The Guadalajara International Mariachi Festival kicks off in the Plaza Liberacion Friday, August 26, 10 a.m. with a Guinness record attempt to form the biggest ever mosaic from charro sombreros (hats). Take your camera!
Also on Friday, guitars, trumpets and violins will break out in harmony in the plaza’s Cultural Pavilion, with free shows featuring national and international bands at 4, 5 and 6:30 p.m. The action also starts in many of the city’s commercial malls. The Gran Plaza, Andares, Plaza Patria, Galerias and Plaza del Sol will host groups on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, from 5:30 p.m. each day.
The first of six vibrant mariachi galas at the Teatro Degollado is held on Friday at 8 p.m. See page 20 for full details of these concerts.
The music cranks up on Saturday, August 27 with five free shows scheduled in the Cultural Pavilion at noon, 1, 4, 5:15 and 6:15 p.m.
Crowds will come out in force on Sunday, August 28 for the festival’s colorful parade, which runs along Avenida Chapultepec from 10 a.m. Hundreds of mariachis, folk dancers and equestrians take part in this unforgettable homage to Jalisco culture. Some of the biggest cheers are reserved for the foreign mariachi bands. Seven nations have confirmed their presence at this year’s festival, including three groups from the United States and one from Canada.
Sunday evening sees the festival’s “monumental” gala concert that should pack out the huge Plaza Liberation. A slew of top bands will be on stage, with the music starting at 6:30 p.m. There’s no charge but get there early for a close up view.
See next week’s Guadalajara Reporter for details of the following week’s events. For the full festival program, see mariachi-jalisco.com.mx.