Mexican Folk Songs Research Paper

Like Mariachi, Ranchera is another traditional genre of music admired by the Mexican people but different in its own ways. Ranchera music is a well-known type of music from Mexico, with the name deriving from ranch lands on which the style was initially performed. Ranchera songs are categorized by intense sentiment and subjects of love dominate poetic lyrics. Sentimental ranchera singers, their voices charged with a contagious emotion, are often capable of moving to tears even their most hardened listeners. Waltz, polka and bolero inspired rhythms accompany the singer along with sudden cries of emotion that highlight the singer’s sorrowful mood. Ranchera is in fact a general label for different types of music. The genre has absorbed many specific

The reason why there were so many Mexican was because after the Mexican-American War, when the United States (US) took two-thirds of Mexican land, part of this land became California. Many Mexicans who lived in that land were still allowed to stay, but they were stripped of their property.3 Thus, most Mexican Americans became poor. One of the few jobs that would allow Mexicans to work in were in cannery farms. These jobs, however, did not pay enough for the Mexicans to afford their living expenses.4 Many Mexican families needed to live with other families in small houses to keep up with the rent.5 Since these Mexican families were living in such poor conditions, they felt they needed to negotiate with the companies and get better wages. There is also the possibility that the effects of American culture on Mexican women swayed them to unionize. Women were becoming more independent, and teenage girls, including Mexicans, wanted to be able to go on dates without chaperones. These teenagers needed to argue with their parents or get around them to succeed in doing this.6 It is possible that these rebellious attitudes toward their parents would create that mindset needed to “rebel” against companies by forming

The lyrics express Guthrie's belief that the working class should have the same rights as the rich. He very proudly carried the torch of singing songs about the American worker. Woody Guthrie’s music was not written down, but instead sung, performed, and taught completely by memory. The structure of this song is easy and memorable, using an "ACAB" format, which repeats the beginning of the melody (A section) for the third line. There was a certain Americana aspect to his folk music. He was a migrant farmer traveling as a country singer, using only his guitar and voice (occasionally using a harmonica) in his performances. He created songs from the sights he saw as he traveled all over the USA as a country singer, and spoke out against the lack of fairness and justice of capitalism and poor treatment of blue collar workers. He preached that his folk music was not just something that was made just to “sell” and “make money”, it was intensively focused on political and worldly events.

In my personal experience, Mexican music has revolved around my life for as long as I can remember. Growing up in a bordertown has its Hispanic heritage. Whether I was at home, school, or even in public places, I would hear Spanish related music playing in the background. I believe Spanish music holds many values when it comes to different occasions. The music can manipulate the minds of its listeners using love, passion, and outstanding rhythms. After reading an article online, I can explain how three different genres of traditional Mexican music influence people’s culture.

Immigrants who come over are looking for jobs as a first priority so they can provide for there family. There are not very many jobs out there today because there's so many in poverty and some are laid off their jobs because of a younger generation so in that case many U.S. citizens are looking for jobs. When these illegal immigrants come over and start applying and looking for jobs and get them it sets a lot of americans

All over the world there are many features that make up a culture. Culture can be defined as the characteristics, attitudes, knowledge and beliefs of a group of people, relating to language, cuisine, religion, interaction, lifestyle, and more which is learned through socialization. These aspects of cultures are what distinguishes it from others. It is interesting to explore and learn about new cultures. I will be focusing on the Mexican culture, their religion, death, family life, weddings and ….

During this period, Pete Seeger began writing books. His greatest publications include The Bells of Rhymney and Other Songs and Stories and American Favorite Ballads, Tunes and Folksongs as Sung by Pete Seeger. In the book “Carry it on! A History in Song and Picture of America’s Working Men and Women, Seeger and Reiser tell a story with songs describing every little aspect to the struggle of workers, specifically what they did in order to make things right. “Farm workers have been treated like livestock, herded into overcrowded dormitories or housed in shacks. In the prosperous 1960’s, the average farm worker made less than $2000 a year” . This example is followed by a song called “Deportee” which is written from the perspective of a farmer. Another book “The Incompleat Folksinger”, explores the many aspects of folklore music and what impacts it has had on Pete. He describes his songs to “tell of

In this century, Mexicans continue to be a minority in America. Most of them, don’t feel American, even though they were born in this country. This goes to tell how unfair the Americans were to the Mexicans. As Acuna states, “on January 19, 1903, the Arizona Legislature passed a law prohibiting mines from working more than eight hours per day underground” (Acuna, 158). This law prohibit that any “white male” should work more than eight hours. However, it was implied by the Americans that Mexicans were not included in this law, therefore, they would still work regular work time, plus overtime at the same minimum wage. Which was absolutely outrages how discriminating the Americans could be. As Acuna mentions, “[the] true purpose was to eliminate foreign-born Mexican who had to work 10-12 hours a day to make ends meet with their lower wages” (Acuna, 158). As a result of this bigoted wage treatment towards the “raza,” many Mexican workers took little money to their

