Coimbra Fado

Coimbra's own fado tradition — sung by male students in black capes, darker and more literary than Lisbon's

Coimbra has its own fado tradition, quite distinct from the better-known Lisbon version. Here the singers are male, the guitar has a different tuning (the Coimbra guitar has a rounder, darker sound than the Lisbon variety), and the themes tend toward poetry, academic life, and melancholy rather than the sailor-and-longing subjects of Lisbon fado.

The best way to hear it is in the old town in the evenings — students sometimes sing informally on the steep streets and in the squares. The organised fado shows at tourist restaurants are less interesting, but some of the university-associated venues host performances that are worth attending. The Coimbra fado was added to the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2012.

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By tradition, Coimbra fado is only sung by men, and only by students or alumni of the university. Singing in the street outside someone's window is a recognised courtship practice, and certain songs are reserved exclusively for serenading — performing them in any other context is considered bad form.

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