Report on talk in Porto by Richard Mayson on the “Music of the Revolution”

On Thursday, 12 September 2024, Richard Mayson repeated a talk that he had given to the Society in Lisbon in April to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Carnation Revolution. A report of that event can be read here.

The meeting, which took place at the Oporto Cricket and Lawn Tennis Club (OCLTC), was well attended, with 41 people present and 19 staying for an agreeable dinner in the Long Room.

We are very grateful for Richard’s willingness to come to Porto and share his research and experience with us. He knows Porto well, and is a member of the OCLTC. The well-illustrated, hour-long talk involved the playing of various songs connected with the Revolution (listed in the Lisbon report), most of which were familiar to many members of the audience, both British and Portuguese.

Richard was introduced by Alan Dawber (pictured with Richard above), who pointed out that, like the speaker, he had lived in Porto prior to the Revolution, and had re-visited in 1975, just a year after it had taken place. Richard invited questions, comments, and anecdotes afterwards, and there were many. The questions and discussions continued informally well after the talk had ended, and in the dining room. A display table full of posters, scrapbooks, newspaper cuttings, etc., showed Richard’s interest in the topic and his meticulous note-taking since his early teens (he was only 13 years old in 1974).

Richard is also an expert on fortified wines of Portugal, and he was presented with a good bottle of white port, as there is a short vídeo on his webpage in which he recommends drinking white port with tonic water! He has offered to come and give a second talk, probably on the theme of Portuguese wines, about which he has written five books to date! Some of these books be brought with him.

A mention must be made of the assistance and support given by Janice Bain and Maria (de Fátima) Martins. Janice was instrumental in organising dinner numbers and taking people’s menu choices, whereas Maria managed (after much phoning and driving around) to obtain a bunch of lovely red carnations (symbolic of the Revolution). These were distributed just before the meeting, thus adding much to the atmosphere.

A final thanks goes to the Club staff, in particular to the manager Diana and the Marketing Manager João Lago, who are always so supportive and helpful.

AKD