Raised in Lisbon, Mariza, the daughter of Mozambican and Portuguese parents, is the reigning queen of a traditional style of Portuguese music called fado. After just a few notes of her show at The Music Center at Strathmore last night, it was obvious why she has garnered international acclaim as one of the world’s finest vocalists. Over the course of her performance, she proved that talent, passion, and emotion will connect any form of music to any audience, language barriers or a listener’s lack of exposure to a musical form notwithstanding.

Mariza’s voice, which is nothing short of marvelous, is the perfect instrument for this music because fado, as a style, focuses on melancholy as its primary emotional expression. Her delivery is rich and expressive at any dynamic level or tempo and the sheer outpouring of emotion with which she performs conveys the essence of the lyrics and makes the language in which they are sung almost irrelevant. Mariza’s stage presence was equally layered in that it was theatrical, engaging, melodramatic and sometimes funny, but throughout it remained heartfelt and authentic. Her performance last night was only augmented by the virtuosic accompaniment of her band, which featured Luis Guerreiro on Portuguese guitar, Antonio Neto on classical guitar, Vasco Sousa on acoustic bass guitar, and a percussionist who provided an extra rhythmic push for only a handful of songs.

Image from Mariza’s website