Dulce Pontes

Biography

Pontes was born in 1969 in Montijo, a town in the District of Setúbal, near Lisbon. She trained as a pianist, and started a career in singing after entering a competition in her hometown at the age of 18. She soon became an actress on Portuguese television and theater. In 1991, she won the national music festival with her song "Lusitana Paixão", (known in English as "Tell Me"), which led her to represent Portugal at the Eurovision Song Contest. She finished 8th in the competition, which is to date the fourth-best finish for a Portuguese performer.

One of her best known songs is her interpretation of "Canção do Mar" (Song of the Sea), which was later recorded by Sarah Brightman under the name "Harem", and became an international hit in 2003.

Dulce Pontes started her career as a mainstream pop artist, but over the years she has evolved to become a world music singer. She blends traditional fado with contemporary styles and searches out new forms of musical expression. She introduced musical traditions of the Iberian Peninsula in her work, rediscovered many long forgotten popular tunes and found use for obsolete musical instruments. Her work is inspired and influenced not only by Iberian musical tradition, but also Arabic, African, Brazilian and Bulgarian sounds. She sings mostly in her native Portuguese.

Dulce Pontes has collaborated with Cesária Évora, Caetano Veloso, Marisa Monte, Carlos Núñez, the Chieftains, Kepa Junkera, Eleftheria Arvanitaki, George Dalaras, Andrea Bocelli (O Mar e Tu, duet sung by Pontes in Portuguese and Bocelli in Neapolitan, for his 1999 album Sogno), Christopher Tin for his albums Calling All Dawns (for the song Se É Pra Vir Que Venha) and The Drop That Contained the Sea (for the song Passou o Verão) and others. Her song "Canção do Mar" appeared on the soundtrack of Hollywood film Primal Fear. A 30-second piece of that same song serves as the theme to the NBC police drama Southland. Her album Focus is the fruit of a collaboration with Italian composer Ennio Morricone with whom she has also performed live.

In June 2006, Pontes prepared her double LP O Coração Tem Três Portas (The Heart Has Three Doors). It was recorded live without an audience in Convent of the Order of Christ in Tomar and St Mary Church in Óbidos. According to the artist, it is "her most personal and intimate album." It includes Portuguese folk music, mostly fado". It was released in December 2006.

In 2009, Pontes released Momentos, a career-spanning double disc collection that included previously unreleased tracks.

Personal life

She is the mother of a son José Gabriel, who was born on 23 January 2002 in Lisbon and a daughter Maria José, who was born on 24 January 2009 in Amadora.

Discography