Mariachi Tradicion, a band made up of students from Forest Grove High School, has played with the Oregon Symphony, in front of audiences at Pickathon music festival, and at the Jack London Review.
Courtesy of Forest Grove HS
Mariachi Tradicion, a band made up of students from Forest Grove High School, has played with the Oregon Symphony, in front of audiences at Pickathon music festival, and later this month at the Jack London Revue.
Lesslie Nuñez founded the band seven years ago as an after-school club at the middle school. Now, Mariachi Tradicion is the only band from the Pacific Northwest to attend the International Mariachi Conference in Tucson, Arizona, every year.
Nuñez and the band joined “Think Out Loud” for music and conversation, which you can hear in the audio player below:
Band members include:
- Marc Fernandez
- Xochitl Gonzalez-Viveros
- Carlos Marquez Vargas
- Raquel Lopez Andrade
- Jesus Contreras Aguilera
- Citlalli Tinoco Avalos
- Emilio Giron
- Dulceluna Cebrera Gomez
- Aaron Andrade
- Erik Bonilla-Vallejo
- Ashley Aguilera Hernandez
- Lizzly Izquierdo-Mendoza
Note: This transcript was computer generated and edited by a volunteer.
Dave Miller: From the Gert Boyle Studio at OPB, this is Think Out Loud. I’m Dave Miller. The group Mariachi Tradición has been busy over the last few years. They’ve played at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall and the Newmark Theater. They’ve shared stages with some of the biggest Mariachi bands in the world and with Grammy winning musicians, they’ve played at Pickathon, and most recently alongside Edna Vasquez at Portland’s Jack London Review. They are the only band from the Pacific Northwest to attend the International Mariachi Conference in Tucson every year.
It is an impressive resume for a professional band, but here’s the thing. They are students from Forest Grove High School. The band was founded seven years ago by music teacher Lesslie Nuñez as an after school club in the middle school. We went to Forest Grove last week to listen to the band and to talk to its members. They started with the song El Pasajero.
Mariachi Tradición: [singing in Spanish, band playing] Pasajero de mi vida, esta noche no te vas … [singing continues]
Miller: Thank you. Lesslie, how did this band come to be?
Nuñez: So, my first year of teaching, I started off teaching just orchestra, but I’ve always been super passionate about Mariachi music. I started playing Mariachi at the age of 13.
Miller: What instrument did you play?
Nuñez: Violin. I started on violin at the age of seven. Then I got into ballet curacao dancing and, through a family friend, I was able to study this genre of music, all by ear because we didn’t have sheet music at the time. It was something that has always been a dream of mine, to start a mariachi group, something that I didn’t have at the school.
Miller: In Southern Oregon.
Nuñez: In Southern Oregon.
Miller: So when you started here, something like, what, seven years ago?
Nuñez: Mmhm.
Miller: Was it your plan from the beginning, to create a Mariachi band?
Nuñez: It was. During my interview, I asked if they would be interested in it.
Miller: So it wasn’t like a secret plan. This was something that you were open about.
Nuñez: Yeah, definitely.
Miller: So what did it take to actually create it? You started in both middle schools and high school?
Nuñez: Yeah. It started at the middle school level, as an after school club. I first started recruiting students from my orchestra class. I was like, ‘who’s interested in learning how to play Mariachi?’
Miller: How many hands went up, when you said that?
Nuñez: So many hands went up. Yeah, about 10. And then I recruited our trumpet players from band, and ever since then, our administrators were really interested in the idea of having it be part of the school day, a class that’s offered.
Miller: Right, because it’s not just a club or an after school thing. This is an elective that you teach here in the high school, right?
Nuñez: Exactly.
Miller: And so you had support from the administration.
Nuñez: Mmhm. And all the parents were willing to work hard to fundraise for our instruments, for the trajes, the uniforms. The community has loved it, and they’ve been supportive all along.
Miller: All of us today, me included, we’re wearing jeans or sweatpants today. So you’re not wearing it, but who can describe what the full uniforms are like?
Band member: They’re kind of heavy, to be honest. We have a white shirt under, then we have a vest and our jacket goes on. We have our muños. For the girls, we have one in our hair.
