Minister of Culture mourns death of "great fado singer" Maria da Nazaré

" Fado has lost Maria da Nazaré", wrote Margarida Balseiro Lopes on her page on the social network X. "She was a great fado singer with a career spanning more than half a century, who won over audiences both in Portugal and abroad. The country is grateful to her and so am I. Forever!"

Fado singer Maria da Nazaré, twice winner of the Great Night of Fado in Lisbon, died early this morning in Corroios, aged 79.

Maria da Nazaré Martins, her full name, was born on February 9, 1946, in Barreiro, district of Setúbal, but as a girl she settled in the Lisbon neighborhood of Campo de Ourique.

With a professional career spanning over 50 years, Maria da Nazaré won the Amália Award for Best Interpreter in 2013. Ten years earlier, Casa da Imprensa had already awarded her the Career Award.

The fado singer was part of the casts of fado houses such as Lisboa à Noite, O Embuçado, Senhor Vinho, Clube do Fado, Bacalhau de Molho and Arreda, and also performed on several foreign stages.

In 2007, he was in the cast of the film "Fados" (2007), by Carlos Saura, alongside, among others, Mariza, Carlos do Carmo, Vicente da Câmara, Ana Sofia Varela, Carminho, Ricardo Ribeiro, Pedro Moutinho and Chico Buarque.

He recorded with Fernando Farinha (1928-1978) and the bullfighting knight José Mestre Baptista (1940-1985). His latest album, "Regressos" (2019), was recorded with his friend, fado singer António Passão.

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