António Variações

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Bust of António Variações in the home parish of Fiscal

António Joaquim Rodrigues Ribeiro (born December 3, 1944 in Lugar de Pilar, Fiscal ; † June 13, 1984 in Lisbon ) was a Portuguese singer and songwriter. Despite his short-lived career, due to his premature death at the age of 39, he became one of the most culturally significant artists in modern Portuguese history under the stage name António Variações . His recorded works mix contemporary music with traditional Portuguese rhythms and melodies, composing music that for many is a symbol of the liberalization that arose in Portuguese society after the Carnation Revolution of 1974. The original and provocative nature of his recorded works continues to bring him recognition as one of the most innovative artists in the recent history of Portuguese pop music.

First years

António Variações was born in Lugar do Pilar, a small town in Fiscal (Amares, Braga), the fifth of ten children of Deolinda de Jesus and Jaime Ribeiro. As a child, his love of music often diverted him from doing field work to celebrate at local folklore festivals. He graduated from elementary school at the age of eleven and soon afterwards began his first job making small pieces of jewelry in the neighboring municipality of Caldelas . At the age of twelve he came to the capital, Lisbon, to work in an office. From 1964 to 1967 he was a conscript during the Portuguese colonial war in Angola , from which he came back safe and sound, and then worked as a dishwasher in a school in London for a year . In 1976 he briefly returned to Portugal and then went to Amsterdam , where he trained as a hairdresser, the profession he continued to do after returning to Lisbon the following year. He opened the first unisex salon in Portugal and then a barber shop in the city center (with the intuition that among his customers there were more people from the music business who could help him start his career). Parallel to this job, he started performing at night in the local club scene, together with a group of musicians called Variações (translated: Variations, a word that suggests the variety of vocal influences, as well as sound and style). His bright looks and Camp fashion accessories, which were unusual for a man in Portugal at the time, caught his attention.

Career

Contract with Valentim de Carvalho

In 1978 Antonio gave a demo cassette to Valentim de Carvalho , one of the most important record companies in Portugal, but despite signing a contract, he was unable to record for another four years as the label's executives weren't sure which genre, whether folk- or pop music, best suited to the artist's work and could therefore not come to a consensus on how the unusual artist should be marketed. In February 1981 he appeared with his band in a popular TV show by Júlio Isidro called Passeio dos Alegres , presented as António e Variações and played two previously unreleased songs ( Toma o comprimido and Não michconsumas ). After this performance, he was featured several times as a guest on Febre de Sábado de Manhã , a radio show on Rádio Comercial , by the same host.

"Anjo da Guarda"

In July 1982 his first single was released, this time under the name António Variações. This recording includes a cover version of the original Fado song Povo Que Lavas No Rio , immortalized by the diva of the genre, Amália Rodrigues, and a song by his own authorship, Estou Além . The cover song of the inviolable Fado caused controversy, but over time it was accepted as a heartfelt tribute by Variações to Amália Rodrigues, to whom he dedicated his first LP, released in 1983, to Anjo da Guarda , which received good reviews and popular acclaim. Two of the songs from this release, O Corpo É Que Paga and E P'ra Amanhã , were widely played on the radio, with the latter being released as a summer single.

"Dar & Receber"

After a series of concerts, António returned to the studio and recorded his second and final LP, Dar & Receber , between February 6 and 25, 1984 , which was released in May of the same year and was equally enthusiastic ( with the song Canção de Engate , one of the artist's greatest successes). Two months later he gave his last concert in the Portuguese community of Viatodos during the Feira da Isabelinha Festival . In April he had his last public TV appearance on the show "A Fest Continua", hosted by Júlio Isidro.

death

On May 18, 1984, Variações was admitted to Pulido Valente hospital with symptoms of asthmatic bronchitis and later transferred to the Red Cross Clinic. At this point, the artist's health was severely weakened and the rumor that he had AIDS began circulating, making him a target for discrimination given the prejudice against the disease. Except for his family and closest friends, he received few visits during his stay in the hospital. In June, the press reported a significant deterioration in his health. On the morning of June 13, António Variações died of bilateral bronchopneumonia.

