful outside my country. The thought never stayed with me for very long, but here I am." (AMANDA E. FULLER)

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▪ Cape Verdean singer

born August 27, 1941, Mindelo, Cape Verde

      Cape Verdean singer and Grammy Award-winning recording artist known for her rich, haunting voice.

      Evora was born and raised on the island of São Vicente, Cape Verde, off the west coast of Africa. Her father, a musician, died when she was seven, and she was raised by her mother and grandmother. Evora began singing as a child, and by the time she was a young adult, she routinely performed in the bars of her hometown of Mindelo. She sang in Creole-Portuguese, usually accompanied by guitar, piano, or the cavaquinho, a four-stringed instrument similar to a ukulele. She became known for singing mornas, traditional Cape Verdean folk songs that were sorrowful, emotion-charged chronicles of the country's long and bitter history of isolation, slave trade, and population loss due to emigration. She also sang coladeras—mornas with a faster tempo. Although her music earned her a multitude of fans on the islands of Cape Verde, it did not provide financial success.

      Frustrated by financial and personal issues, as well as by the turmoil generated by Cape Verde's newfound independence, Evora stopped performing in public in the mid-1970s. She resumed singing in 1985 and later left the islands to perform with other Cape Verdean musicians in Lisbon. There she caught the attention of concert promoter José da Silva, who persuaded her to come to Paris to perform and record her music. With da Silva's assistance, she garnered attention in France in 1988 with her album La Diva aux pieds nus (“The Barefoot Diva,” the nickname based on her fondness for going without shoes). The positive response generated by the 1992 release of Miss perfumado earned her widespread popularity in Europe and led to an international tour. During the 1990s and early 2000s, Evora continued to record new albums and perform around the world. She won a 2003 Grammy Award for her album Voz d'amor.

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