A gala concert honoring the divas of mariachi music was the centerpiece of the 17th San Jose Mariachi Festival, but the month-long series of events celebrated all aspects of what might be considered the traditional classical music of Mexico.

The Mexican Heritage Center of San Jose CA produces a festival that includes workshops with world-renowned mariachi ensembles, several outstanding concerts, and a full-on free festival day with mariachi and Latin alternative music presented on multiple stages in downtown San Jose.

Mariachi music is an emotionally evocative and rich music that reflects the traditional Mexican spirit and culture. A mariachi ensemble typically includes violins, trumpets and Mexican guitars.

The diva theme was selected in part thanks to the participation of Linda Ronstadt, a famous Mexican-American singer who was once labeled "The Venus of Rock"  by Rolling Stone Magazine. Ronstadt suggested the three-diva tribute as a way to highlight the contribution of women to a genre of music that is largely dominated by male performers.

The September 27 concert paid tribute  to legendary divas Lola Beltran, Lucha Reyes, and Amalia Mendoza, with performances by Ronstadt, Lila Downs and contemporary mariachi star Aida Cuevas. Downs seems just about ready to make a mainstream cross over, if it hasn’t happened already.  All three women took turns singing famous songs by the late great divas of Mexican song.

The concert opened with performances by two of the workshop ensembles, Mariachi Los Camperos de Nati Cano and Mariachi Cobre, which is the official mariachi ensemble of Walt Disney World. Mariachi Cobre’s musical director Stephen M. Carillo provided exceptional trumpet and vocal solos.  However, the introductory acts did take up too much time before the main event.

As a result, some of the nearly sold-out audience at the San Jose State Events Auditorium began to trickle out during the main acts.

The previous evening, the festival presented an outstanding concert at the Montgomery Theater with Ersi Arvisu, her sisters and Big Band, and featuring none other than Ry Cooder, the guitarist and producer responsible for the huge success of the Cuban group Buena Vista Social Club.

Ersi Arvizu came to fame as the singer for Latin rock group El Chicano, known for  their 1970s release of the traditional Mexcian bolero “Sabor a Mi.”  This ballad is a popular and beloved ballad that was spiced up by El Chicano with a female voice and rock guitar licks.

The theater provided an intimate setting for the familial performance. Ersi’s sisters were and long time fans such as the Viejitos car club were in the audience. There were fabulous opening acts, including Raices, a professional folkloric dance troupe from Sacramento, and Mariachi Azteca of San Jose, featuring lead vocals and violin by “La Patita.”

The workshops held at the San Jose Wyndham hotel October 25 and 26. These programs are designed to preserve the rich musical heritage of Mexico among the Mexican diaspora in California by allowing youth and adults to study under masters of the music.

For more informatioon about the event and the performers, see: San Jose Mariachi Festival, Ersi Arvizu, Linda Ronstadt, Aida Cuevas, Lila Downs, Mariachi Cobre, Raices Dance Troupe, Mariachi Azteca.