The Son Jarocho – Mexican Traditional Music

If we want to describe the son jarocho music or Mexican traditional music in general, we
need to know also about History, Music, Poetry, Religion, Races and globalization, from
the last three hundred years at least.
Son jarocho is the result of the syncretism of three cultures: the African, the European
(Spanish, Portuguese) and the Mexican natives, even the Arabic culture is present in this
music. From the XVIII century, we can clearly see this final result, in the state of Veracruz,
in the region of the “Sotavento”. In this region, people met in the middle of the jungle,
around a big pallet, where the Ladies danced with the rhythm of several instrument,
playing together in complete synchrony. They eat, and then dance, and then drink, and
then sing, all the night until next morning. This is the party of the “Fandango”, an old
tradition living in our times.

The instruments in the son jarocho music are string, guitars, percussions and the voice.
Jaranas, requintos, violins, quijada, harps to name a few. The Jarana descended from the
baroque guitar, kwon also as Spanish guitar or Five strings guitar. It appeared in Spain
around XVII century and came to America at the same time bringing by sailors, merchants,
artists etc.
Jarocho´s violins have a different way of playing than modern violins, traditionally it´s not
a melodic instrument as we know, it´s an accompaniment instrument, more like a
medieval instrument a Ravel.
There is a long catalogue for percussion instruments in son jarocho, the rhythm has been
in humans since ancient times, and it´s a way to communicate and express each other. We
can imagine this place where people from different parts of the world, speaking different
languages, living together, and one of the ways to communicate its music.

So, the Fandango party become part of his life, and every special day or festivity it´s a
good excuse to do a Fandango. But there was a time, in the middle of past century, when
fandangos and Sones almost die. The movie industry in Mexico entry on a Nationalism
way, and they start to stereotype people, and create a wrong vision of the Mexicans, and
for bad luck, the Mexicans think that this vision is how they have to be. And we see this
movies with the Mexican Charro, with a big hat, proud, macho, drinking tequila in a
canteen, singing to women, and the musicians, behind him, Indians, playing for a bottle. I
think the jarochos had the worst part, rural people, used to work the earth, the industry
dress them, all withe, from the hat to the shoes, trying to hide in some way, the color of
them skin.
Then the people in the ranches started to think that they had to dress like that to go to
the cities, and they want to be no more rural people, they wanted modernity and all the
old tradition had no more importance.
Fortunately, in the decade of 70´s, start a movement to rediscovery this old oral
traditions, this old music, and these old people in towns, in all Latin-America not only in
Mexico.
Nowadays, the son jarocho is the second Mexican music know in the world after Maricahi.
There are Festivals, there are masterclasses with the great musicians of the son jarocho,
there are studios where you can go to take lesson, and of course Fandangos, in all the
world.