She loved Portugal and the Portuguese people loved her too. The criticism she faced when they accused her of siding with their unpopular dictator Salazar wounded her deeply. It was only later when they discovered that she had donated funds to the party which had done most to oust him that she regained her unadulterated popularity. When she died in October 1999, political campaigning for the imminent elections was cancelled as a mark of respect and national mourning was declared for a three day period. Last April, Government ministers, famous colleagues including Ada de Castro , family, friends and the people of Lisbon assembled on the banks of the Tagus, the river she had made so famous, for the unveiling of a permanent memorial to their icon, a sculpture of her as figurehead at the prow of a ship.
Fado is the music at the heart of Portugal.
Noone who hears it in its country of origin will ever forget the haunting lyricism of the Portuguese guitar blending with the dark velvet quality of the viola, as the guitar resembling the Spanish guitar is known in Portugal. With both Portuguese and English versions, it was the 1999 official entry for the Unesco Web prize. You surf the site to the accompaniment of the guitarras which give flavour and atmosphere, a real feel of the culture about which you are reading. Amalia, of course, is to be found here too among the greats. Often described as the folk song of Portugal, fado is so much more.