The University of Texas Pan American Mariachi Aztlán The UTPA Mariachi Program was founded in 1989 by Dr. Dahlia Guerra, Professor and Dean of the College of Arts and Humanities at UT Pan American in Edinburg, Texas. Mr. Francisco Loera, a graduate of the Spanish, Music, and mariachi programs, who is on the faculty at the Department of Modern Languages & Literature and the Department of Music & Dance at UTPA, joined as co-director in 1997. Throughout the years, UT Pan American has showcased the mariachi students as musical ambassadors across the United States, Mexico, and Canada, creating bridges of cultural understanding between countries and peoples. The opportunities available to the mariachi students throughout the years have been numerous and of national and international stature and significance. The Mariachi Aztlán’s growing reputation for performance excellence initiated the recent invitation from the White House to perform at a signing ceremony of an Executive Order renewing and enhancing the White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for Hispanics, performing for President Obama himself. In collaboration with the Houston Grand Opera, the UTPA Mariachi Aztlán premiered the stage production of Cruzar la Cara de la Luna, the world’s first “Mariachi-Opera” in December 2010. The UTPA Mariachi Aztlán has also appeared at the Tucson International Mariachi Conferences; in Ottawa, Canada; in Los Angeles, California; in Guadalajara, Mexico City and San Miguel de Allende, Mexico; at the Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlan Extravaganzas in San Antonio and Houston Texas; and has been invited to perform numerous times in Washington D.C., at the Texas State Capital in Austin, Texas, and at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in 2012. The UTPA Mariachi Aztlán has performed with two symphony orchestras in Mexico, including performances in Monterrey, Pachuca, and Tampico, Mexico, and has also performed several times with the Valley Symphony Orchestra in the Rio Grande Valley. For over fifteen years, in San Antonio, Texas, and in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the UTPA Mariachi Aztlán has been selected as the “Outstanding College or University Mariachi” in nationwide competition. The UTPA Mariachi Aztlán were selected “Grand Champions” of the Mariachi Spectacular Competition in 2011 and 2013 and were invited as guest artists in 2014. The UTPA Mariachi Aztlán has won first place in the “Best in Texas” Mariachi Invitational at the Houston Rodeo, in Houston Texas, in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2013, performing for over 73,000 people on each occasion. The UTPA Mariachi has been recognized by the Texas House of Representatives (1999) and the Texas Senate (2003) for promoting the music and traditions of the Hispanic culture. Other highlight performances include concerts at the Hollywood Bowl, the John F. Kennedy Performing Arts Center, and a performance of the mariachi opera Cruzar la Cara de la Luna with the Chicago Lyric Opera in April 2013. Recent performances include a concert at the San Diego Mariachi Festival in March 2014, and an encore performance with the Chicago Lyric Opera on April 12, 2014. The future looks bright for the UTPA Mariachi Aztlán. The mariachi students are teaching/performing at several national conferences in 2014-2015, they have been invited to perform a world premiere of a new mariachi opera with the Chicago Lyric Opera in 2015, and they are releasing a new CD in 2015.
Posted on: Mon, 10 Nov 2014 17:36:22 +0000