What is mariachi music?

LAURA GOULD/Charleston Catholic

By Sam Redd
Buffalo High School

Cinco de Mayo is a celebration, and what would a celebration be without music? When people hear the word “mariachi,” they often picture musicians strolling through Mexican restaurants dressed in flamboyant outfits and carrying a small guitar. But that is not all that mariachi music is.

It dates back centuries, but mariachi music as we know it started in the 19th century in the Mexican state of Jalisco. At that time, the music featured all string instruments; a band generally consisted of two violinists and two people to play the vihuela (a high-pitched five-string guitar) and the guitarrón (a large, six-string acoustic bass). Now, trumpets are also key mariachi instruments.

Mariachi music plays an important role in Mexican culture. It is used to celebrate the great moments in people’s lives.

It is often played at weddings and baptisms and on Mexican holidays. It’s even played at funerals. And back in a time when young adults of opposite sexes were often kept apart, men would use mariachis to serenade the women they loved.

The origin of the word “mariachi” has long been debated. An early explanation was that it was derived from the French word for “wedding” because that’s where the music was commonly played. However, historians no longer believe this to be true.

Other theories are that it comes from the type of wood used to create the stage where the performers played and that it’s the name of a festival honoring the virgin Maria H. (mah-ree-ah AH-chay) where they often played.

Dancing is an integral part of mariachi music. The typical mariachi dance is called the zapateado. It features intricate footwork where dancers pound the heels of their shoes into the floor to create rhythms that complement and mimic the instruments. Another type of mariachi dance is the Mexican Hat Dance, a highly stylized folk dance that’s the national dance of Mexico.

Early mariachi musicians generally wore white cotton pants and shirts and leather sandals. In the 1930s, they began dressing to match their unique music. The outfit, called a traje de charro, consists of a waist-length jacket, tight wool pants, boots and a sombrero. The suits are often decorated with bright, intricate embroidery and/or fancy buttons.

Early mariachi musicians were not famous performers. They performed locally and usually weren’t known outside their hometowns. This began to change about when a group was invited to play at the Inauguration of Mexican President Cárdenas in 1934. Today, mariachi’s popularity has skyrocketed, and there are many groups that play this historical music worldwide.