Students from the 9th grade were asked to write about their idol artists, people who stand as an inspiration in their lives. Through their choices you can figure out their feelings and what moves these young people.
As their teacher for three years I wish them all the best.
Professora Isabel Morim
My favourite band, COLDPLAY, is a boy band which was formed in September, between 1996 and 1998, in London, England. Nowadays, this group is one of the biggest names of thecommercial music.
This band is led by Chris Martin who is the vocalist. The other members are Jon Buckland, Guy Berryman and Will Champion.
In 1999, Coldplay launched two Eps: “Safety” and “The Blue Room”. As they became instant
hits, the band signed a contract with the record label that called Parlophone. The debut album, entitled “Parachutes”, released in 2000, became world famous.
They won 3 Grammys with their fourth album called “Viva La Vida” which first debuted in USA and England. In 2008, this record was the best-seller of the year. This song was the theme of a soap opera. After that more albums, all great successes, followed: “Mylo Xyloto” - 2011; “Live”- 2012 and “Ghost Stories”- 2014. Currently, Coldplay is a world record holder.
I love this band; that’s why I recommend you to listen their songs. All of them. They inspire me and, when I hear their songs, I start dancing! They are amazing! Iknow if you follow their music, you will like it very much!
Joana Monteiro 9ºC
EDWARD CHRISTOPHER SHEERAN, most known has Ed Sheeran is a British singer and songwriter. He was born on the 17th February in 1991, in West Yorkshire.
From one of his singles, “Photograph” we can see that he entered the music world very early, by playing the guitar, piano, bass, drums and cello. When he was four, he started singing in a local church choir and began recording songs when he was only 13 years old.
This cat lover became popular because of “The A Team”, a song he confirmed it’s about a drug-addicted homeless woman. Since then Ed has been nominated 324 times and he won 115 awards, including two BRIT Awards for Best British Male Solo Artist and British Breakthrough of the Year.
Ed Sheeran is a role model for the ones out there afraid to chase their dream because to pursuit music he had to live on the streets. So, what are you waiting for, take your guitar and start playing like you’re a rock star!
Beatriz Torres 9ºB
JANIS JOPLIN -THE QUEEN OF ROCK N’ ROLL
Born on 19th January 1943, in Port Arthur, Texas, Janis Joplin developed a deep love for music at an early age. Breaking new ground for women in rock music, Joplin became known and loved for her powerful, blue-inspired vocals.
Her career didn’t take off until she joined the band Big Brother and the Holding Company in 1966. Their 1968 album, Cheap Thrills, was a huge hit. Janis released her first solo effort, I Got Dem Ol’ Kozmic Blues Again Mama!, in 1969, and the album received a lot of mixed reviews, but it was her second project, Pearl of 1971, released after Janis’s death, that was a huge success. Due to her long struggle with substance abuse, Joplin died from an accidental heroin overdose on October 4, 1970, at a hotel in Hollywood’s Landmark Hotel.
Janis Joplin's songs continue to attract new fans and inspire performers. Numerous collections of her songs have been released over the years, including In Concert, 1971, and Box of Pearls, 1999. In recognition of her significant accomplishments, Joplin was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995, and honored with a Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award at the Grammy Awards in 2005. Dubbed the "first lady of rock 'n' roll," Joplin has been the subject of several books and documentaries, including “Love, Janis”, 1992, written by her sister, Laura Joplin – which was later adapted into a play of the same title -, and also Amy Berg’s documentary, “Janis: Little Girl Blue”, premiered at the Toronto Film Festival in September 2015.
I deeply idolize this great and inspiring artist and her absolutely amazing work, as she can easily convey feelings with her unique voice and enthrall with her own crazy style and deep dark lyrics.
Catarina Fernandes, 9ºC
JOHN GREEN
John Michael Green is an American writer, born on the 24th of August of 1977 to Mike and Sydney Green. Being born and raised in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA, was an inspiration and is the local where the plot of most of his books is settled.
His first book, “Looking for Alaska”; was published in 2005 and is inspired by his own high school experience. This same book got him his first award: a Michael L. Printz Award.
John Green has published seven novels and many other writings, such as short stories. Most of them are worldwide bestsellers and have won him several awards such as the Goodreads Choice Award for Best Young Adult Novel, the Edgar Allan Poe Award and others of the same sort. His “titles” include:
“The Fault in our Stars”; “Let it snow: “Three holiday romances”; “An Abundance of Katherines”; “Paper Towns”; (which he talked about on a Ted Talk) and two of my favourite books of all time “Will Grayson, Will Grayson”; and “Turtles All the Way Down”;. John is my favourite author. A writer who has a style of writing so particular that makes you miss it after a time of “abstinence” and you always end up reading his books again. Even though he talks about ordinary teenagers’ lives, he addresses them in an incredibly deep and thoughtful way, creating books that make you think and change your views but are still easy to understand.
