Its Mexican Mondays again-already. I'm going to try something different this week, a wonderful film of a Mexican ranchera song. I am a big fan of old Mexican/Spanish movies for their wonderful storylines, many punctuated with the joyous music of the ranchera. Ranchera music originated in northern Mexico, especially Monterrey, all along the south side of the Rio Grande where the big ranches existed.
Here Mathilde Sanchez, "Torcacita" or the little dove sings El Herradero (The Branding) from the 1948 movie Juan Churrasquedo. A ranchera is fast paced (120+ guitar beats to the minute) and sung with joyous emotion. Mathilde is up to the task.
Mathilde was born in Tequila, Mexico where the world's best Tequila is made. I think I would like it there. Mathilde became only the second Ranchera singer after Lucha Reyes who started the whole genre. When only 7, and living in Tampico, Mathilde entered a singing contest sponsored by the venerable radio station XEW in Mexico City (still heard all over the southwestern US) . She made it to the finals and convinced her sister to form a duet for the finals. They won the coveted first prize and were given a spot on the local Tampico station. The local manager said that they were too good for his station and told them to go to Mexico City and try to perform on national radio XEW. Their audition was a success and they were placed into the cast of a weekly show The sisters were a media success but when national fame was within reach, Mathilde's sister got married at 15 and broke up the act. Mathilde returned to Tampico with her dreams of being a famous singer shattered.
Mathilde's incredible break came when the great Lucha Reyes came to Tampico to perform. Lucha loved her Tequila and after a long binge, she was unable to perform her show. The producers frantically looked for a replacement and were told that little Torcacita, who recently performed on XEW, lived there. With no practice with the mariachi band and no practice of Lucha's songs, which the producers said she must sing, the brave little girl went on stage. She announced to the audience that she was not there to try and replace the irreplaceable Lucha Reyes, but that she wanted the audience to be her jury and applaud if they thought she should continue as a soloist or boo her off the stage if she was not worthy. Mathilde decorated Lucha's music with a style all her own, a turn of her voice, a little falsetto shout-after the first song, the audience shouted "Another-another" as is the curtain call custom in Mexico. A star was born, and almost every ranchera singer since has copied Mathilde's style.
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