Welcome to Liana’s official website

Brief Resumé

  • Born in Coimbra in the north of Portugal, soon moves to the capital Lisboa, and starts singing fado at the age of 9, in Coliseu dos Recreios. At 14, she wins the most important contest of fado music in the country “Grande Noite do Fado 94″ as a juvenile and at 16 as a senior, being the first person to ever win the contest twice.
  • Among other 11 first prizes, she wins in 2000 the Festival RTP da Canção, the contest promoted by the national television to choose the Eurovision participant.
  • Under the direction of Filipe La Féria, she stars as the young Amália Rodrigues (the internationally recognised diva of fado) in “Amália - The Musical”, playing the main role for five years in a play that became the most successful ever in Portugal, recording also a CD and a DVD of the show and winning a prize for best new actress and encouraging critics.
  • Having two recorded albums in tape from her first career years as a child (94 and 96), her first professional album is released in 2004, under the title “Fado.pt”, an experimental work.
  • In author´s edition releases the cd “Sombra” in 2005
  • Alongside with her solo career, joins the band Stockholm Lisboa Project, that mixes Portuguese and Swedish traditional songs and, with them, releases a new cd “Sol” in 2007 - www.stockholmlisboa.com
  • Disenchanted with the cultural and economic situation of her country, departs to London with a scholarchip given by GDA, and resides there for three years managing a fado restaurant in Knightsbridge, one of the most prestigious neighborhoods of London while studying for a degree in Tourism Management.
  • For the restaurant she produces several cultural events introducing Portuguese music, literature, handicrafts and gastronomy to a vast public of foreigners. Starts giving fado workshops in London and several other European cities.
  •  In 2008, held together with the singer Reem Kelani, the concert “From Palestine to Portugal”, an approach to the Arabic roots of Portuguese music, where she sings in both the Portuguese and Arabic languages. This concert was commissioned by Musicport Festival and Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation.
  • In 2009, releases her second album “Diagonal” with the band Stockholm Lisboa Project, achieving very good reviews in world music magazines and other press. “Diagonal” proudly receives the German Record Critics Award 2009 and Stockholm Lisboa Project gets nominated for Best Group and Best Cross-cultural Collaboration on the Songlines World Music Awards 2010.
  • Liana has toured Australia, USA, Canada and Brazil, alongside with several European countries (Spain, France, Luxembourg, Swiss, Sweden, England, Germany, Holland, Finland, Romania, Austria)
  • In 2010 returns to Portugal to produce her new solo album while doing her Master in Anthropology and Social Politics, and is invited by Filipe la Féria to star as Severa and Hermínia Silva, two Fado icons, in the musical “Fado - História de um Povo (A People’s History)” in Casino Estoril - Lisbon. 
  • With Stockholm Lisboa Project gets selected to a showcase at Womex 2010 in Copenhagen– The world’s biggest international world music fair.
  • Regarding her personal life, Liana is an activist of various causes:
    Sponsors a child in Mozambique for many years - Altino, now 12 - through http://helpo.pt
    Is a member of the animals rights association http://blogdaanimal.blogspot.com proudly promoting vegetarianism
    Does volunteering with elderly people in several senior homes and parish councils in the Lisbon district http://www.bolsadovoluntariado.pt