The font I created was inspired by MariaSilva, a revisited traditional Portuguese music group created in 2021. The band aims to pay homage to tradition by drawing inspiration from the vast collection of folk melodies gathered by ethnomusicologist Michel Giacometti to create a repertoire that values the simplicity and strength characteristic of this sound, and uses harmonisation and instrumentation influenced by classical, jazz and world music, not allowing it to be lost in the oblivion of modern times.

 

MariaSilva's lyrics are intended to be representative not only of their musical genre but also of their visual impact on stage. As this is traditional Portuguese music revisited, the land, the fields and their nature, and the regional colours are elements that inspire their presentation on stage, with the patterns on the band members' shirts referring as much as possible to the land, water and their colours. This gives their image a harmony between the traditional and the modern, the grotesque and the delicate.

 

Thus was born the Shruti font, which finds its embryo in one of the group's most representative instruments: the Shruti box. With its traditional Indian sound, the band used it to create an immersive experience, transporting the audience to a reflective moment of convergence between the ancient themes and sounds of Portuguese culture, while at the same time giving it the modern touch that makes the audience meet and identify with the music, making it a contemporary experience.