MARTA PEREIRA DA COSTA – A FADO PERFORMANCE

Marta Pereira da Costa is truly one of a kind. As the first woman to professionally take up the traditional Portuguese style of guitar known as fado, a blues-like form that weds sumptuously plaintive melodies to poetic lyrics about love, loss and the vicissitudes of fate, she is charting new territory for female instrumentalists while quickly becoming the ambassador of Portugal’s most iconic musical tradition.

Marta brings her unique take on Portuguese sounds to the JCCSF for an evening of dazzling, emotionally-charged music from her original repertoire as well as classics from the artists that have influenced her. Presented in partnership with the Consulate General of Portugal in San Francisco, this musical journey through Portugal, from land to seas and everything in between, is also a celebration marking the 50th anniversary of the Carnation Revolution, the beginning of democracy in Portugal.

Marta Pereira da Costa began learning the guitarra Portuguesa, or Portuguese guitar, under Carlos Gonçalves, at the age of eighteen. She studied civil engineering and worked in that field for eight years before leaving the profession in 2012 to dedicate herself entirely to music. In 2014 she was distinguished by the Amália Rodrigues Foundation (named after the world-renowned “Queen of Fado”) with the prestigious “Instrumentalist Award.” In 2016, Marta released her eponymous debut album with Warner Music Portugal, featuring contributions from global and Portuguese musicians Richard Bona, Dulce Pontes, Camané, and Rui Veloso. Her international performances have taken her across Brazil, Canada, and Europe, and in 2019, to the US, where she performed coast to coast at sold out shows at Lincoln Center, the Kennedy Center, and South by Southwest. In 2023 she released her second album, Canções sem Palavras and was featured on NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert series, demonstrating her fingerpicking prowess alongside second guitarist João José Pita Junior and percussionist Pedro Segundo.

All seating is first come, first served.

Questions? Email [email protected]