The United States always has a way of blaming Chicano people for the rising unemployment rates, when in reality the United States is the one who wanted Chicano people to work. After World War II the United States needed more manual labor which then provoked the emergence of countless Mexicans into the U.S.. They were known as Braceros, which were Mexican laborers that were allowed into the United States for a limited period of time as a seasonal agricultural worker. The Bracero movement was well related to the California Gold Rush because numerous Mexicans headed North across the American border because they thought they would gain mass fortunes

The idea of song among the majority of Native Americans is pretty short and to the point. Songs consist of short, easy to remember phrases. They aren't just for ceremonial purposes, but for everyday life as well. They are important during religious or spiritual ceremonies. During these events, however, most songs are designated a time in which they will be performed.

Some of the very first Mexican’s migrated to the United States in the early 1900’s during Mexico’s Revolution. The Mexican Revolution began in 1910 and lasted until 1921. The United States kept out of the revolution although it did supply Mexico with weapons. Mexico was full of chaos, and there was no law or order within the country. Many early Mexicans left due to this factor, and went to the United States in search for a better life. When the United States entered WWI in 1917, there was a search for unskilled workers. During this time the U.S. was very welcoming and friendly to Mexican immigrants. But, when the United States was no longer in need of the Mexican workers they deported them back to Mexico. The U.S. sent mixed signals to the Mexican immigrants like this all the time. It was believed in the U.S. by governing officials that what may be necessary and beneficial at one point in time, may not be so at another. And, they acted accordingly to this fact.

For instance, Joe R. Feagin states, “By the early 1900s agricultural and industrial expansion created an increased demand for low-wage labor in the Southwest. White employers recruited large numbers of Mexican Laborers for farms and factories, with federal assistance [...] employers and their allies in government have sought Mexican workers to do low-wage agricultural; and manufacturing jobs, even as growing numbers of political groups have agitated against such immigrants. By bringing in large numbers of Mexican workers, employers have helped to change the U.S. demographic and political landscape in often dramatic ways” (Page 242). Latino migration was often very common; workers would stay for a few years, and then go back to their country with more money than they could have made in their country of origin. Like African Americans and Native Americans, they were seen different and discriminated against. Furthermore, Asian Americans have come to the United States in waves, at different times, and for different reasons. For example, like Latino Americans, Asians also came to the United States by employers to use their labor and later Asians began to immigrate to America because of the Gold

Their sense of belongingness gives the people pride, because the songs embody the rich history, culture, and values of Mexico. As a result, people in in Mexican communities are able to proudly identify themselves as Mexicans. With a vast amount of culturally proud people, Mexican culture will ultimately be kept alive.

One of history’s most notable “floating songs,” “House of the Rising Sun” has been labeled by critics as a piece of culture with an “epicenter lost to the past” (Marshall). Though the song is documented as being first recorded by Tom Clarence Ashley in 1933, “House of the Rising Sun” retains ambiguous beginnings and has been variously accredited to Ashley, to singer Georgia Turner as recorded by Alan Lomax, to an unnamed railroad worker who codified the lyrics as early as 1925, and even to the early folk tradition of the British Isles (“House of the Rising Sun” 213). Though countless pieces of American folk culture likely have origins in British custom, “these homespun songs and poems were [also] rooted deep in the [lives]” of rural towns in the American south (Cohen 23). Whether “House of the Rising Sun” or “Rising Sun Blues,” as Ashley titled his recording, was an original work to either party, the song largely gained prominence due Ashley’s 1933 recording and Alan Lomax’s 1937 recording of Georgia Turner’s rendition.

The reason why history exists is because some people felt that certain events were so important that they must be recorded down for future generations to see. Many forms of history exist in typical forms such as text or photos, but some of history’s defining moments are displayed in the form of art. In the past before a written language was formed people passed down their history through oral means such as stories and music. Music especially played a role in the passing down of history because it was easy to remember things to the beat of a song. The reason why so many people remember the lyrics to a song rather than what they studied for a history exam they have coming up is because our brain can connect the lyrics to the beat which makes it easier to remember. One form of song which can play a huge role in a society’s history and culture is folk music. Folk music defines the culture of the society and the history behind it. They tell a story of a key person, place, thing, or event that has occurred in that community and the impact it has had on that community. Because of their impact on society historians research a places folk music in order to get a better grasp on what made that place into what it is. Therefore, folk songs are just as legitimate to history as written documents and provide a unique knowledge that may not be understood by just reading documents.