Mariachi facts for kids

Traditional mariachi band

Mariachi is a Latin music genre. It is popularized in Mexico and its culture. This type of music includes instruments such as the violin, trumpet, guitar, vihuela, guitarrón and sometimes a harp. Mariachi is sung and performed mostly in bands. However, some solo artists such as Selena and Alejandro Fernández have recorded and performed Mariachi songs.

Groups

Mariachi Group playing at the 10th anniversary celebration of Wikipedia in Guadalajara

The size of a Mariachi group varies depending on the availability of musicians. The usual mariachi group today consists of as many as eight violins, two trumpets and at least one guitar. Traditional mariachi guitars include the vihuela, a high-pitched, round-backed guitar that provides rhythm, and a bass guitar called a guitarrón, which also provides rhythm. Sometimes a Mexican folk harp provides bass and ornaments the melody. All are Mexican variations of European instruments. There is generally no lead singer as in other kinds of group with all players singing choruses and taking turns singing the lead. Often the lead singer is assigned to a certain song due to voice qualities. Mariachi vocalization shows influences from a number of styles such as bolero (a romantic style), huapango (using falsetto), son jalisciense (an aggressive style) and more. Voices must be strong to be heard over amplified instruments. Vocal style emphasizes operatic qualities and instrumental performance demonstrates a level of virtuosity that reflects advanced musical training. Historically, mariachi groups have been made up of men but there is growing acceptance of female mariachis.

Mariachi with guitarrón

As mariachi groups are expected to play requests, they may need to know hundreds of different songs. Most songs are about machismo, love, betrayal, death, politics, revolutionary heroes and even animals and country life from the genre origins as rural son music. One particularly famous song is “La Cucaracha” (The Cockroach).

Most mariachi groups are associated with family and religious celebrations along with serenades. One of the most common pieces played by Mariachis is “Las Mañanitas” for birthdays and celebrations of patron saints.

In Mexico, mariachi music can also be found as part of Catholic Mass. The Misa panamericana is a mariachi folk mass sung in Spanish with new arrangements of classic hymns such as "Kyrie Eleison". This innovation began in 1966 by Canadian priest Jean Marc Leclerc and it moved from a small church to the Cuernavaca Cathedral.

Mariachis and artists

Mariachi singing

• Vicente Fernández
• Alejandro Fernández
• Chayito Valdez
• Selena

Images for kids

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  Mariachi singer

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  Figures depicting an old-style mariachi band in clay by José Guadalupe Panduro of Tonalá, Jalisco, on display at the Museo de Arte Popular in Mexico City

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  Mariachi band playing at the Tenampa in Mexico City

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  Mariachi woman in modern attire playing the violin

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  Monument to the mariachi in Plaza Garibaldi, Mexico City

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  Mario Santiago and Silvestre Vargas in a musical presentation, 1958–1959

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  Female mariachi vocalist at the Festival del Mariachi, Charrería y Tequila in San Juan de los Lagos, Mexico

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  Mariachi group playing at the 10th-anniversary celebration of Wikipedia in Guadalajara

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  Silvestre Vargas (1901-1985), violins and musician of the Mariachi Vargas from 1921 to 1975, director from 1931 to 1955

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  Mariachi Vargas in 1950

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  George and Laura Bush at the White House with Mariachi Campanas de América

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  The Mariachi Divas de Cindy Shea is an all-female Mariachi based in Los Angeles, California, founded in 1999 by Cindy Shea. In 2009, they became the first all-female mariachi nominated for a Grammy Award, and the first to win one. As of 2014, the mariachi has been nominated for five Grammy awards, winning twice. They are the official Mariachi of the Disneyland resort.

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  Lupita Infante is an American singer-songwriter. Her paternal grandparents are Mexican performers Lupita Torrentera [es] and Pedro Infante.

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  María José Quintanilla, a Chilean singer of ranchera

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  Image of a mariachi fiddler

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  Mariachi, Heart of Mexico

See also

In Spanish: Mariachi para niños