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Sonia Shirsat

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Sonia Shirsat is a Fado singer in India. She is from the region of Goa, which till 1961 was a Portuguese colony and is now a State within India. Shirsat has been called "the ambassador of Goan music to the world".[1] A professional singer for over a decade, she has performed in many parts of the globe, across India and often during cultural and music events in Goa.

She sings in 13 different languages[2]

Background

In her earlier day job, Shirsat was a lecturer of law, and newspaper reports in Goa have noted that she "bagged an international award for her speaking skills, much before she started singing professionally".[3] She holds an LL.M (Master's in Law) degree.[3] She started singing as a hobby, and has been a professional singer since about 1999.[3] Her mother is Roman Catholic and her father, Hindu.[3]

Getting into the Fado

Shirsat is one of the few from India to excel in the Fado, a music genre which can be traced to the 1820s in Portugal or earlier. She credits Portuguese guitarist Antonio Chainho, who was offering guitar training in Goa some years ago. At the end of the workshop, there was a search for someone to sing the Fado. Shirsat's voice was found to have "fitted perfectly for the song", and thus began her "tryst with the genre", she says. In five years time, she performed at her first-ever solo concert, in Portugal, 2008.[3]

As of 2016, she has performed in Goa, Daman, Bangalore, Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Luxembourg, Macau, Kuwait, France, Singapore, Hawaii, Nepal, Canada, London, Dubai, Muscat, Lisbon and Qatar.[1]

Shirsat has performed along with some of the Fado greats, including Katia Guerreiro, Maria Ana Bobone, Raquel Tavares, Rao Kyao, Carlos do Carmo, Argentina Santos, Miguel Capucho, Ricardo Rocha and Mestro Antonio Chainho.[4] She has performed on a number of occasions on a number of Portugal-based TV channels, including in live performances on RTPI, Sociedade Independente de Comunicação and Televisão Independente.[4]

In Goa, she is known for her live performances at a number of venues, including the Art Chamber[5] at Calangute.

Musicography and performances

  • August 2016: Fado in the City performance
  • 2013: Released a Konkani album Ugddas, which was a collection of hit songs from that language.[6] This collection comprises cover versions of prominent musicians such as Alfred Rose, Chris Perry, Frank Fernand, Wilfy Remembus, among others. Shirsat is otherwise better known for her singing of the Fado, though she has also been working on Konkani music in recent times.
  • March 2010: Release in Lisbon of album 'Lisgoa' which Shirsat has performed in with Antonio Chainho
  • May 2010: Shirst released her debut album, 'Saudades de Fado', with Rock and Raaga, in Goa, India.
  • 2006: Selected for Fado scholarship in Portugal.[2]

Awards

Shirsat has won the following awards:

Media comments

The Hindu newspaper said of her: "Sonia is a prodigious singer with a versatile voice. Rated as the best Fadista in India of all time, the talented singer has toured across the globe."[8]

References

  1. ^ a b "Doha: Music, football to blend at World Goa Day celebrations". Daijiworld. 4 November 2013. Retrieved 13 September 2016.
  2. ^ a b Abreu, Aliya (20 November 2015). "Thank You For The Music, Sonia Shirsat". Goa Streets. Retrieved 13 September 2016.
  3. ^ a b c d e Rodrigues, Jonathan (25 January 2015). "A little bit of Portugal in PONDA". The Times of India. Retrieved 13 September 2016.
  4. ^ a b "Sonia Shirsat". BlueFrog. Blue Frog Media. Retrieved 13 September 2016.
  5. ^ Sudan, Jugneeta (28 August 2016). "Alchemical Music". The Navhind Times. Retrieved 13 September 2016.
  6. ^ Achrekar, Pratima (27 February 2013). "It's all about memories: Sonia Shirsat". The Times of India. Retrieved 13 September 2016.
  7. ^ "TAG awards the cream of the Konkani music and song world". The Times of India. 1 April 2016. Retrieved 13 September 2016.
  8. ^ Moses R., Allan (27 March 2010). "From coast to coast". The Hindu. Retrieved 13 September 2016.
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