In the opening sequence of “Going Varsity in Mariachi,” a high school mariachi band takes the stage of a dramatically lit an auditorium. Just as the violinist raises her bow, the camera cuts away. We don’t hear what she’s going to play until about an hour and a half later. It’s a frustrating tease that serves as a good example of some of the shortcomings of Sam Osborn and Alejandra Vasquez’s otherwise .
Osborn and Vasquez’s feature plays like a mashup of Netflix’s “Cheer” and Fox’s “Glee” but set in the Rio Grande Valley, where the primary competitive endeavor is mariachi music. Centering on the underdogs of Edinburg North High School’s Mariachi Oro, “Going Varsity in Mariachi” is a thoroughly enjoyable if formulaic narrative that also fails to closely examine the subculture its proclaims to introduce. That is to say: I wish “Going...
Osborn and Vasquez’s feature plays like a mashup of Netflix’s “Cheer” and Fox’s “Glee” but set in the Rio Grande Valley, where the primary competitive endeavor is mariachi music. Centering on the underdogs of Edinburg North High School’s Mariachi Oro, “Going Varsity in Mariachi” is a thoroughly enjoyable if formulaic narrative that also fails to closely examine the subculture its proclaims to introduce. That is to say: I wish “Going...
- 1/22/2023
- by Esther Zuckerman
- Indiewire
An engaging, if straightforward, invitation into the realm of competitive mariachi bands in Texas high schools, the documentary feature “Going Varsity in Mariachi” introduces us to the most victorious of them all, Mariachi Nuevo Santander from Roma High School. An exhilarating taste of their exceptional renditions comes halfway through the film’s runtime, but while they often rank far above their competition, here, they are only a secondary voice.
Since an underdog story always appeals to our empathy for those who overcome hurdles to attain seemingly out-of-reach goals, co-directors Sam Osborn and Alejandra Vasquez instead spotlight the Mariachi Oro from Edinburgh North High School in the Rio Grande Valley.
In Spanglish, the director of this mariachi, Abel Acuña, patiently instructs the kids without a musical background — from a low-income community, in an underfunded school — on how to play mariachi staples such as “Volver, Volver,” “Mexico Lindo y Querido” or those by songwriter Jose Alfredo Jiménez,...
Since an underdog story always appeals to our empathy for those who overcome hurdles to attain seemingly out-of-reach goals, co-directors Sam Osborn and Alejandra Vasquez instead spotlight the Mariachi Oro from Edinburgh North High School in the Rio Grande Valley.
In Spanglish, the director of this mariachi, Abel Acuña, patiently instructs the kids without a musical background — from a low-income community, in an underfunded school — on how to play mariachi staples such as “Volver, Volver,” “Mexico Lindo y Querido” or those by songwriter Jose Alfredo Jiménez,...
- 1/22/2023
- by Carlos Aguilar
- The Wrap
In Mexican culture, when someone is singing or playing a song that tugs hearts or provokes tears, the instinctive reaction is to let out a prideful, ebullient shout called a grito. The adlib is at the core of age-old mariachi classics from legendary Spanish-language vocalists like Pedro Infante, José Alfredo Jiménez and Vicente Fernandez, to name a few.
The ensemble-styled genre has long been categorized as traditional music, often heard at family parties or special events, but “Going Varsity in Mariachi,” a production by Osmosis Films, Embeleco Unlimited, Impact Partners and Fifth Season that premieres at the Sundance Film Festival today (Jan. 22), sets out to prove the opposite. From the producer team of James Lawler, Luis A. Miranda, Jr. and Julia Pontecorvo, “Going Varsity in Mariachi” follows the talented 20-member group of high school students who make up Edinburg North’s Mariachi Oro 2021-22 team in Texas. The band, under-resourced and riddled with post-pandemic obstacles,...
The ensemble-styled genre has long been categorized as traditional music, often heard at family parties or special events, but “Going Varsity in Mariachi,” a production by Osmosis Films, Embeleco Unlimited, Impact Partners and Fifth Season that premieres at the Sundance Film Festival today (Jan. 22), sets out to prove the opposite. From the producer team of James Lawler, Luis A. Miranda, Jr. and Julia Pontecorvo, “Going Varsity in Mariachi” follows the talented 20-member group of high school students who make up Edinburg North’s Mariachi Oro 2021-22 team in Texas. The band, under-resourced and riddled with post-pandemic obstacles,...