His writing can be classified as Young Adult Fiction, Bildungsroman and romance. In his books, his characters are always very well built and quite unique; in some of his work you find characters that have some sort of mental or physical problem or have certain characteristics which society does not accept completely or which represent a stigma to themselves.
My favourite book is his first book, “Looking for Alaska”, which happens to be my favourite book of all time. I have read it two times and in spite of it being as heart wrenching as his books always are, has flipped my way of thinking and completely changed my life.
John Green’s books have the most heart-breaking stories and lovable characters and are for sure the most life--changing, “though- diversifying” and “view- altering"; books I have ever read in my entire life.
Here are some of the Portuguese covers of John Green’s Books.
Maria Laúndos, 9ºB
MICHELANGELO was born in the 6th March 1475 in Caprese near Arezzo the actual Tuscany, Italy. He was a sculptor, painter, architect, poet and also an engineer of the Renaissance. He was Ghirlandaio's apprentice, that’s why he was so good at his job.
All of his works had a lot of emotions involved and they were so strong. It didn’t matter if they were paintings or sculptures, he always gave his best on all of them. People thought he was the greatest artist of all times, along with Leonardo Da Vinci. They even called him “The divine»!!His method made his art become elegant and there were a lot of people trying to copy his style, but they couldn't because it is too unique. He always painted things perfectly, powerfully and with vivid colours according to the style of his time. He was invited to work with a lot of famous people (most of them for religious reasons) and his work is all over Europe.
You should really check out his work at The Sistine Chapel, Pieta at St. Peter’s Basilica or maybe one of my favourites: David’s statue. I highly recommend you to see his works and read his biography. He is an inspiration for me and for a lot of people because of his history and work in all types of art.
Thaíssa Morais 9ºB
SHAWN MENDES was born in Toronto, Canada in 1989. He comes from a small family and lived only with his parents and sister in Toronto. His father is Portuguese and was born in Lagos, Algarve, that’s why Shawn has a great love for our country and love to play in here. I've already been to two of his concerts in Portugal and I cried a lot because I really love his art.
Shawn gained popularity with a cover made in 2013 in an application called Vine. In his first single he became the youngest artist to debut in the Billboard Hot 100 Top 25. Since then his songs and albums have been among the most best-selling and reached the highest music charts’ positions, achieving to be the first and only artist to have four singles in first place before turning 20.
Some of this amazing musician best singles are "In My Blood” and “Lost in Japan".
Today with his 21 years old, he is dating Camila Cabello, his best friend since 2013 and now his girlfriend.
In my opinion, Shawn Mendes is like a legend, the best singer and songwriter ever, and I am proud of his work and the person he is... I am his fan and I wish one day I can hug him.
Bruna Gonçalves 9ºC
SVETLANA ZAKHAROVA
Today, I'm going to talk about my favourite dancer.
Svetlana Zakharova was born in Ukraine. This Russian ballerina is also a choreographer. She was born on June 10, 1979 and is now 41 years old. She is 1.80 meters tall and weighs 56 kilos.
Svetlana Zakharova worked for Mariinsky Ballet but due to his discontent she moved to Bolshoi. She is considered one of the best dancers in the world. In the year 2000 due to his performance of the ballet "The sleeping beauty" he won the "Golden Mask Award".
In 2001 she won the special Saint Petersburg prize for his achievements in Ballet.
For me she is the best dancer and her work is an inspiration.
Mariana Vieira 9ºB
Peter Gene Hernandez, better known as BRUNO MARS, is an American singer, songwriter, music producer, dancer, and multi-instrumentalist.
He was born in 1985 in Honolulu, Hawaii. His parents, who had six children, exposed him to a diverse mix of the musical genres, such as reggae, rock, hip hop and rhythm and blues. His mother was a singer and a dancer, and his father was a multi-instrumentalist. At the age of four, Peter began performing five days a week with his family's band, The Love Notes, in which he became known on the island for his performance of Mini Elvis Presley.
When he was 17 years old, shortly after graduating from High School, Peter moved to L. A., California, to pursue a music career. In 2010 he released his first album which was a success. Since then, Bruno Mars is well known for his great talent, has reached the Billboard Hot 100 number one and has won eleven Grammy Awards and 8 American Music Awards.
I love his songs because they transmit good vibes and make me happy, excited and motivated. I think his voice is amazing and I can’t choose my favourite song because I love all of them. He's a great inspiration to me!
Joana Dourado 9ºC