Jonas presented new album “Maçã D’Adão” last Saturday, the 14th, at Capitólio in Lisbon

20 Sep Jonas presented new album “Maçã D’Adão” last Saturday, the 14th, at Capitólio in Lisbon

The artist’s second album celebrates the cultural richness of Fado, featuring the singles “Mouraria Moirama” and “Bato a Porta.” It was presented live last Saturday, the 14th, at Capitólio in Lisbon.

“Maçã D’Adão” is the new album by composer, author, choreographer, and Fado singer Jonas. The album, entirely written and produced by the artist, celebrates the cultural richness found in the sounds of Fado, reconstructing, reinterpreting, and projecting its various dimensions that have been lost over time. It offers a sonic journey with Iberian, Gitan, Moorish, and Afro-Brazilian influences. This Fado draws from its origins, resurrecting the extinct dance of Fado Batido and reaching us in all its worldliness.

“Maçã D’Adão” includes the singles “Mouraria Moirama” and “Bato a Porta,” songs that highlight two dimensions of the album: the cultural richness and the Iberian heritage of our culture. The album aligns with the artist’s mission to bring dance back to Fado through the project Bate Fado, a show acclaimed by the newspapers Público and Expresso, aimed at recovering the act of tapping or stepping in Fado, creating a contemporary dialogue between percussion, voice, and guitars.

“I aim for people’s bodies to react when they listen to this album. That’s why ‘Maçã D’Adão’ is conceptually based on three strong vectors. The first is the cultural richness that Fado embodies, celebrating those Iberian, Afro-Brazilian, and even Arab sounds, while also traveling from north to south of our country. Another dimension is the mystique associated with Fado, intertwining the sacred and the profane, embracing ideas of destiny, the wheel of fortune, and oracles, such as palm readings, cowrie shells, or tarot. This album also seeks to recover that ritualistic dimension, both on stage and in the lyrics and themes. Finally, it’s a record that continues to revive the dance of Fado Batido and brings back the Afro-Brazilian, Latin American, and even Gitan sounds that are part of Fado, including that element of dance.”

JONAS

The second album by the Fado singer is also inspired by the first chapter of the Bible—Genesis—focused on creation, as well as Jonas’s recent passion for clay and ceramics, particularly emphasizing the pagan and religious aspects of the figurines from Barcelos, which he considers to have a mystical dimension akin to Fado. In addition to being the author, Jonas takes on production for the first time in his career. He is joined in this mission by Acácio Barbosa, Bernardo Romão, Tiago Valentim, and Yami Aloelela, musicians who have accompanied him for several years, along with Jorge Fernando, a key figure in Fado.

Jonas’s new album follows “São Jorge,” released in 2021. “Maçã D’Adão” was presented live last Saturday, September 14th, at Capitólio in Lisbon.

ABOUT JONAS

As a multidisciplinary artist, Jonas has established himself as a prominent figure in the Portuguese artistic scene. A dancer, choreographer, singer-songwriter, and Fado performer, he has nearly two decades of experience, showcasing his original work on various national and international stages.

Recognizing that Fado was danced for nearly half of its existence and that, in 19th-century Lisbon, there was a socially expressive dance known as “Fado Batido”—named for the act of tapping one’s foot to the rhythm of Fado—Jonas decided to restore dance to Fado. He formed the duo Jonas&Lander and premiered “BATE FADO” in 2021, which was acclaimed as the best dance show of the year by the newspapers Público and Expresso. In the same year, he released his debut album as a singer-songwriter, “São Jorge,” produced by Jorge Fernando and published by Valentim de Carvalho, noted for its irreverence and freshness in writing and composition, significantly contributing to the lyrical expansion of Fado. In 2022, he brought this universe to the Festival da Canção with the song “Pontas Soltas.”

Influenced by world music tied to local identities, as well as the ethnic aspects of music, Jonas draws inspiration from Flamenco, Cape Verdean, Brazilian, Portuguese, and African music, alongside artists like Cesária Évora, Juanito Valderrama, Chico Buarque, Zeca Afonso, and Amália Rodrigues. His goal is to speak about our identity as Portuguese people, as Fado is inevitably linked to it.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION