Portuguese Fado Singer MARIZA to Make Dallas Debut

Continuing our tradition of seeking out world-class talent and bringing it to Dallas for the first time, TITAS is proud to present MARIZA, a Portuguese Fado sensation. Be one of the first to see her on Saturday, October 20, 2007 at 8:00 PM at McFarlin Auditorium!

Read this recent review of her performance in Washington D.C. to get a better idea of what this up-and-coming star will bring:

WASHINGTON POST by Stephen Brookes
26/03/2007

Mariza

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The traditional Portuguese music known as fado is not for the timid. Passionate and uninhibited, it revels in drama, diving recklessly into the dark pathos of the human heart. In the hands of its best interpreters, fado's power can be primal and almost overwhelming -- and it's starting to catch on with audiences around the world.

Much of the credit for that goes to Mariza, a 33-year-old fadista whose superb contralto voice and fearless sense of drama have made her a star on the rise. Born in Mozambique and raised in Portugal, she's been reviving and reinventing the traditional fado style, and the results -- as she showed at the Kennedy Center Concert Hall on Friday night -- are nothing short of spectacular.

Backed by a percussionist and a trio of guitars, Mariza sang a mix of newer and more traditional fado. "Cavaleiro Monge" and "Maria Lisboa" were fine-tuned and intricately detailed, her voice sweeping effortlessly from searing cries to whispered confessions. Full of longing, awash in sadness and regret, it was an evening of defiantly emotional music. And when Mariza unleashed the full power of her voice -- as she did in the wrenching "Primavera" -- it was one long, devastating cry from the heart.

The program was originally to include the Mexican singer Eugenia Leon, who had to cancel due to an injury. Unfortunate as that was, Mariza and her accompanying band -- particularly the amazing Luis Guerreiro on the round-bodied Portuguese guitar -- more than made up for the loss, winning multiple ovations from the packed house.

TITAS to present ANGELIQUE KIDJO next season

As part of the 2007-2008 Music Season, TITAS will be featuring African singing star ANGELIQUE KIDJO on Thursday, February 28, 2007 at 8:00 PM at McFarlin Auditorium.

For ticket information, please call the TITAS Box Office at 214-528-5576.

Check out the most recent news on Ms. Kidjo:

ANGELIQUE KIDJO RINGS IN HIGHEST ALBUM DEBUT EVER WITH "DJIN DJIN" LOS ANGELES (Starbucks Entertainment) - International music star Angelique Kidjo's has notched her highest chart position ever, as her new album DJIN DJIN (pronounced "gin gin") bows at No 61 on the Billboard Top 200 Album chart, selling nearly 11,000 copies in its first week. The album has also entered Billboard's World Music chart at No 1 and comes in at No 56 on the Canadian Album chart. DJIN DJIN was co-released on May 1st by Starbucks Entertainment and Razor & Tie Entertainment and has received rave reviews from the press. The Associated Press declared the album "lush, dense and beautiful", while The New York Times said of Kidjo's performances on the new album, "she handily reinforces her stature as an upbeat heroine of contemporary Afro-pop." The Washington Times stated, "Despite having been nominated four times, Ms. Kidjo has yet to take home a Grammy. If she continues putting material out like this, it's only a matter of time before she does." Kidjo and guest star Ziggy Marley will be performing a track from the album, "Sedjedo", on NBC's The Tonight Show on Tuesday, May 22nd and will appear on The CBS Saturday Early Show on Saturday, July 14th. The first single from DJIN DJIN, "Salala", featuring Peter Gabriel can be heard nationwide on such tastemaker radio stations as KFOG/San Francisco, WBOS/Boston, KCRW/Los Angeles and many more.

Kronos Quartet Gives Memorable Ending to 06-07 Season

As the final notes and images of Kronos Quartet's "Sun Rings" dissolved, the 2006-2007 TITAS Season came to a close.

Scott Cantrell wrote of the show:

Sometimes undergirded by synthesizer pulses, the music was certainly easy on the ear: foot-tapping dances (sometimes with quirky asymmetries), gentle songs, pretty quasi-chorales. The Kronos players (violinists David Harrington and John Sherba, violist Hank Dutt and cellist Jeffrey Zeigler) played very well indeed, and they waved hands over sensors to set off some of the celestial sound effects. Mark Grey was credited as sound designer, Brian Mohr as audio engineer.

By turns, and then together, the choruses sang soothing lines and harmonies. Of the unidentified texts I caught only the children's prayer "Now I lay me down to sleep." Led by Timothy Seelig, the singers sounded well-rehearsed and mostly assured.

Click here for the full review.