The funeral service took place on June 15th at the Estrela Basilica , where family, friends, music colleagues, barbers and fans paid their last respects. The funeral sparked some controversy as the authorities ordered that his coffin remain closed amid public health concerns related to the rumor that he died of AIDS-related complications. António Variações' family does not acknowledge that this was the actual cause of death (nor that he was homosexual), but it is believed by most that he was one of the first public victims of the disease in Portugal. His former manager, Teresa Couto Pinto, claimed that Variações received clinical tests from the United States before his death that showed he was indeed HIV positive. His remains were buried in the Amares cemetery.

Music genre

António Variações had no formal musical training. His first musical influence was his father, who played the accordion and cavaquinho but never had the chance to become a serious musician. Through his travels abroad, Variações was able to come into contact with artists and genres that were not well known at home and started genres such as pop, rock, jazz, blues and new wave with his Portuguese folk and fado roots to combine.

He did not play a musical instrument and did not know how to compose music, but he did not let himself be dissuaded from making music. Using a tape recorder, he mimicked sounds and rhythms while singing, with his own voice or even by tapping his hands on various objects. These recordings were then used by the studio musicians who supported him as the basis for the song arrangements. Variações' music is characterized by the use of a wide variety of instruments - from synthesizers , Portuguese and classical guitars , accordions, and many more.

Biography of António Variações by Manuela Gonzaga "entre Braga e Nova Iorque"

He himself described the genre definition for his music as: something between Braga and New York, which defines the cosmopolitan yet down to earth and rural aspects of his electric style. He was literally intent on becoming a popular artist, and he managed to reach a wide range of audiences, from the workers to the white-collar workers, the uneducated and the intellectuals, young and old alike.

Poetry

Although he received only the minimum education (four years of elementary school was sufficient at the time, but he attended night school in Lisbon for some time) and had no musical training, Variações had a deep sense of rhythm and a sharp command of the written word. Variações texts are often a mixture of proverbs, folk wisdom and personal experiences. The popular nature of his words made it easy for most of his listeners to identify with the themes of the songs, which are often of restlessness, feelings of escapism, or the deceptive nature of love affairs. A few of his songs have an autobiographical response (such as Olhei P'ra Trás , in which he describes the sad but hopeful departure from his small village, or Deolinda de Jesus , which is dedicated to his mother).

Influences

António Variações was an ardent admirer of the Portuguese poet Fernando Pessoa (the LP Dar & Receber was dedicated to Pessoa in a cryptically unfinished sentence, used one of his poems in the song Canção ) and some of his lyrics share similarities with the feelings that Pessoa has in some Poems expressed. Another major influence was Amália Rodrigues , a fado singer of international repute. In addition to the first LP dedicated to her and a song she covered, he also wrote an ode to the singer, the song Voz-Amalia-de-Nos , in which he sings “Each of us has Amália in our voice and we have in her voice the voice of us all ”(Amália Rodrigues is a national icon in Portugal). Both artists met only once on May 26, 1983 for a concert in the Aula Magna in the University of Lisbon. Amália thanked him for his homage by attending his funeral.

During his numerous trips abroad he became known for the work of foreign artists such as David Bowie , Bryan Ferry , The Kinks , Elvis Presley and the Beatles . This encounter with a different musical culture left a deep impression on him; proof of this is the fact that his first attempts at music were written in the English language. He soon gave up this approach while searching for an authentic and personal style and only wrote in Portuguese.

Employee

Since Variações did not know how to compose music, he needed collaboration with other musicians while writing, as well as recording and producing. First he worked with the musicians Vítor Rua , Toli César Machado (both from the band GNR ) and José Moz Carrapa on his first LP "Anjo da Guarda", and then with Pedro Ayres Magalhães and Carlos Maria Trindade , then members of the band Heróis do Mar (and later Madredeus ) recording "Dar & Receber". The five members of Heróis do Mar were António's studio band, and became friends with Variações, especially Pedro Ayres Magalhães, who wrote of him lovingly in the cover text of Dar & Receber : “Thank you António, for your enthusiasm and trust, and I would like to write at this point that I have won a friendship ”.

Humanos

At the time of his death, Variações left a box of over forty tape and studio roles that had long been forgotten and that initially belonged to his brother, Jaime Ribeiro. These were then held for more than ten years by David Ferreira at EMI-Valentim de Carvalho until the journalist Nuno Galopim began to listen to and transcribe them, which marks the beginning of the Humanos music project .

