Arriba Folklorico Music And Dance Of Mexico

href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CFred%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"> In this episode of Arriba- Folklorico Music and Dance of Mexico, we explore the region of the Huasteca and the musical genre of the Huapango. The Huasteca region consists of: - the southern part of the state of Tamaulipas; - the northern part of the state of Veracruz; - the state of San Luis Potosi; - the state of Hidalgo - the state of Queretaro - the state of PueblaFrom the state of San Luis Potosi, we show the Quesqueme attire from the woman's costume of that region. We introduce the section by the introduction of 2 Huapangos: - Brief introduction of the Classic huapango of LA PETENERA, as played by a conjunto huasteco; and - Brief introduction of the Modern huapango EL REY DE LA HUASTECA from Jose Hernandez, the director of the Mariachi Sol de Mexico. We then go into the elements of the Huapango, which includes: - the inverted verses; - the falsetto voice (in Spanish, falsete); - t

In this episode of Arriba! Folklorico Music and Dance of Mexico, we travel to the South of Mexico on the Pacific waters, stretching along the coast to the northern part of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. The state of Oaxaca has one of the largest populations of native indigenous tribes, or "indios" as the Latin Americans call them.Of the seven major cultures and areas of Oaxaca, we focus on 2: the Zapotecas and the Mixtecos.In this episode, the music from the Jarabe Mixteco opens the show.We also discuss the fiesta that takes place in July which is known as La Gelaguetza, or the "fiesta de la Sierra." In the capital city of Oaxaca itself, we describe one of the main indigenous dances, DANZA DE LA PLUMA.Also, during the festivities of La Gelaguetza, the food is rich--in particular, the famed MOLE NEGRO Oaxaqueno.In addition to the mention of the archaeological zones in the region--such as Mitla and Monte Alban--the episode describes the courtship dance of the JARABE MIXTECO, with its stanzas and tableaus for the C

In this episode of Arriba! Folklorico Music and Dance of Mexico, we explore the idyllic region in Southwestern Mexico, the land of the Tarascan indigenous tribes--the Tarascos-- the state of Michoacan.The Tarascan tribes are a people that feel that they have never been subjugated by the Spaniards--although their land was occupied. Like other indigenous tribes of Mexico today, they still mingle their Spanish language with inclusions of phrases and words from their own native dialects, which descend from the word-of-mouth teachings in the Tarascan tongue.Case in point: the song in the audio podcast episode demonstrates the Tarascan lady singing in Tarascan language, then ending up with a Spanish phrase, as she delves into the eternal theme in Mexican folklore--that "Life is a Dream" (la vida es sueno).In addition to the song whose lyrics are mixed with both languages, the instrumental piece of folklore that is common to the entire region of the Tarascos is the Jarabe Michoacano. This is a longer dance, in which

In this epioside of Arriba! Folklorico Music and Dance of Mexico, we deliver a 4-minute promo podcast episode IN SPANISH to promote the upcoming event called a "Podcamp."Yes, it is that time of year again. The second annual Podcamp (or Podcast unconference) will be held in San Antonio, Texas, on May 3, 2008. We will represent this podcast series in style. Not only will our presence be known, as we will deliver 2 presentations about the current phenomenon of New Media (podcasting), but we will also promote the podcast series in addition to the recent launch of two other podcast shows.The presentations will be (1) How to avoid burnout and prevent podfading; and (2) How to take your podcast from hobby or Corporate podcast to profitable podcast. We will use examples from the recent launch of the 2 podcast series, the Struggling Entrepreneur (at www.strugglingentrepreneur.com) and Gain Control of Your Day (at www.gaincontrolofyourday.com).The Podcamp San Antonio is an UN-CONFERENCE--that is, an unstructured event

In this episode of Arriba! Folklorico music and dance of Mexico, we focus in detail on the musical corridos and polkas of the Mexican Revolution of 1910 (Revolucion Mexicana).The beginning of this podcast starts with Show Janitzio performing a portion of the polka called Jesusita en Chihuahua. This podcast episode ends with 2 complete songs performed live by Show Janitzio (not played from a CD)--Valentin de la Sierra and La Muerte de un Soldado.An emphasis is placed on the role of the Mexican women during the Revolucion, who fought in the conflict right alongside their men. The 5 most famous heroines in the ballads of the corridos during the Revolucion were:- La Cucaracha- Adelita- Valentina- Juana Gallo and- Jesusita en Chihuahua.For more information about the story told by the corrido of La Cucaracha, you can get the 1954 film by that name from Mexcinema Video Corporation. The complete set of Lyrics can be found in the literary work called Antologia de Poesia Mexicana. You can find the lyrics for Benjamin

