The folk music of Mexico

Feb. 14, 2010

The Folk Music of Mexico Sones de México offer their take on tradition
By Kristi Kates
His full instrument roster reads like a “what’s what” of musical gear:
guitar, violin, mandolin, Mariachi 5-string alto guitar, 8-string
baritone huasteco guitar, Veracruz 8-string tenor guitar, clarinet,
conch shell, guidjada, and vocals. Whew.
And if we listed the instrument rosters for Sones de Mexico bandleader
Victor Pichardo’s five bandmates - Juan Dies, Zacbé Pichardo, Javier
Saume, Juan Rivera, and Lorena Iñiguez - it would probably take up
most of this article. So we’ll let you be surprised by their
performance instead.
But that kind of attention to detail, skill, and musical diversity is
what makes this Chicago band so impressive.

CHICAGO BASED
Pichardo, born in Mexico City, got his training in Mexican folk music
by learning first-hand from master musicians in various regions of the
country.
“Our group specializes in the Mexican tradition of son music (a
distinct style of Mexican popular music),” Dies said in a recent NPR
interview, “but we are not necessarily preservationists in trying to
pretend that we live in a small village in Mexico. We live in Chicago
and interact with the world around us.”
Now, Pichardo’s band, 16 years strong and the recipients of a Latin
Grammy nomination for Best Folk Album, is the toast of Chicago’s
ethnic music scene, in the midst of the second-largest Mexican
immigrant population in the United States.
They’ve made appearances on everything from the Windy City’s own
Public Radio program “Eight Forty-Eight” to Garrison Keillor’s “A
Prairie Home Companion.” And they’ll be bringing their show to
Traverse City this week.

CHILEAN TO ZEPPELIN
A mix of folk music from all across Mexico, Sones de Mexico’s songs
are performed by the six band members on over 50 authentic Mexican
folk instruments, and are often infused with an even wider range of
influences from South America and beyond.
And remember those surprises we mentioned earlier? Sones de Mexico’s
show is chock full of them - the songs range from the regional styles
of huapango and gustos to Chilean folk songs, and even include a
couple of experimentations with baroque music (their take on J.S.
Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 3, Second Movement in G-Major, played
with jarocho instruments) and traditional rock n’ roll (their cover of
Led Zeppelin’s “Four Sticks” performed as an energy-filled Aztec dance
number.)

CULTURAL DIVERSITY
“I understand from other presenters who have had this group perform
that they put on a great public performance,” Dennos Museum Director
Gene Jenneman says.
“We are very much interested in bringing music from other cultures to
the Museum as part of our concert programming. There is also a growing
Hispanic minority in this area that we hope will welcome the
opportunity to hear the music of their culture; and I hope the whole
community will appreciate the opportunity to learn about and
experience this music with us.
“If you look at our season this year you will see a great emphasis on
world music or performers from other countries, or players of music
from other cultures,” Jenneman continues, “so this show is part of the
college’s desire, as well as the Chamber of Commerce’s desire, to
connect Traverse City with a more globally diverse experience.”
Two daytime educational performances - already sold out - will also
take place during Sones de Mexico’s visit to Northern Michigan. But
it’s the nighttime show that will introduce residents and visitors
alike to this unique musical genre. Jenneman is even hoping to gain a
little musical education himself during the event.
“I am no expert on the music of Mexico,” he chuckles, “so I will learn
along with our audience.”

Sones de Mexico will perform at the Dennos Museum Center’s Milliken
Auditorium on Friday, February 19 at 8:00 p.m.; for more information
on the show, go to www.dennosmuseum.org or call 231-995-1055, and for
more information on the band, visit www.sonesdemexico.com.