Corina Freire

Corina Carlos Freire was born on 14 December 1897 in Silves in the Algarve region of Portugal. She was the illegitimate daughter of João José Freire, a pharmacy owner, and Bazília Nunes de Sousa. She was legitimized by her parents' marriage, which took place on 19 August 1905 in the Portuguese capital, Lisbon. She grew up in an affluent family, which had a taste for the arts, allowing her to develop singing and musical skills from an early age. She, her five brothers and her father formed a chamber music group, in which she played the piano and her father the violin. Some of her brothers went on to have musical careers. ==Career==

After a brief marriage at the age of 17 in Portimão, causing Freire to briefly suspend her musical life, she moved from the Algarve to Lisbon in 1921, where she worked as a pianist and singer at Valentim de Carvalho, a leading music publishing company. She played in the company's shop, often playing music for amateur musicians who had initial difficulty in reading the score. She then began to receive invitations for recitals, singing opera songs and lied in several concerts and recitals, including with the pianist José Vianna da Motta. In 1927, she debuted in the popular theatre, performing in a "magazine" (vaudeville) show called Roses from Portugal in the Cineteatro Éden. The theme song from the show, As Giestas, made her famous. She continued to perform in this genre, moving to the Teatro Avenida, while also attending the National Conservatory of Lisbon. Back in Portugal in June 1936, after she and Colaço had experienced financial problems in Paris, Freire had trouble in achieving the same success as before. For a time, she concentrated on acting, rather than variety performances. She had a short working visit to Tangier, joined by Colaço, and later went to Brazil for six months to give solo performances. Returning to Portugal, she toured the country, but again had difficulty in attracting audiences. After 1940, she concentrated on giving singing lessons, although she did return to Brazil in 1947 to act on radio and television. Her singing students included a relative, António Calvário, Marco Paulo and Tonicha, who all became popular Portuguese singers. Freire also composed popular marches. Corina Freire died in Lisbon on 5 October 1986. Her name is given to a street in Faro in the Algarve. ==References==