Some say the term "mariachi" was derived from the French word for marriage, while others claim it comes from the indigenous name for the wood used to make guitars. There are many theories as to how the term "mariachi" came about, but one thing that is for sure is that mariachis, in their wide-brimmed hats and festive charro outfits, have added plenty of alegria to weddings, restaurant outings, birthdays, and even funerals and masses. Their music captures the heart and soul of Mexican culture and tradition, as well as that of the listener.
Mariachi music has prospered greatly ever since its origin in Jalisco, Mexico in the early 19th century. Originally, the mariachi ensemble was made up of violins, a harp and guitars. With time, it evolved to include the vihuela, two violins, and the guitarron (which replaced the harp), and then eventually trumpets were added. During the Mexican Revolution, the mariachis would wander from town to town, singing songs of revolutionary heroes and bringing news of the war everywhere they went.
The musical style has been carried on as a Mexican tradition for decades, due to the undying support of the people in their communities. The popularity of the genre expanded even more with the arrival of radio and television, and now mariachi music can be heard all over the world.
With the Mexican population growing at such a rapid rate in New York, the desire for Mexican culture and tradition has increased as well. The idea for a local mariachi school for children came from the renowned father and son mariachi team, Ramon Ponce Sr. and Jr. Their Queens-based group, Mariachi Real de Mexico, has been playing public and private events for years, and has even appeared on such Spanish-language television programs as Sabado Gigante.
When I asked what the main reason was for starting the Academy, Ramon Ponce Jr. said, "Porque ninos nos preguntaban, "’Donde podemos aprender?"’ ("Because kids [wherever we would perform] would ask us, "’Where can we learn?"’)
About two years after the initial seed was planted in their heads, in July of 2002, the Ponces opened the doors of the Mariachi Academy of New York - the first mariachi school on the east coast. The school was made possible with outreach support from The Mexican Cultural Institute of New York and the Consulate General of Mexico, the sponsorship of the Mariachi Association of New York, and a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.
The cohesiveness of the Mexican community in El Barrio is evident at the Mariachi Academy of New York, which is open to Mexican and non-Mexican students alike, ages 9-17. The teachers often volunteer their time if funds are low, and the parents get involved by encouraging their children and bringing homemade food to events. It is indeed a community project.
"I believe the Academy... has shown that immigrants, especially among the Mexican community, understand [that] their children are becoming more assimilated as Americans, and thus appreciate and take advantage of opportunities to teach the younger generations about Mexican music and culture," says President of the Board of Directors, Adlar Garcia.
There are six teachers who conduct two classes a week (Wednesday evenings and Saturday afternoons) in voice, violin, trumpet, guitar, vihuela, and guitarron at the Union Settlement Association. This center in East Harlem generously donates classroom space for the program - now consisting of 70 students, only five to ten of whom are not fully Mexican. Some were born here, and some were born in Mexico.
"If kids don’t apply in the summer, they have to wait a whole other year, because the program begins in the fall. Auditions take place only in the summer," says program coordinator Itandehui Chavez-Geller.
The mariachi kids are becoming well known throughout the city. They have done community performances in schools, museums, and at various cultural/community associations. "It’s quite a success. Everyday we have a growing waiting list," says Chavez-Geller. "The most important thing we look for during the auditions is the child’s interest. Most don’t know an instrument before they start," she adds.
The next big show is on May 8th, for Mother’s Day, from 1-5 p.m at the Union Settlement Association Center on 104th Street, between 3rd and 2nd Avenues. This will be a fundraiser performance with authentic Mexican food available.
"Mi vision y sueno es que los estudiantes de la Academia de Mariachi lleguen a ser grandes personalidades y me encantaria que varios de ellos sean mariachis profesionales. Si no son mariachis, por lo menos sentirse orgullosos de su musica y su cultura," says Ramon Ponce Jr. ("My vision and dream is that the students of the Mariachi Academy grow up to be great personalities, and I’d love to see some of them become professional mariachis. If they aren’t mariachis, (I hope they will) at least feel proud of their music and their culture."]
(Published in NYRemezcla.com)
Wednesday, April 20, 2005
Tuesday, February 1, 2005
La Kueva Rocks on in Queens
Rock en español with a side of pollo a la brasa anyone?
Now you can come for lunch, dinner, drinks, and rock en español to La Kueva (The Cave) – the House of Latin Rock. Previously located on Steinway Street in Astoria, this legendary spot amongst Spanish rockers since 1999 reopened on September 2004 on Queens Blvd. in Sunnyside.
Plastic bats and gargoyles no longer furnish this cave. Now called La Kueva 2.0 – Latin Rock Café, it has revamped its image with white globe light fixtures hanging from the ceiling. It’s a little brighter, with a wide open space for the round tables where people can sit and eat, and of course there’s also room for a stage and small dance floor in the back. The place is a bit sleeker than the grungier, darker, narrower original version of La Kueva. It is also now more easily accessible by train and car, with parking across the street.
"It’s still under construction – there’s still a lot to do, but the bar we made exactly the same – so people still feel at home", says owner Jesús Giraldo. "Now people can bring their families during the day to eat – their mom, their aunts, uncles…something you couldn’t do in the other one. Now kids 15 years old, or so, can finally come in, when before they couldn’t."
