Thursday, 8 March 2018

PORTUGAL

The Portuguese Final was held on March 4th at Pavilhão Multiusos in Guimarães, hosted by Filomena Cautela & Pedro Fernandes. Before the final there were 2 semi-finals where 6 qualified from each show. The winner waschosen by televoting (50%) & 7 regional juries (50%). Winning was Cláudia Pascoal with the song “O jardim” (The garden)

Cláudia stands in the middle of the stage in a long black dress this really punctuates her pink hair. Behind her on a chair facing backwards is her backing singer who just happens to be the writer of the song. She turns around part way through then turns back again. There is not much in the way of action and Cláudia sings the song very intensely and the emotion shows in her face and voice. The backdrop is blue and beneath her feet are the outlines of white petals and leaves.

This is quite a modern ethereal song, akin to something London Grammar might come out with. It starts with just piano backing. As the song progresses you suspect that an undercurrent, a beefed up beat will appear – but it never does. As the song progresses there is a very faint beat although it is more like a soft heart beat which fits with the words of the song. The lyrics are full of metaphors hinting at what the Portuguese call ‘saudade’ or longing, in this case being the thoughts and pain of those left behind when someone has died, all of which influences Cláudia’s emotional performance. You definitely feel a journey - a beginning, middle and end - when watching and listening.

The performance is very simple as is the song. The tune of the song is very memorable and repetitive but not in a bad way. It is much less orchestrated than Salvador’s entry last year and is much more insular in terms of meaning and performance. I think the language also sounds very pretty in the song. This is a great entry for the home crowd to support in my and also a great showcase of modern Portuguese singers and songwriters rather than the more traditional Fado. I think this will do well with the juries and will give a reasonable result for the home crowd.


ARTIST –  Cláudia Pascoal
SONG – O jardim (The garden)
MUSIC - Isaura
LYRICS - Isaura


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