Aktion	Zweigstelle	Standorte	Status	Frist	Vorbestellungen
Vorbestellen	Zweigstelle: 07., Urban-Loritz-Pl. 2a	Standorte: CD.11 Kapv / College 5a - Szene	Status: Verfügbar	Frist:	Vorbestellungen: 0

Portuguese singer Lura was born Maria de Lurdes Pina Assunago in Lisbon in 1975 as the daughter of parents from the Cape Verde islands of São Tiago and Santo Antão, and raised in the Creole section of the city. As a teenager, she pursued a career in sports education, but she left that behind when she was hired as a dancer and backup singer for Juka. After a duet with Bonga and partnerships with Tito Paris and Paulino Vieira, she was signed as a solo artist to Lusafrica. Although an album called In Love was released in 2002, she describes her 2004 disc, Di Korpu Ku Alma, as her first "proper" album. It was followed in 2006 by M'bem di Fora (I Come from Far Away), which she followed with a world tour. Four Quarters Entertainment licensed and released her next Lusafrica album, Eclipse, in North America on June 16, 2009, and she toured the U.S. that July. On Eclipse, she mixes styles from her islands, from Europe, and from Africa into a smooth hybrid style. The basic instrumentation consists of acoustic guitars, an electric bass, and multiple percussion instruments, plus the occasional violin and accordion. There is a steady, complex rhythmic underpinning that never becomes heavy, but always supports the singer, who has an expressive, emotional contralto. Singing songs written by a variety of songwriters (she herself contributes to a single tune), she evokes various romantic situations and also paints a portrait of rural, poor, island life, with its farmers and fishermen and families. (The Portuguese lyrics are translated in the CD booklet of the North American release by Four Quarters Entertainment.) Musically, the album alternates rhythm numbers and ballads, but no matter the beats or the subject matter, things never get too furious or too slow. Eclipse is a varied and melodic collection of songs by a talented singer steeped in the tradition of her island heritage, yet alive to contemporary influences. (amg)