In this episode of Arriba! Folklorico Music and Dance Of Mexico, we have an interview with the 4 musicians that comprise SHOW JANITZIO, a musical troubador group that specializes in the romantic ballads of the Golden Age of Mexican Music in the 1950's and 1960's.However, this trio and quartet also show their flexibility by being able to play any style of Mexican music on demand--from boleros to rancheras to corridos to polkas, etc. The differential advantage of this group is the inclusion of the accordion that brings a style all their own.Listen to the 4 musicians as they describe their performances in their home base of San Antonio, Texas, as well as their tours across the cities of the United States and internationally, as well.In another set of podcast episodes, we will have the songs from this group played at the end when we focus upon not only the romantic period of the Mexican Music during the SIGLO DE ORO (the Golden Age), but also the corridos of the Revolucion Mexicana of 1910. Note: This present ep

This episode covers the music and dance of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in Mexico--in particular, the state of Chiapas and the sound of the marimba.In this episode of Arriba! Folklorico Music and Dance of Mexico, we discuss the costume of the Chamula tribe in Chiapas and some of the olderfolklorico dances in the state of Chiapas--el Jibali, el Rascapetate and Las Chiapanecas.As you can see from the image, above, the women wear beautiful, full, black dresses that have been decorated with bright colors with patterns of tropical flowers.The men of the region wear calzones de manta (trousers), camisa de manta (shirt), huaraches (sandals) and sombrero de paja (straw hat).As the podcast describes, the men usually work in the plains areas of Chiapas, either cutting wood or cutting sugar cane with their machetes.1. From the stories of Don Juan Tenorio, the Jibali (wild boar) descends upon the unsuspecting wives of the villagers and tries to deceive them and win their favor. Obviously a symbol of an intruder who preys u

Imagine it to be the late 15th Century or early 16th Centruy -- a time before the year 1519, before the arrival of the Spaniards to Mexico.It is a cool and breezy afternoon in the central highland plateau of Mexico.It is possibly the afternoon of the equinox, a religious feast day of tremendous magnitude in the religion of the people that inhabit a major metropolis of nearly one million people in the city of Tenochtitlan, the capital city of the Aztec empire.The call from the conchas, or shell, alerts the people that the hour has arrived for the religious celebration to take place around the base of the pyramids in the center of the city. The entire population will be asked to participate.From all the causeways that lead to the center of Tenochtitlan, the people come marching to be in the festivities in which they will pay thanks and homage to their deities.Atop the top of the pyramid, at the teocalli, the smoke from a small fire can be seen; the high priests from the orden sacerdotal, or the sacerdotal order

This posting, along with an episode from another podcast in which I was interviewed, may seem to digress a bit from our pure episodes of Mexican folklorico music and culture. But because the first part of the interview dealt with this podcast series, I have included it as an espisode, thanks to Victor Cajiao and his podcast series, Immigration Tales.For those who may want only to listen to the folklorico music and dance content, then I will post the next episode shortly -- with the theme of las danzas indigenas precolombianas. So be advised that we will deliver that to you soon.However, on Friday afternoon, 15 June 2007, I had the privilege of discussing my story of being an immigrant to the United States--not once, but twice. I was fortunate to collaborate with Victor Cajiao, the Podcaster of the Immigration Tales podcast on iTunes.Victor was the interviewer, and I the interviewee.You can listen to the mp3 file here on this episode; or you can subscribe to the series on iTunes; or you can go to the Immigrati

