Social Music of Early California
by Los CaliforniosSingers and folk instrumentalists (guitar, violin/fiddle, mandolin, accordion, flute, harp, etc.) will learn songs and tunes of 19th century Spanish and Mexican California.
Transcriptions will be available, but emphasis will be on learning by ear, and participants and presenters will play together these pieces from our shared California heritage.
For fifteen years, the San Diego-based group Los Californios® has been researching and interpreting the music of Spanish and Mexican California, focusing on the nineteenth century. Working from primary sources, including Californio testimonials, travelers' accounts, interviews with descendants and collectors, and the early sound recordings of Spanish-speaking Californians made by Charles Fletcher Lummis almost a century ago, as well as secondary sources such as Bancroft's histories, they endeavor to recreate the sound of serenade and fandango from the days before California statehood. Their mission includes not only the presentation of this music, but also the continuation of the traditions through both educational workshops and the instruction of young musicians. Los Californios® is a project of the San Diego Friends of Old-Time Music, a California 501 (c) (3) educational non-profit corporation.
All songs are in (the original) Spanish.
We are:
Vykki Mende Gray,
Janet Martini,
Peter DuBois, and
David Swarens