Posters of Juanes, Shakira, and Maná are just a few of the details on the dark wood paneled walls that help make the customers - most of whom are recent or second generation immigrants from Central and South America - feel at home.
"We wanted to reinvent ourselves, make ourselves more modern, while maintaining the same style of music," says Giraldo.
Now that the place serves food from the owner’s native Colombia, it’s even more of an attraction for its customers. The Nuevo Latino menu offers specialties such as Plato Cartagena de Indias – camarones, y scallops en una salsa cremosa de ajo y cilantro, servido con arroz y tostones, and Bandeja Viejo Caldas – carne asada, chicharron, arroz, frijoles, yuca frita y un huevo frito, just to name a few. All entrées, except for burger and sandwich dishes are served with their exceptional tangy house salad.
"The original idea of La Kueva was to be a pub, but the people like to dance," says the owner.
Other Latin music genres such as bachata, and the newly popular reggaeton, have been attempting to sneak into the cave, but it’s trying to stay exclusive to rock.
"Some of the DJs don’t listen, some think you can only dance to merengue and salsa, but we want to maintain rock - at least 70% rock, and 25% tropical. We want to keep live bands, we still have open mike on Thursday nights, and we’re thinking of starting karaoke on Sundays," says Giraldo.
The regulars are what made La Kueva, La Kueva. "There are even some that used to come way in the beginning, have gotten divorced, and have now come back," laughs Giraldo. The same house band, Los Discípulos de Jesús (the Disciples of Jesus) still plays at La Kueva 2.0 when they can get the group together. They usually play every other Friday or Saturday night, alternating.
The lead singer, Zack Valladares, a long-haired native of Ecuador says, "The people that work here – I consider them family- the waitstaff, security guards, the owner…and there are new people that keep on coming. It’s a nice feeling to meet new people…La Kueva is the biggest place for Spanish Rock in N.Y. right now…"
According to the new lease, the place should last at least another 10 years, a big leap from the five years given at the original place. When some of the patrons were asked how long they thought the new locale would last, "Forever," and "I hope it will last a long time," were the common responses.
For more information on upcoming events at La Kueva 2.0, check out their website: http://www.lakueva.com/.
(Published in NYRemezcla.com)
Now you can come for lunch, dinner, drinks, and rock en español to La Kueva (The Cave) – the House of Latin Rock. Previously located on Steinway Street in Astoria, this legendary spot amongst Spanish rockers since 1999 reopened on September 2004 on Queens Blvd. in Sunnyside.
Plastic bats and gargoyles no longer furnish this cave. Now called La Kueva 2.0 – Latin Rock Café, it has revamped its image with white globe light fixtures hanging from the ceiling. It’s a little brighter, with a wide open space for the round tables where people can sit and eat, and of course there’s also room for a stage and small dance floor in the back. The place is a bit sleeker than the grungier, darker, narrower original version of La Kueva. It is also now more easily accessible by train and car, with parking across the street.
"It’s still under construction – there’s still a lot to do, but the bar we made exactly the same – so people still feel at home", says owner Jesús Giraldo. "Now people can bring their families during the day to eat – their mom, their aunts, uncles…something you couldn’t do in the other one. Now kids 15 years old, or so, can finally come in, when before they couldn’t."
Posters of Juanes, Shakira, and Maná are just a few of the details on the dark wood paneled walls that help make the customers - most of whom are recent or second generation immigrants from Central and South America - feel at home.
"We wanted to reinvent ourselves, make ourselves more modern, while maintaining the same style of music," says Giraldo.
Now that the place serves food from the owner’s native Colombia, it’s even more of an attraction for its customers. The Nuevo Latino menu offers specialties such as Plato Cartagena de Indias – camarones, y scallops en una salsa cremosa de ajo y cilantro, servido con arroz y tostones, and Bandeja Viejo Caldas – carne asada, chicharron, arroz, frijoles, yuca frita y un huevo frito, just to name a few. All entrées, except for burger and sandwich dishes are served with their exceptional tangy house salad.
"The original idea of La Kueva was to be a pub, but the people like to dance," says the owner.
Other Latin music genres such as bachata, and the newly popular reggaeton, have been attempting to sneak into the cave, but it’s trying to stay exclusive to rock.
"Some of the DJs don’t listen, some think you can only dance to merengue and salsa, but we want to maintain rock - at least 70% rock, and 25% tropical. We want to keep live bands, we still have open mike on Thursday nights, and we’re thinking of starting karaoke on Sundays," says Giraldo.
The regulars are what made La Kueva, La Kueva. "There are even some that used to come way in the beginning, have gotten divorced, and have now come back," laughs Giraldo. The same house band, Los Discípulos de Jesús (the Disciples of Jesus) still plays at La Kueva 2.0 when they can get the group together. They usually play every other Friday or Saturday night, alternating.
The lead singer, Zack Valladares, a long-haired native of Ecuador says, "The people that work here – I consider them family- the waitstaff, security guards, the owner…and there are new people that keep on coming. It’s a nice feeling to meet new people…La Kueva is the biggest place for Spanish Rock in N.Y. right now…"
According to the new lease, the place should last at least another 10 years, a big leap from the five years given at the original place. When some of the patrons were asked how long they thought the new locale would last, "Forever," and "I hope it will last a long time," were the common responses.
For more information on upcoming events at La Kueva 2.0, check out their website: http://www.lakueva.com/.
(Published in NYRemezcla.com)
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