In this episode, we explore the Eastern coast of the Gulf of Mexico, in the lively culture of the Jarocho people in Veracruz and those around the River Papaloapan. Besides el Tilingo Lingo. la Bruja and El Aguanieve (El Zapateado), the focus is on the wedding dance, el son de La Bamba. In addition, the costumes are vividly described, along with the romantic Mexican custom of the serenata (the serenade), but this time, Mananitas con jarana.Notice that the gentleman Jarocho dancer and his lady companion would sometimes compete to the vibrant, rhythmic steps of the very fast heel-and-toe movements and steps called zapateados and taconeados (as is depicted in the photo of the dance, el son del tilingo lingo).On other occasions, the women would imitate the movements with their skirts of such animals such as palomas (doves) and mariposas (butterflies). One such dance is El Palomo y la Paloma, where the man's chivalry shines through. In some folklorico groups, the gentlemen bring in chairs to the stage so that the l

In this episode, Federico Castaneda interviews Jose Hernandez, the director-creator of El Mariachi Sol de Mexico (R), and the discussion includes not only folklorico dancing and the accompaniment of mariachis with the performers, but also touches upon the topics of the musical genres of Mexican music, artists and directions & trends.Impressive is the vast scope that Jose Hernandez includes in his love of Mexican music -- composer-arranger-author-singer-musician-performer-humanitarian-educator -- and his contribution not only to the style and implementation in the last 25 years, but also in his quest to keep the spirit of folklorico music and mariachi music and Mexican music alive forever in our hearts.A special treat includes the performance of 2 musical pieces: (1) the inclusion of a few seconds of his mariachi playing their "sol de Mexico" introduction at the beginning; and (2) the inclusion of the complete piece of the song called "El Rey de la Huasteca"--which is described and discussed during the in

This episode of Arriba! Folklorico Music and Dance of Mexico describes the wonderful evening at the Paramount Theatre in downtown Austin, Texas, with the first annual gala event called NOCHE DE MARIACHI.This was not a "battle of the bands." Rather, it was a community of mariachi bands in and near the Austin area for a celebration of the mariachis in central Texas.The quality mariachis that were featured and played their songs (which did not overlap with other pieces performed by other groups)--- Mariachi Los Lobos - Mariachi Estrella - Mariachi Suroeste - Mariachi Relalmpagoand there was a special solist, Rebekah Ramos, who was accompanied by el Mariachi Relampago, when she performed 2 songs, one of them being SOLAMENTE UNA VEZ. What a lovely piece and performed exquisitely well.There was a folklorico dance group called the Pan American Ballet Folklorico that performed 2 numbers--they opened the event with LA CULEBRA and ended the show with dancers in the aisles of the theatre as ALL the mariachis accompanied

In this episode of Arriba! Folklorico Music and Dance of Mexico, we explore the region of Yucatan -- home of the descendants of the Idyllic indigenous peoples known as the Mayas, and center for the folklorico dance known as the Jarana.In this episode, we explore the beginnings of the big Brass Band, called the Banda Yucateca, and we review the costume worn by both the men and women who danced the Jaranas Yucatecas during the Vaquerias or the Serenatas in the gazebo or town square in municipalities such as Merida. In addition, the practice of the declamador or pregonero reciting the improvised and humorous (and sometimes double-meaninged or picaresque) verses of the BOMBA! is shown by an audio clip from a piece performed in the FIESTA celebration in San Antonio, Texas.The final music that ends this podcast episode is that of the Jarana dance of EL TORO, which symbolizes the conquest of the bull by the matador (in this case, the role of the bull being played by the woman, and the man taking the role of

Danza de los Machetes or El Jarabe Nayarita.In this episode of Arriba! Folklorico Music and Dance of Mexico, Nayarit is a state that is rather small in size, when compared to its neighbors (like Jalisco), which stretches from the Pacific Ocean to the footsteps of the Central Plateau (el altiplanicie). The people of the region are vibrant, dynamic, resourceful, hard-working and respectful of the women in their towns and villages – and it shows in their dances.In Nayarit, the natural surroundings of the agricultural region are part of the daily life. The farmers grow corn, beans, and sugar. The cattle and the oxen that pull the yokes and plow the fields and are used for almost all the heavy work for the farmers are key animals—all part of everyone’s life and livelihood.Thus, as is common with the campesinos, or farmers, the simplest things in life are the topics that are used when creating dances and songs—the eagles, the birds, the horses, and the bovine—both cattle, and in this case, the oxen.A clip is playe