Miller: What is a muño?
Band member: It’s the piece for our hair, it’s a bow and it really makes us stand out and it’s really pretty too.
Miller: What about the hats? How big are the hats?
Band Member: The hats are really big. They’re really heavy too, but it’s an honor to be wearing those on stage and representing our culture.
Miller: Do you remember the first time you put on the entire outfit? The entire traje?
Nuñez: Yeah.
Miller: What was it like?
Band Member: It was surreal. I felt really touched, wearing the full outfit, because most of the times we don’t wear our sombreros, but when we do it, it means a lot.
Miller: And that’s special, you’re there to perform.
Band Member: Yeah, to perform for our community.
Miller: When you say our community, what do you mean?
Band Member: Our people, the people who live in our city. We’re blessed that we can play for them, and they’re able to enjoy our music.
Miller: How long have you been playing in a Mariachi band here at the high school, or the middle school?
Band Member: I started my seventh grade year, but then because of COVID, we went online. Then we came back, and I started in the high school last year.
Miller: Let’s go to one of the violinists. What’s your name?
Erik Bonilla-Vallejo: My name is Erik.
Miller: And how long have you been in the band?
Bonilla-Vallejo: I’ve been in this group; this is my second year, but I joined our intermediate class online, my sophomore year. Ms. Nuñez just suggested I give it a shot, and I’ve been here ever since.
Miller: She suggested you give it a shot. Why did you say yes?
Bonilla-Vallejo: Well, I was at home, and I wasn’t really doing much, and I had kind of gotten bored of orchestra music. So Mariachi, it was just an outlet to make music that I liked and enjoyed.
Miller: So that started during COVID. Having just heard one song so far, and being just immersed in this collective sound you all make, I just imagine that there was nothing like that when you weren’t together. What was the experience of being a mariachi musician, or any kind of musician, like for that year and a half or more of social shutdown? What’s your name?
Marc Fernandez: Marc.Well, being a musician during lockdown was kind of hard, especially because I had many other instruments I also play; not being able to play in a full group, for example, in band, it was hard because you couldn’t listen to people around you. You only really had yourself to listen to.
Miller: What’s it like, now, to be in groups again, playing with other people in person?
Fernandez: It’s really nice, because you get to talk to all the other people, listen to everyone, and just hear how everything together sounds so good, compared to just you.
Miller: Can you describe your instrument? Tell us what it is, and the role it plays in this band.
Fernandez: My instrument’s a guitarrón, it’s like a six string, basically bass, and it’s the bass of the Mariachi. Like, it’s the sound that keeps the tempo going and just holds the guitars and harmonia together.
Miller: Can we hear a little bit of the guitarrón?
[Deep tones playing]
Miller: And right next to you is, it seems like, the exact opposite in terms of a guitar. What’s your name?
Jesus Contreras Aguilera: My name is Jesus.
Miller: And what do you play?
Contreras Aguilera: The vihuela.
Miller: And what’s a vihuela?
Contreras Aguilera: It’s slightly similar to the guitar; it’s five strings instead of six, and one of the strings is an octave higher.
Miller: And smaller than the guitars next to you, and way smaller than the guitarrón. Can you give us a taste for it?
[Light strumming]
Miller: There’s also, Lesslie, a harp player, and a flute. Are these all standard instruments for Mariachi bands?
Nuñez: Mariachi actually first started with harp. Flute, it’s not as common to have flute as a part of the group, but we’re very lucky to have Xochitl, who has learned how to play her instrument from different teachers in the state of Veracruz. She can share a little bit more about that.
Miller: I’d love to hear.
Xochitl Gonzalez-Viveros: Well, I grew up in Mexico, in a small town in Veracruz, and the harp is a very common instrument in Veracruz. Not like a concert harp, but actually like arpa jarocha. That a small town where I grew up the home of many musicians, and the majority of them played harp. So I really felt inspired by that.
Miller: You come from a harp town.
Gonzalez-Viveros: Yeah
Miller: Can we hear a little bit of it?
