Today Google is receiving all its guests with Mariachi! To the rhythm of “Cielito Lindo,” the search engine temporarily altered its logo to pay homage to one of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, according to UNESCO. The Doodle celebrates Mariachi’s musical genre, described as the quintessential element of Mexico’s rich cultural heritage. The animated Google Google shows illustrations of a group of musicians (charros and charras) dressed in traditional clothing (decorated pants or a long skirt, short jackets, silk ties, wide-brimmed sombrero, and other accessories) playing a guitarrón (a six-string bass), vihuela (a five-string guitar), violin, trumpet, and a harp.
© Hola“Cielito Lindo” was popularized in 1882 by Mexican author Quirino Mendoza y Cortés and roughly translated from Spanish as “lovely sweet one.” The copla is a classic Mariachi serenade that represents Mexican pride and has been sung by worldwide known artists, such as Tito Guizar, Pedro Infante , Vicente Fernandez , Placido Domingo, Luciano Pavarotti, Eartha Kitt, Menudo, and Ana Gabriel.
It is believed that this genre of Regional Mexican music was born in west-central Mexico around the 19th century. Throughout the years, Mariachi has become more modern, and some musicians fusion it with diverse genres, including jazz and reggae. The Mariachi can refer to the music or the musicians. These musicians often play requests; therefore, they may need to know hundreds of different songs, whether is about machismo, love, betrayal, death, politics, revolutionary heroes, or animals and insects like the famous song is “La Cucaracha” (The Cockroach), the mariachi groups are expected to play them all.
© GettyImagesExist many Mariachis in Mexico and other countries, such as Argentina, Aruba, Egypt, Chile, Cuba, Spain, Croatia, Guatemala, Uruguay, Sweden, Peru, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela. However, Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán is recognized as the oldest and the best mariachi ensemble. Gaspar Vargas founded it in the late 1890s in Jalisco. The group became famous after they started accompanying mainstream singers such as Luis Miguel, Lola Beltrán, and Pedro Infante. Today the Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán is in its fifth generation, and all of the members throughout the years make sure to conserve the primitive and self-thought qualities of the genre. The Mariachi Vargas appeared in over 200 films in the 20th century.
Mariachi is also very popular in the United States, and some U.S. public schools offer mariachi as part of classes. The first mariachi groups in the United States were from California, and the first student Mariachi group began in 1961 at the University of California, Los Angeles. Since then, academic programs and mariachi festivals have rocketed. But Mariachi isn’t only appreciated by Mexicans; people outside this ethnic group hire the bands to entertain their celebrations.
Find below how Google Doodle was created.
© Hola¡Que viva el Mariachi!