Discography

Albums

year title Top ranking, total weeks, awardChartsChart placements
(Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes)
Remarks
PT PTTemplate: chart table / maintenance / charts non-existent
1984 Dar & Receber PT16 (3 weeks)
PT
Chart entry in PT only in 2019
1997 O Melhor de António Variações PT1 (27 weeks)
PT
Compilation
chart entry in PT only 2004
2006 A Historia de António Variações - entre Braga e Nova Iorque PT3 (21 weeks)
PT
Compilation containing previously unreleased demos
2019 Variações PT2 (13 weeks)
PT
Soundtrack

gray hatching : no chart data available for this year

More albums

  • 1983 - Anjo da Guarda
  • 1998 - Anjo da Guarda (third studio album, includes the bonus track Povo que Laven no rio )
  • 2000 - Dar & Receber (fourth studio album, contains three versions (two of which are remixes) by Minha cara sem fronteiras )

Singles

year Title
album
Top ranking, total weeks, awardChartsChart placements
(Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes)
Remarks
PT PTTemplate: chart table / maintenance / charts non-existent
1997 Canção de engate
Dar & Receber
PT83 (1 week)
PT
Chart entry in PT only in 2019

gray hatching : no chart data available for this year

More singles

  • 1982 - Povo Que Lavas No Rio / Estou Além
  • 1983 - É P'ra Amanhã ... / Quando Fala Um Português ...
  • 1997 - O Corpo É Que Paga / É P'ra Amanhã… (Remix by Nuno Miguel)
  • 1998 - Minha cara sem fronteiras - entre Braga e Nova Iorque

tribute

  • Cover songs
    • 1987 - Dolphins - Canção de Engate
    • 1995 - Amarguinhas - Estou Além
    • 1996 - MDA - Dar & Receber
    • 1996 - MDA - Estou Além
    • 2004 - Donna Maria - Estou Além
    • 2005 - RAMP - Anjinho da Guarda
  • Albums
    • 1989 - Lena D'Água - Tu Aqui
    • 1994 - Variações - As Canções de António
    • 2004 - Humanos - Humanos

Biography Variações

A biographical film about António Variações was in preproduction for a long time. The first script was written by director João Maia but was considered unsuitable for production and a new script has since been written by Evan J. Maloney. João Maia then found himself in a lawsuit with Utopia Films , the production company that wanted to finance the film. The film was scheduled for release in 2009.

On August 22, 2019, the film was finally released in cinemas under the title Variações , accompanied by a broad advertising campaign and media interest, produced by Fernando Vendrell's production company David & Golias and distributed by NOS film distribution .

Trivia

  • António Variações died on the day of Saint Anthony of Lisbon and the birthday of Fernando Pessoa, whose poetry Variações greatly influenced.
  • When Fernando Pessoa died, he left a suitcase full of unpublished works and fragments, much like Variações left a box of unheard recordings and works in progress, as well as lyrical fragments.
  • Variações drew attention to his singing and songwriting talents with the popular radio and TV presenter Júlio Isidro by giving him a new haircut.
  • He also cut the hair of the members of Heróis do Mar. At the time they were in a band called Corpo Diplomático and he made them New Wave haircuts for a photo op. He also gave his manager, Teresa Couto Pinto, a radical Mecki hairstyle that earned her the name "Punk Teresa".
  • His house has been described by visitors as a strange place, with a plastic doll at the entrance. His bedroom walls were pink, which was lightened further when a red lamp was on. His barber shop has also been decorated in an extravagant way, with bold colors, ballroom dresses and old flacons.
  • He had a passion for junk and collected various objects at flea markets, which he sorted by topic (such as type, color, etc.). It is said that his collections were so large that they filled entire rooms from floor to ceiling.
  • He didn't smoke, didn't drink, and usually started his day working out in the gym.
  • Variações was famous for making bold and provocative statements in interviews. At one he explained that Amália could sing rock music.
  • He considered himself a "non-practicing" Catholic, but appreciated the calm atmosphere and the beauty of the churches.
  • António Variações was voted 98th in a public poll by the TV show " Os Grandes Portugueses ".
  • Variações openly admitted his homosexuality before his death.

See also

literature

  • Gonzaga, Manuela; António Variações: Entre Braga e Nova Iorque; Âncora Editora, 2006, ISBN 9727801749
  • Variações, António, Muda de Vida; Relógio de ÁguaEditores, 2006, ISBN 9727088732

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. a b Chart sources: PT
  2. http://ipsilon.publico.pt/cinema/texto.aspx?id=221127