- 1/22/2023
- by Thania Garcia
- Variety Film + TV
Run the Jewels have dropped a new visualizer for the Mexican Institute of Sound remix of their track, “Oooh La La.”
Mexican Institute of Sound is the long-running project of producer/DJ Camilo Lara, who deftly fuses the throwback rap of “Ooh La La” (the song is centered around a sample of the 1992 Gang Starr classic “Dwyck”) with Cumbia and Mariachi influences, plus a new verse from Mexican rapper Santa Fe Klan. Olly Frostie and Mason O’Brien crafted the animated clip for the remix, in which a car rolls...
Mexican Institute of Sound is the long-running project of producer/DJ Camilo Lara, who deftly fuses the throwback rap of “Ooh La La” (the song is centered around a sample of the 1992 Gang Starr classic “Dwyck”) with Cumbia and Mariachi influences, plus a new verse from Mexican rapper Santa Fe Klan. Olly Frostie and Mason O’Brien crafted the animated clip for the remix, in which a car rolls...
- 1/20/2021
- by Jon Blistein
- Rollingstone.com
Read: 500 Greatest Albums of All Time List
Voters were asked to submit ranked ballots listing their 50 favorite albums of all time. Votes were tabulated, with the highest-ranked album on each list receiving 300 points, the second highest 290 points, and so on down to 44 points for number 50. More than 3,000 albums received at least one vote.
Artists, Songwriters, and Producers 9th Wonder Johntá Austin A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie Mick Avory
The Kinks Glen Ballard Alice Bag Bas Jon Batiste Big Boi Beyoncé Branko Michael Brun Eric Burdon
The Animals John Cale
The...
Voters were asked to submit ranked ballots listing their 50 favorite albums of all time. Votes were tabulated, with the highest-ranked album on each list receiving 300 points, the second highest 290 points, and so on down to 44 points for number 50. More than 3,000 albums received at least one vote.
Artists, Songwriters, and Producers 9th Wonder Johntá Austin A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie Mick Avory
The Kinks Glen Ballard Alice Bag Bas Jon Batiste Big Boi Beyoncé Branko Michael Brun Eric Burdon
The Animals John Cale
The...
- 9/22/2020
- by RS Editors
- Rollingstone.com
Could your weekend playlist use a little more seasoning? Rolling Stone Latin selects some of the best new music releases from Latin America, Spain and Portugal. Keep track of the latest in Latin via our playlist on Spotify.
Mexican Institute of Sound, “Dios”
Mexico City’s most eccentric DJ Camilo Lara drops a bizarre cumbia that flows like a children’s lullaby. “If I ran into God,” he sings in Spanish, “I’d order a quesadilla.” The song is the lead single off Mexican Institute of Sound’s upcoming album,...
Mexican Institute of Sound, “Dios”
Mexico City’s most eccentric DJ Camilo Lara drops a bizarre cumbia that flows like a children’s lullaby. “If I ran into God,” he sings in Spanish, “I’d order a quesadilla.” The song is the lead single off Mexican Institute of Sound’s upcoming album,...
- 8/7/2020
- by Suzy Exposito
- Rollingstone.com
In his 1980 country rock song, “El Noa Noa,” Mexican balladeer Juan Gabriel sang of the magical dancehall he once frequented in Ciudad Juarez: a place where everything and everyone was different, and where you could dance happily through the night.
Over the years, the song became embraced by the Latinx Lgbtq community as an ode to spaces where love could overcome prejudice. It was finally in 2019 — three years since the legendary singer-songwriter’s death — that Georgel and Esteman, two gay Latino artists, evolved the classic from its laid-back, Eagles-esque stride,...
Over the years, the song became embraced by the Latinx Lgbtq community as an ode to spaces where love could overcome prejudice. It was finally in 2019 — three years since the legendary singer-songwriter’s death — that Georgel and Esteman, two gay Latino artists, evolved the classic from its laid-back, Eagles-esque stride,...
