Maria do Carmo

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Maria do Carmo Fontes Páscoa Bernardo, better known as Maria do Carmo (1884 – 1964), was a popular Portuguese fado singer in Lisbon and Brazil. Carmo was born on 11 January 1884 (although not all sources agree on the year), in the parish of São João Baptista in the town of Moura, in the Alentejo region of Portugal. She was the daughter of Francisco António Páscoa and Madalena Augusta Fontes, both local farmers. At the age of three she moved to Lisbon, in the Estrela area. Teófilo Braga, a future president of Portugal, who lived in the house opposite hers, encouraged her to sing popular songs. She started attending fado events when she was 11 years old and responded with pleasure to requests to sing. Later, she became an apprentice shirtmaker, where she acquired the skills that would allow her to set up her own business at home. She began her career as a fado singer while having this business to fall back on if things went badly. In 1921/22 she went to Brazil, planning to set up a sewing shop but, faced with difficulties, she started a small pension that she called Pensão Familiar, a place where traditional Portuguese cuisine was served. 30 months later, Carmo returned to Lisbon where she once again organized her business.