© Felipe Andrzejewski
Marisa Monte took a stop in Rockhal during her MM2024 world tour – to the great excitement of Luxembourg's large Brazilian and Portuguese-speaking community.
She is recognized as one of the greatest Brazilian singers of all time and brings her style of blending samba, pop, jazz and soul. I got to attend her concert with some members of my Brazilian community, and we sang the night away.
Let's begin with the fact that I love when Luxembourg turns into a little pocket of Brazil. I found myself surrounded by accents that are usually – in such a large scale - only accessible by plane.
At first I was confused why Marisa Monte was playing the smaller stage of Rockhal because a star of her size has played many a large sold out venue. But I quickly became so grateful for Luxembourg's music venues where one can sometimes watch some of their favorite artists in a intimate setting.
The cosy space made it feel like Marisa Monte was personally singing you each song. The proximity allowed everyone in the room to sense her positive energy as she sang, danced, and smiled.
And her singing… At times I was just awe-struck at how effortlessly this big melodic voice would flow out of her petite frame. As she sang of love and romance, her voice breathed lightness into your soul.
She invited the audience to participate by bringing along many classic hits such as Vilarejo, Beija Eu and Amor I Love You – and at times even feeding the crowd the lyrics.
Flexing her polyglot skills, Marisa Monte spoke with the audience in beautifully spoken French. And some members of the crowd shamelessly begged her to switch to Portuguese instead.
Listen… I get that maybe as a Portuguese-speaking person you may want to hear your Portuguese-speaking Icons in Portuguese, but she's the artist! She can speak whatever language she wants.
Marisa gracefully addressed the language hecklers (lets call it what it was) by saying, she’s creating language democracy since her songs are all in Portuguese anyway. (Mic drop)
But back to the music, she intermingled her classic songs along with hits from her time in the band Tribalistas like Já Sei Namorar and Velha Infâcia. She also sang samba treasures such as A Menina Dança and Dança da Solidão.
At one point she announced she'd be singing a hymn that’s in every Brazilian’s heart, making my little Brazilian-American heart nervous if I'd be able to keep up. But luckily, I was all good as she sang a cover of Carinhoso and the whole crowd (including me) sang along.
And sang they did, the Lusophone concertgoers vibrated the halls of Rockhal by dancing, screaming, yelling… and even video calling?
Yes, besides the actual grand musical entertainment coming from Marisa Monte and her band, there were moments of comedy particularly when a man managed to keep four of his family members in virtual attendance through a video call as he danced the whole time.
As if Marisa Monte wasn't impressive enough on her own, she was backed by a band built up of some of the greatest Brazilian talents. Including Dadi Carvalho, Davi Moraes, Pupilllo – each an important contributor to the repertoire of Brazilian music. And shredding the cavaquinho (if you can say that…) was Pedrinho da Serrinha who amazed us even more once Marisa Monte announced that he was only 17 years old.
The show was vibrant and full of passion and excitement. And they were quickly called back to play an encore. The last song was a cover of Bem Que Se Quis, and it featured Marisa Monte singing acapella as the spectators joined her.
And in one of the most beautiful concert exists I’ve ever witnessed, Marisa Monte rhythmically walked out of the spotlight and left the audience singing together in one united choir as the concert was turned back onto the crowd. Leaving us with an experience that was magnificent and invigorating.
