Until April 25, 2024, BLITZ publishes a list of 50 songs that paved the way for the freedom achieved 50 years ago. These are songs that, during the Estado Novo, foreshadowed the change that occurred on April 25, 1974, and gave shape to a cultural revolution that long preceded the political revolution that put an end to the dictatorship. The texts are written by Luís Freitas Branco, author of “The Revolution Before the Revolution” (Zigurate, 2024), to be published this month, a book that documents the way in which Portuguese popular music opened the doors to the cultural, social and politician that triggered April 25, 1974. Every day, this list will ‘receive’ a new song.
14. ‘The Wind Changed’, by Eduardo Nascimento (1967)
In the corridors of Instituto Superior Técnico, a Mechanical Engineering student, a musician in his spare time, challenges his colleague to write a poem for a new composition, which would be submitted to the Song Festival. “We need to start breaking all of this down”, explained Nuno Nazareth Fernandes. Colleague, João Magalhães Pereira, agrees, and writes a warning: “listen, listen, the wind has changed.” The wind of change was such that the song was performed by rocker Eduardo Nascimento (1943-2019), with a sublime low tone and lightness of hip. The international exposure of a black Portuguese singer, born in Angola, was soon instrumentalized by the Estado Novo: here was proof that Portugal lived in full racial harmony. In plain sight, the wind was already blowing in the opposite direction.
Tags: Songs Announced #25th April Vento Mudou Eduardo Nascimento
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