To book a gig, contact me below, write me at drr @ dr-ransdell. com, text me at (520) 393-9314, or give me a buzz at (520) 624-0840.
Usually I play with Tony Reis, Jaime Valenzuela, and his brother Rudy (below). Hear us performing here.
But if a full mariachi is too noisy for your space or too expensive for your budget, I'm happy to come with a fellow violinist and do a combination of Mexican and international tunes with violin and guitar.
The guy in the serape is Maestro Linus Lerner, who couldn't resist helping with a rendition of "Bésame mucho."
Usually I play with Tony Reis, Jaime Valenzuela, and his brother Rudy (below). Hear us performing here.
But if a full mariachi is too noisy for your space or too expensive for your budget, I'm happy to come with a fellow violinist and do a combination of Mexican and international tunes with violin and guitar.
The guy in the serape is Maestro Linus Lerner, who couldn't resist helping with a rendition of "Bésame mucho."
MARIACHI IS LIFE!
Music has always been a big part of my life.... but I especially love mariachi music. What could be more fun than playing folks songs all night?
What's a mariachi? To have a true mariachi sound, you need to have a vihuela for the "ooms" and a guitarrón for the "pahs." The violin(s) and trumpet(s) trade melody lines back and forth. Hear my fifteen-minute introduction here.
I'm not the sappy kind of girl, so I prefer the "revenge" songs. "No vale la pena," meaning that it's not worth the trouble, is probably my favorite. I'm also quite fond of "Cuatro meses," meaning four months, which may be just long enough to spend with any one man!
I love the fast songs too--the funny dance songs such as "Negro José" or cumbias such as "Mariachi loco." (Check out the Youtube video from 2009!)
Most of the songs are written by men, though. I addressed that problem by producing my own CD of original songs. Do my songs make fun of men? Well, perhaps just a little bit....
Click here for a little more basic information about mariachi music.
Music has always been a big part of my life.... but I especially love mariachi music. What could be more fun than playing folks songs all night?
What's a mariachi? To have a true mariachi sound, you need to have a vihuela for the "ooms" and a guitarrón for the "pahs." The violin(s) and trumpet(s) trade melody lines back and forth. Hear my fifteen-minute introduction here.
I'm not the sappy kind of girl, so I prefer the "revenge" songs. "No vale la pena," meaning that it's not worth the trouble, is probably my favorite. I'm also quite fond of "Cuatro meses," meaning four months, which may be just long enough to spend with any one man!
I love the fast songs too--the funny dance songs such as "Negro José" or cumbias such as "Mariachi loco." (Check out the Youtube video from 2009!)
Most of the songs are written by men, though. I addressed that problem by producing my own CD of original songs. Do my songs make fun of men? Well, perhaps just a little bit....
Click here for a little more basic information about mariachi music.
Writing is also life!
When I'm not playing mariachi, I'm often writing about it instead. In my first novel, Amirosian Nights, I send a mariachi violinist to Greece, but Rachel soon ends up in a bouzouki group.
I'd been thinking about starting a mystery series when mariachi violinist Andy Veracruz sprang into my head. And by now he just can't stop getting himself into trouble.....
In Mariachi Meddler, Andy Veracruz is the leader of a group that plays at a local restaurant. His life is tranquil until his boss leaves town and puts Andy in charge of keeping an eye on his flirtatious wife...
In Island Casualty, Andy goes on vacation to recover from Mariachi Murder. Unfortunately, not only does he have to sub in a bouzouki band, but he has to flee from bullets on the back of a moped!
In Dizzy in Durango, Andy goes to Mexico to see Rachel, but the mariachi player has terrible luck; he meets a mariachi fan who only loves one song: "El rey!" (The king).
In Substitute Soloist, Andy can't get a mariachi job, so he reluctantly takes a classical job instead....
I've written about my experiences learning to play mariachi music in Secrets of a Mariachi Violinist. Learning this form of music was an incredible challenge. I'd never learned by ear before, so a tape recorder became my very best friend. Playing with a group of rowdy guys night after night also had its challenging moments, but usually it was a lot of fun.....
I'd been thinking about starting a mystery series when mariachi violinist Andy Veracruz sprang into my head. And by now he just can't stop getting himself into trouble.....
In Mariachi Meddler, Andy Veracruz is the leader of a group that plays at a local restaurant. His life is tranquil until his boss leaves town and puts Andy in charge of keeping an eye on his flirtatious wife...
In Island Casualty, Andy goes on vacation to recover from Mariachi Murder. Unfortunately, not only does he have to sub in a bouzouki band, but he has to flee from bullets on the back of a moped!
In Dizzy in Durango, Andy goes to Mexico to see Rachel, but the mariachi player has terrible luck; he meets a mariachi fan who only loves one song: "El rey!" (The king).
In Substitute Soloist, Andy can't get a mariachi job, so he reluctantly takes a classical job instead....
I've written about my experiences learning to play mariachi music in Secrets of a Mariachi Violinist. Learning this form of music was an incredible challenge. I'd never learned by ear before, so a tape recorder became my very best friend. Playing with a group of rowdy guys night after night also had its challenging moments, but usually it was a lot of fun.....