Always beloved, mariachi music now respected

As a mariachi musician for more than 40 years, it is common for me to receive a couple of messages a week from family, friends or strangers asking for help booking a mariachi group for an event. This happens to every mariachi musician.

It has taken a long time for respect to catch up with the love of mariachi music. Mariachi music has long been unfairly seen as cantina music unfit for concert performance halls. But thanks to mariachi education, much of that has changed.

Years ago, if a person wanted to learn how to play mariachi, he or she was taught without sheet music. Recordings by Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlan, long considered the world’s greatest mariachi ensemble, were the tools used to teach. Students would listen over and over, learning to hit each note. Then musicians would come together and rehearse as a group to refine the performance.

That is how my career started with Mariachi Campanas de América, under the direction of Juan Ortiz. It was also when mariachi education started to take hold in the public schools in San Antonio.

Juan Ortiz was married to

Belle Ortiz, a

San Antonio Independent School District educator who loved the art of mariachi music. She is credited with starting mariachi education in the local public school systems. Juan and Belle Ortiz are credited with creating the first International Mariachi Festival in 1979 in San Antonio. That festival has lived

on through the annual Mariachi Extravaganza, where thousands of students realize their dreams of becoming mariachi musicians.

In July, Belle Ortiz died. The Queen of Mariachi Education was given a fitting farewell, with bedside serenades and social media video messages expressing appreciation.

I, along with her family and the group that was her namesake, Campanas de América (Bells of America), documented

her final days and produced a film, “Suena La Educacion: The Story of Belle Ortiz,” which has won three international film awards. This recognition is a testament to the power and passion of mariachi music.

Today, countless public schools have mariachi programs. Throughout the state, country and the world, mariachi programs are offered in schools alongside classical music, jazz and other band programs. These programs are creating the next generation of mariachi musicians. This new generation is not limited to playing in cantinas. Instead, they are performing in prestigious venues with production values fit for Broadway or Las Vegas.

One of those venues is the Hollywood Bowl, where MARIACHI USA holds its annual festival. This year marks the 35th year of mariachi music filling the hills of Hollywood. I had the honor of performing on stage at the first festival. And for the past 20 years, I have served as the director of the show, which showcases the best there is to offer in mariachi ensembles.

Every year, I get chills when I hear more than 18,000 fans sing along during the performances.

Today, mariachi music is a strong and expanding art form. From being documented at the University of Texas Voces Oral History Center to being added as an ensemble in the Youth Orchestras of San Antonio programs to University Interscholastic League competitions, mariachi music is hitting the high notes.

I like to think that mariachi has no limit.

Courtesy photo The author, Anthony Medrano, performs with Campanas de América. Mariachi music has grown tremendously, in large part due to education efforts that began in San Antonio schools.

Belle Ortiz