¡Corrido!: The Living Ballad of Mexico’s Western Coast

454 Pages·2015·9.64 MB·English

by  John Holmes McDowell et al.

ethnomusicology | latin america
“Tis sensitive analysis of the ballad tradition of Mexico’s Costa Chica speaks of
McDowell’s deep humanity. Rarely have corridos been treated with such delicate insight
into the human struggle and drama to reveal the complexity of life in communities in
the grip of endemic violence.” ¡Corido!
—Helena Simonett, editor of
Te Accordion in the Americas: Klezmer, Polka, Tango, Zydeco, and More! McDowell
“Tis thrilling repertoire makes ¡Corrido! a brilliant complement to John H. McDowell’s ¡Corido!
Te Living Balad
Poetry and Violence and a must-have volume for scholars of folklore, ethnomusicology,
and literature. Field observations and musical scores animate each song, while lucid com- of Mexico’s
mentaries and references underscore the author’s unrivaled knowledge of the rich ballad Wesern Coas
tradition in Mexico’s western coast.”
—Ana Cara, Oberlin College
he present compilation of ballads from the Mexican states of Guerrero and Oaxaca documents
T one of the world’s great traditions of heroic song, a tradition that has thrived continuously
for the last hundred years. Te 107 corridos presented here, gathered during ethnographic research
over a period of twenty-fve years in settlements on Mexico’s Costa Chica and Costa Grande, ofer a
window into the ethos of heroism among the cultures on Mexico’s southwestern coast, a region that
has been plagued by recurrent cycles of violence.
John Holmes McDowell presents a richly annotated feld collection of corridos, accompanied
by musical scores and transcriptions and translations of lyrics. In addition to his interpretation of
the corridos’ depiction of violence and masculinity, McDowell situates the songs in historical and
performance contexts, illuminating the Afro-mestizo infuence in this distinctive population.
John Holmes McDowell is a professor of folklore
and ethnomusicology at Indiana University. Among
his earlier books is Poetry and Violence: Te Ballad
Tradition of Mexico’s Costa Chica.
Colected, Transcribed, Aranged, and Annotated by
isbn 978-0-8263-3743-6
ISBN 9780826337436 John Holmes McDowell
9 0 0 0 0
Photographs by Patricia Glushko
university of new mexico press
9 780826 337436 >
unmpress .com | 800-249-7737 Musical Transcriptions by Carlos Fernández
¡Corrido!
¡Corrido!
Te Living Balad of Mexico’s Wesern Coas
Collected, Transcribed, Arranged, and Annotated by
John Holmes McDowell
Photographs by
Patricia Glushko
Musical Transcriptions by
Carlos Fernández
University of New Mexico Press | Albuquerque
© 2015 by john holmes mcdowell
All rights reserved. Published 2015
Printed in the United States of America
20 19 18 17 16 15 1 2 3 4 5 6
libr ary of congress cataloging-in-publication data
McDowell, John Holmes, 1946– compiler, transcriber.
¡Corrido! : the living ballad of Mexico’s western coast / collected, transcribed,
arranged, and annotated by John Holmes McDowell ; with musical transcriptions
by Carlos Fernández and photographs by Patricia Glushko. — First edition.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
isbn 978-0-8263-3743-6 (cloth : alk. paper) — isbn 978-0-8263-3744-3 (electronic)
1. Corridos—Mexico—Pacifc Coast—History and criticism. 2. Folk songs, Spanish—
Mexico—History and criticism. I. Fernández, Carlos (Carlos A.), transcriber.
II. Glushko, Patricia, photographer. III. Title.
ML3570.M29 2015
782.42162’68720727—dc23
