Music and Family

    For the purpose of this interview, I chose to interview my mother who is not only 28 years older than me, but also grew up in a very different environment which I know greatly impacted the way she was exposed to music. Because she grew up in a small village in Mexico in the middle of nowhere, she did not have access to the technological advances that other people around the world may have had.

    I began this interview by asking, "What are your earliest memories of music?". My mother stated that she has fond memories of discovering and learning new music through cancioneros or song books. It was through these song books that she discovered her love for Ranchero artists like Pedro Infante, Vicente Fernandez, and Antonio Aguilar. She claims that her version of "listening" to songs was flipping through the cancioneros and learning the lyrics to her favorite songs as there were no radios where she could actually "listen" to music. Below, I have attached a picture of what a cancionero would have looked like: 

I continued the interview by asking, "Were there any specific artists or genres that were prominent in your household growing up?". She responded that there wasn't any music in her household growing up because they did not have radios. I also asked, "As a teenager, what genres or artists were you particularly drawn to?". She stated that "The artists that I started listening to when I was 10 years old are the same ones that I listened to when I was a teenager and they are the same artists that I listen to now. The only thing that changed by the time I was fifteen was the fact that we finally had access to record players so I was able to start listening to music on there". 

    The next thing I asked was, "How has your taste in music evolved over the years? Were there any significant shifts or phases?". She stated that "My music taste has changed a lot as before I would only listen to Rancheras and now I love anything from Merengue, Bachata, Cumbia, Salsa, and even Reggaetón.  Really, as long as the song isn’t something that puts me to sleep, I like it. I appreciate songs that wake me up and make me want to dance".

"Muy Despacito"--Pedro Infante

This is one of my mother's favorite songs by an artist she grew up listening to.

    I continued the interview by asking, "What are some of your current favorite artists or genres?". She stated that, "Currently, I do not have a favorite artist in particular, but I enjoy  listening to the music that my children play. I listen to artists like Daddy Yankee, La Mar-K, Bad Bunny, Shakira, etc. It really just depends on if a song comes on that I like". This answer surprised be as a lot of the artists she listed are artist that I used to listen to or even currently listen to. It was nice to share this interest with my mother.

"Lagrimas Del  Corazon"--La Mar K De Tierra Caliente

This is one of my mother's favorite songs by an artist she currently listens to.

    Lastly, I concluded the interview by asking, "What was you first live concert experience, and how did it influence your perception of the artist or genre?". My mother stated that, "My first concert experience was actually a few months ago when I went with you and your friends. It was very fascinating to watch the artist sing and it was entertaining watching an artist live. I was not completely ecstatic because it wasn’t an artist I was particularly interested in, but the concert experience itself was entertaining. Had it been an artist like Chayanne, I would have definitely been more immersed in the experience". I had decided to ask this question because I was under the impression that she had previously gone to a concert with my father, but it was nice to know that I was able to give her her first concert experience and it be a memory we share.