Mestiza (Mariachi)

Founder Ramon Balderas Sanchez was born and raised in Mexico City, but moved to Paris to study at the conservatory. After he came to live in the Netherlands he decided to keep working with his Mexican roots and founded the band Tierra Caliente (named after a region in Mexico) in 1986. Tierra Caliente consists of two Dutch female violin players, a salsero-trumpet player from the Bronx and three Mexican musicians. The fact that two members of the band are females is rather unusual for a mariachi-group, as this music is traditionally handed down from father to son. The album gives a survey of traditional Mexican music. Not all the material is mariachi-music, although it is played in that style.