- 10/14/2019
- by Suzy Exposito
- Rollingstone.com
“It’s about saying things al chile!” says Lila Downs backstage at the Center for the Arts in Escondido, where she’s about to perform cuts from her latest studio album, Al Chile. Just like the Mexican expression conveys — roughly meaning “straight up” — the folk singer has been keeping it real to her roots, and championing the lives of countless indigenous populations, since her emergence in the Nineties.
“I feel like I would be making a deal with the devil if I did [commercial pop],” she says with a wink. Her dedication...
“I feel like I would be making a deal with the devil if I did [commercial pop],” she says with a wink. Her dedication...
- 5/29/2019
- by Isabela Raygoza
- Rollingstone.com
Dan The Automator, aka Daniel Nakamura, knows a thing or two about setting a mood. The Bay Area-based producer has worked on projects such as Gorillaz’s debut album, Handsome Boy Modeling School (with Prince Paul) and multiple projects with rapper Kool Keith. Now, Nakamura has set his sights on film scoring, and will make his U.S. film scoring debut via his work on “Booksmart,” the buzzy teen comedy directed by Olivia Wilde, which hits theaters in wide release today. Variety caught up with the beatmaker recently for a chat from his San Francisco studio to talk scoring, new projects and more.
Considering all the work you’ve done over the years, is this your first full film score?
I’ve done score work for in China for films but this is my first major U.S. film. I did some side work on “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World...
Considering all the work you’ve done over the years, is this your first full film score?
I’ve done score work for in China for films but this is my first major U.S. film. I did some side work on “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World...
- 5/24/2019
- by Charlie Amter
- Variety Film + TV
When indie luminary Manu Chao first released his 1998 debut, Clandestino — and the song of the same title — he sought to humanize the millions of migrants, survivors of civil war and poverty hustling to survive on the mean streets of European cities. Often derided as “clandestinos,” or what those in the English-language world refer to derogatorily as “illegals,” undocumented migrants and their stories pervaded Manu Chao’s now-classic album — which at times explored his own relationship to immigration, as a child of political refugees from Spain.
Now, recorded over two decades since its original release,...
Now, recorded over two decades since its original release,...
- 4/19/2019
- by Suzy Exposito
- Rollingstone.com
“Remember Me” is unique among the Best Original Song nominees. Its love theme is central to Pixar’s “Coco,” helping pay tribute to Día de los Muertos as a unifying bridge for Mexican families. Sung in two very different styles, however, the song is also very personal to its composers, the Oscar-winning husband and wife team of Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez (“Frozen”).
“It was really healing,” said Anderson-Lopez. “Bobby lost his mom in August and we did an ofrenda [collection of objects] with all of our relatives that we’ve lost in October. We sat around and told stories. It was a different kind of grieving then the kind you do at a funeral because it was joyful. We made it feel like she was with us and all of my relatives.”
Lopez’s mother was fortunate to hear “Remember Me” after it was composed. In fact, it was played at his...
“It was really healing,” said Anderson-Lopez. “Bobby lost his mom in August and we did an ofrenda [collection of objects] with all of our relatives that we’ve lost in October. We sat around and told stories. It was a different kind of grieving then the kind you do at a funeral because it was joyful. We made it feel like she was with us and all of my relatives.”
Lopez’s mother was fortunate to hear “Remember Me” after it was composed. In fact, it was played at his...
- 2/12/2018
- by Bill Desowitz
- Indiewire
Coco composer Michael Giacchino, 50, was a priority. That meant not only getting the right music for the score but also for the sounds of the environment. "Music is being played in the streets," says the longtime Pixar collaborator on films including Inside Out, Ratatouille and Up, for which he won an Oscar. "We wanted that to feel legit."
Getting there meant a lot of research and attention to detail. "I was very lucky to work with [songwriters] Germaine Franco and Camilo Lara, both of...
Getting there meant a lot of research and attention to detail. "I was very lucky to work with [songwriters] Germaine Franco and Camilo Lara, both of...
- 12/12/2017
- by Carolyn Giardina
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Music was integral to “Coco” as Pixar’s love letter to Mexico and Día de los Muertos tribute. “Everything musically comes out of this world like a tapestry,” said Pixar go-to composer Michael Giacchino, who reached back to his own childhood memories of Mexican music in crafting the score.