[High, whimsical strumming]
Miller: What about another song from the whole band? Now that we’ve heard some of the individual instruments? What do we have next?
Nuñez: Amorcito Corazón
Mariachi Tradición: [trumpets, singing in Spanish, band playing] Amorcito corazon, yo tengo tentación de un beso… [singing continues]
Miller: What are the origins of Mariachi?
Nuñez: Well, Mariachi music started in the state of Jalisco in a small town, Cocula. A lot of people believe that it started in Guadalajara, it is very, very, very popular there, but it actually started in a small town, Cocula.
Miller: Is that a debate, which state can claim it?
Nuñez: Yeah, I think Guadalajara tends to claim it with pride. But yeah, originally it started in Cocula.
Miller: What does it mean to all of your families that you’re taking part in continuing this tradition?
Aaron Andrade: My name is Aaron Andrade. I play flute. I feel that I make them proud, especially since my mom is from Jalisco, so she really knows this kind of music that we’re playing. She understands the meaning, and she gets the feeling and emotion, because playing Mariachi is very much about emotions. And I’m proud, honestly, as a Mexican, as someone from Mexico, that I can be sharing this music with the community and people who may not even understand or know it or have seen it before.
Miller: What’s your name?
Dulceluna Cebrera Gomez: My name is Dulceluna and my family, I feel they’ve always really supported me playing this music. They grew up listening to it as well. I remember, as soon as I picked up the violin, my family, my parents were like, ‘when are you going to start playing Mariachi?’ My extended family would be like, ‘when’s your first concert?’ Like as soon as it was, and they would always invite me to sing karaoke with them. I really got into the habit of singing Mariachi with them.
Miller: Do you remember your first concert that they could go to?
Cebrera Gomez: Yeah, I remember. It was last year, I think, when I officially joined the group. I remember a lot of them showed up, a lot of my extended family came and I was really proud. They were all really proud. I heard their call outs, their gritos, when I would be singing.
Miller: You could hear them from the audience and, you know, ‘that’s my uncle’, or ‘that’s my mom’?
Cebrera Gomez: Yeah.
Miller: Was it good to hear that, or embarrassing?
Cebrera Gomez: No, it was really like a moment of like, ‘wow, they’re here! They’re really happy!’ I saw their smiles as soon as I got off. It was really heartwarming, really.
Miller: What about other people? What does it mean to you and your families that you are continuing this tradition? What’s your name?
Carlos Marquez Vargas: My name is Carlos Marquez. And I feel like Mariachi music, at least like in Hispanic culture, it’s a very deep-rooted thing. Music is just a part of the culture, and I feel, especially to our parents, seeing that we have the ability to go on stage, especially with the trajes and the instruments, and having a set, and hearing us play the songs that they’ve heard in their childhood, and our interpretations, I think it’s a very powerful thing for them. I think my parents have always been proud of me for playing. It’s definitely a thing that they kind of pressured me into doing. But I’m very glad that I did, because it’s pretty fun and I think it’s really nice to be deeply connected in my roots like that, because my music is just a very important thing for Hispanic culture.
Miller: Lesslie, you’ve traveled to Arizona and Texas for international Mariachi festivals. How common is it for a high school in Oregon to have a Mariachi band?
Nuñez: It’s becoming more common. There are more and more high schools who are wanting to start Mariachi programs, but it’s not very common for a high school group to go out of state and participate in these international Mariachi conferences.
Miller: Let’s hear another song. What do you have for us next?
Nuñez: Torito Jarocho.
Miller: What does that mean?
Nuñez: Torito? Bull. Jarocho? People from Veracruz are also called Jarochos.
Mariachi Tradición: [gentle strumming, band playing, strumming intensifies] Este torito que traigo lo traigo desde… [singing continues]
Miller: Is it fun for all of your instrumentalists? Is it fun to also have chances to sing from time to time? I see some big nods there. What’s that like?
Band Member: It’s definitely exciting, but it’s also very nerve wracking, because you have to stand at the front of the band, and you have to sing, sing for your people and you have to be really touched with the lyrics of the song in order to deliver that performance.
