Bolborinho
2024
"When there is a whirlwind, which people in Beira-Alta and elsewhere call a borborinho, it is believed that the Devil, witches or something evil is in the air. In order for these beings to escape, they make a cross with their hand (...) or throw an open penknife at them, - in which case a -Feiticeira [perhaps a Witch] comes out of the borborinho. (Moncorvo). It is also believed that in the balborinho (borborinho) go, not so much the Devils, as the lost souls who didn't enter heaven because they didn't make certain restitutions to the living. (...) In Guimarães I heard that when the balborinho raises many leaves, a Devil goes in each leaf. " - Dr José Leite Vasconcellos, Tradições Populares Portuguesas, 1882
At the heart of "Bolborinho" lies a collection of stories, steeped in Portuguese folklore, where whirlwinds are not just meteorological phenomena but gateways to mystical encounters. Legend has it that in the corners of Portugal, a toss of an open penknife into said whirlwinds could conjure a witch, unveiling tales of magic and mystery.
Francisco Pedro Oliveira sets out on an introspective journey through the echoes of grief, the delicate art of waiting, and the profound conversations with one's own thoughts through the slightest air movements on the pipes of the organ from Sé Catedral de Lamego.
Listen here:
Album cover image by FPO
Design and Typework by Inês Aleixo
Thanks to Zigurfest, Padre Zé, Inês Aleixo and Lendl.
Thanks to Diana, Solaris and all my family that is, was or will be.
Thanks to Berna, António, Carlitos, Carl Stone, CV and JAB.