“Coco” concerns 12-year-old Miguel (newcomer Anthony Gonzalez), an aspiring guitarist from a rural Mexican town called Santa Cecilia, whose family of shoemakers has banned music. After borrowing the guitar from the tomb of his great-great grandfather and musical icon, Ernesto de la Cruz (Benjamin Bratt), Miguel gets transported to the Land of the Dead during Día de los Muertos, where he tries to reclaim his family heritage and return home with the help of trickster skeleton Hector (Gael Garcia Bernal).
Strategically, the Oscar frontrunner was organized by an organic melding of Giacchino’s flavorful score, traditional source music (popular songs indigenous...
“Coco” concerns 12-year-old Miguel (newcomer Anthony Gonzalez), an aspiring guitarist from a rural Mexican town called Santa Cecilia, whose family of shoemakers has banned music. After borrowing the guitar from the tomb of his great-great grandfather and musical icon, Ernesto de la Cruz (Benjamin Bratt), Miguel gets transported to the Land of the Dead during Día de los Muertos, where he tries to reclaim his family heritage and return home with the help of trickster skeleton Hector (Gael Garcia Bernal).
Strategically, the Oscar frontrunner was organized by an organic melding of Giacchino’s flavorful score, traditional source music (popular songs indigenous...
- 11/30/2017
- by Bill Desowitz
- Indiewire
Filmmakers from Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios convened at D23 Expo 2017 today, revealing new details about their upcoming movie slates and introducing key voice talent, including Benjamin Bratt, Anthony Gonzalez, Josh Gad, Kristen Bell, Holly Hunter, Craig T. Nelson, Sarah Vowell, Samuel L. Jackson, Huck Milner and Sarah Silverman. And in an unforgettable moment, Auli‘i Cravalho, Kristen Bell, Mandy Moore, Kelly MacDonald, Anika Noni Rose, Irene Bedard, Linda Larkin, Paige O’Hara and Jodi Benson came together on stage in a celebration fit for a princess.
John Lasseter, chief creative officer of Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios, teamed up with the stars and filmmakers from both studios to present new details, footage, behind-the-scenes looks and images from a host of upcoming films. “I’m so excited about our upcoming movies; they are all hilarious, emotional, beautiful and make you think,” said Lasseter, who serves as executive producer on all animated titles.
John Lasseter, chief creative officer of Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios, teamed up with the stars and filmmakers from both studios to present new details, footage, behind-the-scenes looks and images from a host of upcoming films. “I’m so excited about our upcoming movies; they are all hilarious, emotional, beautiful and make you think,” said Lasseter, who serves as executive producer on all animated titles.
- 7/15/2017
- by Joseph Medina
- LRMonline.com
Pixar and Walt Disney Animation Studios convened at the D23 Expo in Anaheim today to talk movie news on Frozen 2, Coco, The Incredbles 2, Toy Story 4, and more.
In addition to all of the movie news, they introduced the following voice acting talent to their teams: Benjamin Bratt, Anthony Gonzalez, Josh Gad, Kristen Bell, Holly Hunter, Craig T. Nelson, Sarah Vowell, Samuel L. Jackson, Huck Milner and Sarah Silverman.
John Lasseter, chief creative officer of , teamed up with the stars and filmmakers from both studios to present new details, footage, behind-the-scenes looks and images from a host of upcoming films. “I’m so excited about our upcoming movies; they are all hilarious, emotional, beautiful and make you think,” said Lasseter, who serves as executive producer on all animated titles. “It's a great mix of incredibly creative and surprising new worlds and characters and stories we love returning to. Our...
In addition to all of the movie news, they introduced the following voice acting talent to their teams: Benjamin Bratt, Anthony Gonzalez, Josh Gad, Kristen Bell, Holly Hunter, Craig T. Nelson, Sarah Vowell, Samuel L. Jackson, Huck Milner and Sarah Silverman.
John Lasseter, chief creative officer of , teamed up with the stars and filmmakers from both studios to present new details, footage, behind-the-scenes looks and images from a host of upcoming films. “I’m so excited about our upcoming movies; they are all hilarious, emotional, beautiful and make you think,” said Lasseter, who serves as executive producer on all animated titles. “It's a great mix of incredibly creative and surprising new worlds and characters and stories we love returning to. Our...
- 7/15/2017
- by feeds@cinelinx.com (Katykakes)
- Cinelinx
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