2014041841
Cover photograph: Juvencio Vargas, passionate performer of corridos
Photograph courtesy of Patricia Glushko
Frontispiece: From Poetry and Violence on Mexico’s Costa Chica.
Copyright © 2000 by the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois.
Used with permission of the University of Illinois Press.
Designed by Lila Sanchez
Composed in Minion Pro, Brioso Pro, and Trebuchet
In honor of the known and anonymous traditional poets and musicians who
composed the corridos and the troubadours of the region who performed them.
To Patricia Anne Glushko, the light of my life.
Contents
List of Corridos vii
List of Illustrations xi
Preface xi
introduction 1
chapter one Regional Standards 23
chapter two Cruz Grande 81
chapter three Juvencio and Meche Vargas 125
chapter four Collaborations 209
chapter five Ometepec and Cuajinicuilapa 257
chapter six Acapulco 321
chapter seven Costa Grande 363
Epilogue 397
Appendix: Media Resources 401
Bibliography 409
Index 415
vi
Coridos
regional standards
1. Simón Blanco 23
2. Chante Luna 32
3. El Ciruelo 38
4. Juan Escudero 42
5. La Gallinita 47
6. Los hermanos Zequeida 52
7. Moisés Colón 56
8. Genaro Vázquez 59
9. Lucio Cabañas 61
10. Modesta Ayala 64
11. Maximiliano de Hapsburgo 69
12. Delgadina 74
13. Los faroles de Acapulco 77
house of the gallardos, august 5, 1972
14. Gonzalo Gallardo 85
15. La Carta Blanca 88
16. Prisco Sánchez 92
17. Chicharrón 95
18. Juan Colón 99
19. El Culebro 105
20. Chautengo 107
21. Antonio Vélez 111
ernesto gallardo and alejandro mejía, january 28, 1989
22. Jesús Díaz 114
23. Mauro Lorenzo 117
24. Raúl Domínguez 120
25. Sidonio 121
juvencio vargas, january 22, 1989
26. Moisés Martínez 130
vii
iv ii Corridos
27. Ignacio Remedios 133
28. Quiñones 135
29. Agustín Rojas 140
30. Filadelfo 143
31. Martín Díaz 148
32. Rufno Salinas 152
33. Gaudencio Guerrero 157
34. Enedino Carranza 160
juvencio vargas with meche vargas, february 4, 1989
35. Silvano Ramos 163
36. El Chicharrón 165
37. Apolonio 169
38. Rubén Ramos 171
39. Janilcio con Colón 174
40. Margarito Hernández 177
41. El diecinueve de junio 182
42. El Negro Durazo 184
43. Lalo Reyes 188
44. Máximo Valente 194
45. Cándido González 196
46. Indalecio Añorve 199
47. Juan Antonio 201
48. Santiago Rodríguez 205
juvencio vargas with josé albines, february 8, 1989
49. Manuel Carreño 212
50. Guardito Guzmán 215
51. El guacho 218
52. Gomecindo Pastrana 220
53. El Garrobo Agujillo 222
54. Práxedes Guerrero 225
55. El restaurán de Lila 229
enrique mares with juvencio vargas, march 9, 1990
56. Alejandrino Ambrosias 232
57. Chegüe 235
Corridos ix
58. Emiliano Radilla 237
59. Los guachos 238
60. Demetrito Gazga 242
61. Nacho Carmona 244
62. Juan Chanito 245
63. Julio Noyola 248
64. Mingo Martínez 250
juvencio vargas and moisés vargas, february 11, 1989
65. Elyria Carmona 252
moisés vargas with isaac vargas, january 26, 1989
66. La Mula Bronca 266
67. La vaca y los militares 269
68. Nicho Esteves 273
isaac vargas with moisés vargas jr., april 11, 1996
69. La muerte de Quiñón 278
el cobarde, january 27, 1989
70. El oaxaqueño 282
71. Abel Torres 285
72. Marino y sus vaqueros 288
josé figueroa, august 1972
73. Tomás Marín 292
taurino colón and agustín mayo, april 11, 1996
74. Palemón 295
75. Nere Laredo 298
76. Custodio 301
juan saguilán peña and teódulo garcía pastrana, may 6, 1996
77. Lo de Soto 305
78. Yo maté a Simón Blanco 308
79. El Coyote de Cuaji 310
80. Antonio Zárate 312
81. Pedrito Torres 314
82. Matías Rojas 317