INTERVIEW: Mariachi culture inspires children in Chicago
Photo: Mariachi Herencia de México were nominated for a 2017 Latin Grammy award and will tour the United States and Mexico this summer. Photo courtesy of Carolina Sanchez / Provided by Cindy Byram PR with permission.
How’s this for an uplifting story: Mariachi Herencia de México, a student group from Chicago, has found such great success that they were nominated for a 2017 Latin Grammy award and continue to inspire children to learn from and appreciation the wonderful musical contributions of Mexico.
At the center of the education program is Cesar Maldonado, the founder and an all around Renaissance man when it comes to bringing mariachi music to Chicago students. For Maldonado, his roots run deep in Chicago.
“The same communities where we have the mariachi programs is where I grew up, where I was born and raised,” he said in a recent phone interview. “I wanted to do something that was a little bit more relevant to our specific community. Chicago’s Mexican community, it’s relatively young. It’s still an immigrant community, so there’s a lot of issues with families being involved in school, language barrier, etc. So I wanted to marry my passion for mariachi music with serving kids, and in 2012, came up with a plan to implement a mariachi education program in the Chicago Public School system, and it kind of took off from there.”
Many of these children, living in Chicago’s immigrant barrios, had never picked up an instrument before they enrolled in Maldonado’s program. Now, some of them can add Grammy nominee to their résumé. When they started learning the guitar, trumpet, violin or singing, they realized the cultural connection to their heritage and began to develop their talents.
Maldonado’s program runs weekday classes for many children, and then a select few can audition for the weekend program.
“We kind of designed it just like the prestigious orchestra programs in Chicago where we only take 90 students, and out of 90, 20 are qualified in the most elite level, which is the group that records,” Maldonado said. “And a year and a half later, we’re walking the red carpet at the Latin Grammys. Second album we hit #2 on Billboard. It’s just been out of this world. Never did I imagine we’re going to get to this place.”
The Grammy-nominated album was last year’s Nuestra Herencia (Our Heritage). The group’s latest CD is Herencia de la Tierra Mía, which means The Heritage of My Land. The album features contributions from special guests Lila Downs, Aida Cuevas and harpist Ivan Velasco. It was produced by the legendary Javier Limón, who has worked with Paco de Lucía, Diego el Cigala, Alejandro Sanz, Mariza and Buika.
The recording group currently consists of one 18-year-old musician and students from 12 to 16 years in age. They started when they were in the sixth, seventh or eighth grades, and some of the older ones are almost finished with high school.
“The curriculum takes them through all the instruments, but ultimately they get to pick they really want to master,” Maldonado said. “We’re actually leaving today to Florida. We start our summer tour. We go to Florida. Then we play Cancun, and then we do California. We’re in Chicago for like a week this entire summer.”
The group has a great deal of pedigree among its musical directors as well. For example, Robert Martinez leads the instruction for the children, and he also serves in the prestigious band Mariachi Cobre, who play at Epcot Center in Walt Disney World. Another music director is Joaquin Rodriguez from the equally prestigious band Mariachi Sol de Mexico.
“[Rodriguez] is known to be one of the best violinists in the mariachi genre, period, so these kids have the cream of the crop in terms of teachers and instructors,” Maldonado said. “Then throughout the school year, we do a lot of performing arts events where we bring in mariachi artists from around the world to Chicago, and in addition to just the show, we always bring them to work with the kids. And some of the groups write arrangements for the kids. … So they get a truly world-class experience.”
As students leave the program — as they inevitably must do one day — Maldonado hopes they leave with a greater appreciation for their heritage.
“The obvious one is the music and the culture and the appreciation for who their parents are, who their grandparents are, where they come from,” he said. “The reason why I do this is because I want them to see that there is a whole world out there for them. Sometimes you grow up in a neighborhood, especially a place like a neighborhood in Chicago, and a lot of times because of the income level, you don’t see past the four-block radius where you live. … I want these kids to see that there’s a whole world out there that they can go after, and if music can be the impetus and the way to do it, that’s what I want them to see. I want them to leave the program knowing that they can pretty much accomplish anything. To be 12 years old and be nominated for a Latin Grammy, I think that’s done a tremendous thing for their emotional beings.”
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Mariachi Herencia de México’s new CD is Herencia de la Tierra Mía, and they are currently on tour in the United States and Mexico. Click here for more information.
