A combination of button accordion and bajo sexto, conjunto originated in the Texas-Mexico borderlands as a popular dance music and became a powerful form of regional identity. Today, listeners and musicians around the world have embraced the genre and the work of conjunto masters like Flaco Jiménez and Mingo Saldívar.
Erin E. Bauer follows conjunto from its local origins through three processes of globalization--migration via media, hybridization, and appropriation--that boosted the music’s reach. As Bauer shows, conjunto’s encounter with globalizing forces raises fundamental questions. What is conjunto stylistically and socioculturally? Does context change how we categorize it? Do we consider the music to be conjunto based on its musical characteristics or due to its performance by Jiménez and other regional players? How do similar local genres like Tejano and norteño relate to ideas of categorization?
A rare look at a fascinating musical phenomenon, Flaco’s Legacy reveals how conjunto came to encompass new people, places, and styles.
By:
Erin E. Bauer
Imprint: University of Illinois Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions:
Height: 229mm,
Width: 152mm,
Spine: 25mm
ISBN: 9780252087158
ISBN 10: 0252087151
Series: Music in American Life
Pages: 296
Publication Date: 23 May 2023
Audience:
Professional and scholarly
,
Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Acknowledgements Introduction: The Globalization of Conjunto Part I: The Migration of Conjunto 1. “We love you, Flaco!”: Chicken Skin Music, “Mingomania,” and the Inter/national Presentation of Conjunto 2. “Ladies and gentlemen, Dodge presents Flaco Jiménez!”: Arhoolie Records, KEDA Radio Jalapeño, and the Mediated Dispersal of Conjunto 3. “From Texas to Washington and across to Michigan and Illinois…”: Los Cuatro Vientos, Los Texmaniacs, Los Lobos, and the U.S American Spread of Conjunto Part II: The Hybridization of Conjunto 4. “You have to mix it up!”: “Seguro Que Hell Yes,” the Texas Tornados, Los Super Seven, and the Cultural Hybridity of Flaco Jiménez 5. “I play the jazz accordion!”: “Rueda de Fuego (Ring of Fire),” “My Toot Toot,” and the Country/Zydeco Influences of Mingo Saldívar and Steve Jordan 6. “It’s jealousy…”: Eva Ybarra and the Hybrid Offerings of Women in Conjunto Part III: The Appropriation of Conjunto 7. “That’s my music!”: Kenji Katsube, Dwayne Verheyden, and the Worldwide Participation in Conjunto 8. “¡Esto es globalización!”: Rowwen Hèze, the Rolling Stones, and the Commercialized Appropriation of Conjunto Conclusion Notes Discography Works Cited Index
Erin E. Bauer is chair of the Music Department and an associate professor of musicology at Muskingum University.
