Search - Amalia Rodrigues :: Com Que Voz

Amália at her best!

Fernando Forte | Lisbon, Portugal | 06/05/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Allthough everything she did was simply great and magical, "Com Que Voz" is Amália's best record, rated by critics and public alike as one of the best, if not the best of Portuguese albums of all time. And the reasons are also apparently simple, but unique: the musical arrangements and melodies, the words of the songs, and Amália's unique and unforgettable voice. She chose to sing poems by some of the greatest Portuguese-speaking poets of all time, like David Mourão-Ferreira, Alexandre O'Neil, Ary dos Santos, Manuel Alegre, and the brazilian Cecília Meireles. The music was composed by Amália's "private" composer, who chose only to write music for her voice, Alain Oulman, of French-Portuguese origin, whose melodies allowed for a greater extension and colloratura, adequate to all Amália could give and waiting for her total delivery. From the deep-felt sad poetry of songs like "Naufrágio", "Cuidei que Tinha Morrido", to the lighter and happier tunes of "Maria Lisboa", "Havemos de Ir a Viana", inspired in portuguese folklore, to the bossa-nova inspired "Formiguinha Bossa Nova", and finally to the soulfullness of the great love songs like the ever flying "Gaivota" (Seagull), and "Meu Amor, Meu Amor" (My Love, My Love"), Amália's voice runs the gamut of all emotions, from a light-hearted jolly mood to an austere deeply-felt sincerity, awesomely but beautifully conveyed by her powerful, strong voice and its beautiful colloratura. Listening to Amália is listening to a new world unraveling in one's heart. Simply the best!"

Moving and passionate

Fernando Forte | 11/05/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I was sitting in an independent movie theater in New York City, waiting for my movie to begin, when I first heard this CD. It moved me so much that I was compelled to ask the theater manager for the name of the singer--it was then that I was introduced to Amalia Rodriguez and the whole Fado movement, of which I knew nothing. I bought the CD about three weeks before the attacks on the World Trade Center, and since then, Amalia's voice has become a pool of comfort that I have plunged myself into over and over again. There is something so passionate and strong, and yet so very vulnerable, about her singing that I believe it would stir even the most stagnant among us. You will not regret owning this music."

What A Voice!

Kenneth H. Young | ClearlakeOaks, CA USA | 03/02/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is It: the penultimate Amalia recording and, apart from (& thanks to!) Amazon.com; one of the most difficult to locate elsewhere. Perhaps it is because it is the one perfect cd. From the opening joy of Naufragio & on to the piece de resistance Com Que Voz thru the jazzy Formiga Bossa Nossa & the heart-opening Meu Amor, Meu Amor (anything more lovely?), this is a perfect full concept, pristine-quality recording with Amalia in Top Form. After this treasure, try Amalia rodrigues 7 926712, a hauntingly beautiful cd opening with Asas Fechadas (& a rare piano joining guitarra & viola). As wonderful and abundant (thanks to EMI reissues in 2000 & 2001) as these recordings are, Com Que Voz is the crown jewel!"