Katia Guerreiro

Katia was born the 23 February 1976 in South Africa and soon after the family returns to the island of S. Miguel, Azores, where she was raised. At the age of 15 she plays the local instrument, a kind of guitar, at the folk band “Rancho Folclórico de Santa Cecília”. It was the start-up of her musical career. When she graduated high school she leaves to Lisbon to attend medical university course. She graduates doctor in 2000, but the academic years were also spent as vocalist of rock band “Os Charruas”.

In October 2000 she goes on stage in a tribute concert to Amalia Rodrigues in Lisboa and she delights the audience with the best performance of Fado of the night. From then on her career as Fado singer was destined.

"Fado Maior", her first record, is issued in June 2001 and wins the Jose Afonso Award, reaches the top of sales in South Korea and is represented in Japan by Editora Latina and in Europe by Empreinte Digitale.

"Nas mãos do Fado", her second record is issued December 2003. The lyrics are carefully selected among the poetry pieces of the best Portuguese authors like Luis de Camões, Florbela Espanca, Ary dos Santos e António Lobo Antunes. Also nominee to the Jose Afonso Award this work confirms a promising career.

As recognition of her talent the Japanese TV network sends a team to Portugal to produce a piece on her life and her career. In 2004 the French Mezzo channel also produces a documentary on her career that goes on the air in September of that same year. On tour in Japan and France Katia performs ten shows in each country.

Worldwide critics pay tribute to Katia’s voice and she is interviewed by the most conceived media channels: RTP, TVI, TVE, TV5, NHK, Le Monde, BBC and others. Katia Guerreiro reveals the Fado to audiences that were unaware and catches the interest of some artists like the Brazilian Zé Renato with whom she comes to share her work.

During the year of 2004 she is commissioned to represent the Portuguese Government in official receptions to foreign governments either in and out of the country.

On the 30st anniversary of the Portuguese Revolution Katia is one of the 30 personalities awarded with the title of the most remarkable Portuguese contributors to the arts and science fields, aside with prominent scientists, concert directors and writers.

In February 2005 Katia accepts the challenge of Martinho da Vila, a brazilian singer, to sing a duet in his new album "Brasilatinidade". He considers her as the best interpreter of the new generation of Fado.

In October 2005 Katia issues her 3rd work, "Tudo ou nada", where she sings the poetry of Vinicius de Moraes, Sophia de Mello Breyner and Antonio Lobo Antunes, amongst others. Piano player Bernardo Sassetti plays for her the piece “Minha Senhora das Dores”.

This very year she is invited to open the new Concert Hall in Bern, Switzerland, and to sing in the Opera de Lyon, in France, where she also participates on the Rencontres pour l’Europe de la Culture, at the Comédie Fançaise in Paris, by invitation of the Minister of Culture, Mr. Donedieu de Vabres, aside with Tereza Berganza, Jeanne Moreau, Costa Gravas and Barbara Hendricks. At the end of her argumentation– and after a speech in her own language – Katia offered the audience a dramatic fado “A Capella” as a representation of this particular kind of music. Her eloquent statement for the cultural identity of each member state of the European Union argued for her nomination in the next year as member of the European Cultural Parliament.

The Director of the Cultural Centre in Paris of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation invites her, March 2006, to held a Conference/Concert subjected to the Fado (the first event of the kind for this particular type of music) with the musicologist and Professor of Evora University, Ruy Vieira Nery.

In 2006 the album "Tudo ou nada" is again released with two new pieces recorded with Ney Matogrosso during his visit to Lisbon: “Menina do Alto da Serra” and “Labios de Mel”. Guitar player Pedro Joia joins Katia in this Portuguese-Brazilian adventure.

In October 2008 a new collection of originals is released in a cd named "Fado", where Katia sings lyrics that she thoroughly selected, accompanied by her usual musicians. It includes some poems already issued in former albums, along with two poems by Fernando Tavares Rodrigues, a song that Charles Aznavour dedicated to Lisbon and still a poem from Katia herself with music composed by Rui Veloso.

In February 2009, after a tour in France, the channel Mezzo Voce (Corsica) produces a program about Katia’s career. In December of that same year, she has a new album: Fados do Fado, that recreates some of the most famous fado hits of Tony de Matos, Max, Tristão da Silva, Herminia Silva, Teresa Silva Carvalho, João Ferreira Rosa, and of course Amalia Rodrigues . About this personal selection, the singer says: "There are themes that become benchmarks, steps that we all pass by. These songs are all good examples of that." This album has the participation of António Mão-de-Ferro, a musician in the area of blues who Katia considers a gain of originality in this album of classics.

Since the beginning of her career, Katia took the fado all over the world: France, Morocco, Belgium, England, Wales, Egypt, Switzerland, Spain, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Greece, South Korea, Japan , Italy, Tunisia, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Canada, South Africa, New Caledonia, Turkey and India. All these countries cherished and applauded her art in the most beautiful stages and in the most important music festivals.

In May 2010 – the year Katia celebrates the first decade of her artistic career – she gets from Amalia Rodrigues Foundation an important award: the one of “Best Performer of Fado”.

She released a special edition CD+DVD of her memorable concert at the Olympia, Paris, in 2013. In 2014, she releases "Até ao Fim" and, in 2018, "Sempre".

Source:

http://katiaguerreiro.blogs.sapo.pt/