Ana Laíns

Source: museudofado.pt

Ana Laíns sings for the first time in public at the age of 6. Born in Tomar, she discovered her talent for music at an early age and at the age of 15 she sang her first fado in public. After winning the Grande Noite do Fado de Lisboa in 1999, she decided to bet on her musical career and performed in the United States, Germany, Belgium and Luxembourg.

Despite having signed her first record contract in 2003 with “Difference”, she only felt mature enough to record her debut album at the end of 2005, with the help of Diogo Clemente in musical direction and production. In April 2006, the first album – “Sentidos” finally arrived on the market, where she interprets some of her favorite poems, written by Florbela Espanca, Lídia Oliveira and António Ramos Rosa, among others, and in which she is accompanied by exceptional musicians.

The “Sentidos” tour passes through Spain, Belgium, Holland, Russia and Greece, where she was considered “the diva of a different fado”. International critics praised the work and the British magazine Songlines highlighted the singer’s absolutely contemporary exercise in fado. In Portugal she was considered a great revelation for giving a new color to fado and Portuguese music.

In the summer of 2009, Boy George invited her to record in a duet “Amazing Grace”, included in his most recent work and, in February 2010, she released her new album “Quatro Caminhos”, which again has the complicity of Diogo Cemente in the production and musical direction. She continues her foray into fado and traditional music with compositions by Diogo Clemente, Amélia Muge, José Manuel David and Filipe Raposo, among others. Regarding the poetry, Ana Laíns privileged the theme of life and its various perspectives, choosing poems by Natália Correia, by the Uruguayan Rúben Darío or by Brazilian Carlos Drummond de Andrade, and debuts as a lyricist with a tribute to fado in the theme “Não sou nascida no fado”.

With the “Quatro Caminhos” tour, in 2012, she sold out venues like the one at DeDoelen, in Rotterdam, or the Tropen Theater, in Amsterdam. In Germany she performs at the Passionskirche in Berlin and at the Harmonie room in Bonn, where some of the greatest icons of Jazz and World Music have passed. In Portugal, she performs on several stages, with emphasis on the commemorative concert of Fernando Alvim’s 55-year career and, also, for her participation in the Gala Amália, at Coliseu dos Recreios, in November 2012. Ana Laíns was also invited to give voice to the Great March of Lisbon 2012, themed the discoveries and the cultural connection between Portugal and Brazil.

Ana Laíns participates in the two editions, 2013 and 2014, of the largest fado festival organized in Portugal – Caixa Alfama – alongside voices such as Camané, Ana Moura, António Zambujo, Ricardo Ribeiro and Maria da Fé, among others.

In the 2014 show tour Ana Laíns passed through Austria (where 12 of her concerts sold out, in emblematic places such as the Vienna Metropol, the Innsbruck Treibhaus, the Salzburg Oval or the Orpheum de Graz), Spain, Turkey (where she represented Portugal on 10 June, in Ankara), Germany and Portugal (where the tour ended with a sold-out concert at the Centro Cultural Olga Cadaval, officially presented as Ambassador for the Celebrations of the 8 Centuries of Portuguese Language).

Ana Laíns says she sees music today “as a free and globalized form of expression. It may seem like a paradox, but perhaps this knowledge is the biggest reason for my loyalty to Fado, traditional music and the Portuguese language.” Critics love her on stage, highlighting the virtuous way of singing, her strong performance, interpretation and natural ability to reach the audience, essentially valuing her eclectic side.

In 2017, she released “Portucalis”, an album entirely dedicated to Portugal. On May 14, 2021, he edits “20 Anos – Ana Laíns e convidados ao vivo no Casino Estoril”, an album recorded at the concert celebrating 20 years of career at Salão Preto e Prata at Casino Estoril in January 2020.