Miller: There was one moment in the song we just heard where you sort of sing something out, just yourself.
Band Member: Call outs.
Miller: What’s the call out?
Band Member: Well, we just, it’s to hype up our people. Xochitl, who plays the harp, when she has her solo, we say ‘que le rasque’, to put her all into it, so we can hear it all the way back to Mexico.
Nuñez: All the way to Veracruz for this one.
Miller: What’s your name?
Emilio Giron: Oh, my name is Emilio Giron. Me personally, I haven’t sang that much, but I feel like I’ll be ready to sing next year. I feel like it’s very important that at least all of us can have a grito, because that just shows how much passion we have to this, and how much we can actually do, instead of just playing our instrument.
Miller: Can we hear yours?
Giron: [trilling exclamation]
Nuñez: He’s got a large repertoire of gritos.
Miller: Do you have others? I’d love to hear all your gritos.
Giron: [longer exclamation]
Nuñez: Dulceluna has a good one. The Veracruz one.
Cebrera Gomez: [three short exclamations, laugher]
Miller: What’s the most fun thing about being in this band?
Raquel Lopez Andrade: It’s definitely the people you’re surrounded by. They’re the ones that hold the band together. You play with them, and they’re like your second family.
Band Member: Just like Raquel said, because we don’t just play Mariachi, but we hang out after school, we talk to each other. It’s not always about Mariachi. But I’d consider these some of my closest friends.
Band Member: I think for me, definitely, one of the funnest parts is the performances. I think it’s really fun for me because, knowing all of the practices that we come in and do, all the classes and all the fine things that we do to make the music sound good, I think it’s really fun going to a performance and finally being able to do it. Like, ok, we’ve been practicing the whole week now. We can finally get to show it off, and seeing all the people, like their claps and their yelling, and like going up to sing on a piece, it’s very nerve wracking but going up to sing on a piece that I’ve been working on and being a little nervous. But once the piece ends and everybody’s like, oh my, that was so good, and all the claps, I think that’s like the funnest part for me because it really makes the hard work pay off.
Miller: What’s a memorable experience you’ve had just collaborating with an artist?
Band Member: A year ago, around a year ago, we were invited uh to open a show for Mariachi Vargas in Portland. That was, by far, the most memorable moment, because we met them, shook their hands.
Band Member: So, to put it into perspective, the full name of their band is called Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán. They’re pretty much known as the best Mariachi in the world, and it was a really big honor going and playing with them. Well, we didn’t play with them, but we opened for them, and I think that knowing that they chose us to open for them, it was a really big honor, because they’re known as the best in the world. They’re definitely one of my role models, and I think that was one of the most memorable experiences for me in collaborating with other people.
Miller: Have any of your family members played in this band as well?
Giron: Yes, my older sister, Amanda Giron. She was in the Mariachi. She started when she was, I believe, in middle school. I didn’t join until my freshman year, but during the summer, like during COVID, I was really bored out of my mind, and after a lot of convincing from my family, they convinced me to join Mariachi during my sister’s senior year. That year, that was probably my favorite year, because I got to enjoy it not only with some of the people in this group right now, but also my sister, who was a big encouragement in continuing this.
Miller: Does that feel like a responsibility?
Band Member: I would say so, because you don’t wanna let down the other people in the group. They’re putting all their effort into learning the music, or bringing it together, and it’s just you really wanna bring your all here so you can play, have fun with it, and not just worry.
Miller: Lesslie, this group is pretty evenly split, gender wise. Is that the norm, historically, for Mariachi?
Nuñez: No, Mariachi has been a male dominated genre.There are more female mariachi groups, but often it is definitely male heavy.
Miller: Can we hear one more song?
Nuñez: Yes. Bamba!
Mariachi Tradición:[singing in Spanish, band playing] … [singing continues]
Miller: Thank you all very much. It was a real pleasure talking with you and listening to you. Thank you very much.
Nuñez: Thank you.
Miller: That’s the Forest Grove High School band, Mariachi Tradición, along with orchestra and Mariachi director Lesslie Nuñez. We talked to them in Forest Grove last week.
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