Since 1999, 27-year-old Portuguese songstress Mariza has become the reigning queen of Fado, Portugal's national music treasure.  The music, with elements of jazz, folk, and rhythm and blues, is her homeland's national folk music, and is gaining an increasingly international following.

Whether lifting and upbeat or plaintive and poignant; it is music from the heart.  These are Portuguese torch songs.  Just in time for her 2003 U.S. tour, Mariza's second compact disc Fado Curvo, has been released in North America in collaboration with World Connection by Times Square Records, a division of SBMC Inc., CD number TSQ-CD-9033.  The CD has reach number one on Portugal’s international pop charts and will soon go platinum, unheard of for a Fado album.  In the U.S., it debuted at number 14 on the Billboard World Music Charts and rose to number six.

The CD is an excellent sampler for those unfamiliar with Fado.  Aficionados will appreciate it as an instant classic. Mariza's perfectly controlled voice delivers in a range from seductive whisper to full-throated brilliance.  She is a Portuguese Edith Piaf.

The opening track, "O silencio de guitarra" (The silence of the guitar), demonstrates the emotional depth that this artist brings to her art.  The title track, "Fado Curvo," is more lively and upbeat, with a traditional Portuguese fold quality.

Mariza demonstrates her versatility by singing about such things as alleys, mysterious riders, caravels, and deserts.  The delivery and the lyrics are especially moving in "Menino do Bairro Negro" (Little Boy Black Quarter).

-Dawson Mills