live in paris

the title of a live concert dvd of the one and only cesaria evora
recorded at the zenith in paris on saturday april 28th 2001
i've watched this one many times but after seeing her name up in lights
well at least in a previous blog listing in reference to a style of music called morna
i decided it was time to re-visit an old favourite
morna originates from her home country of cape verde
and is an intersection of african, brazilian and fado (portuguese) music
i was previously blissfully unaware of the naming of the style
but anything that represents a combination of the aforementioned styles can only be good
cesaria comes on stage to rapturous applause that just keeps going
she has a huge smile on her 60-year old face, is beautifully attired and in bare feet
hence her nickname the barefoot diva
the first tune sets the style for the night with a highly polished band in support
piano seems to be a feature with various other acoustic instruments
she sings in her native cape verde creole language which sounds very french
the band immediately comfortable having presumably performed the tunes many times
but no bored looks here - lots of smiles, body-swaying and foot-tapping going on
savane is the second tune and a personal favourite
it's a gorgeous, melodic song with a quite melancholic sound to it
it features a very handsome man on acoustic guitar up front who seems to love this song also
he seems to be the musical director for the group and probably not unintentionally
takes up residence at the front of the stage providing a focus of attention for the ladies in the house
cesaria herself is fairly static on stage but obviously enjoying the love from the audience
there's a constant slide show at work projecting images to the rear of the stage
it's hard to pin down the style of the music but the almost old-time piano dominates
and is augmented by a beautifully clear and strong voice from the lady herself
in the slower numbers it is very easy to pick up on the fado influence
and when the band cranks up again the brazilian influence comes through very clearly
for example on sangue de beirona which features a clarinet played at high speed
there's been some thought put into the visuals for this dvd
with occassional cuts to pre-recorded segments of cesaria in various locations
so along with the on-stage slides and the multitude of musicians there is always something going on
the voice of course is always there but you get the impression she just does not want constant attention
but in the end it is a great ensemble performance
and it is lapped up by the large crowd
a concert par excellence