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Posts Tagged ‘video’

Oaxaca kids, Gangnam style

Posted in Celebrations, Culture, Holidays, Music, Parks & Plazas, Travel & Tourism, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on January 7, 2013| 3 Comments »

Early Saturday evening, the Plaza de la Danza played host to the Festival Día de Reyes, an event to delight and distribute a kilometer of donated toys to disadvantaged children.  The Kings had kids and their parents seeing double.

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Lines began forming two hours in advance to be up-front and close to the stage, all the better to be chosen to participate in the games and entertainment that was also part of the festivities.

P1040341To the delight of the crowd, three luchadores took the stage to recruit contestants for a mystery contest.

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The music came up and Oaxaca’s kids began going, “Gangnam Style” — albeit, some more enthusiastically than others — and all got prizes.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_9x1wabx-4?rel=0

Psy may have sung and danced his last “Gangnam Style” on New Year’s Rockin’ Eve, however, it remains alive and well in Oaxaca!

According to this morning’s Noticias, 6,500 toys (donated by citizens, city government entities, foundations, and businesses) were given to each child present and all received a piece of rosca de Reyes.

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As they say, a good time was had by all!

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Felicitaciones a Lila Downs

Posted in Creativity, Culture, Music, People, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on November 17, 2012| 9 Comments »

Felicitaciones to Oaxaca’s favorite daughter, Lila Downs!  Her CD, Pecados y Milagros, won Best Folkloric album at the Latin Grammys on Thursday night.  When the album first came out, her promotional tour brought her to the Guelaguetza Auditorium, just up the hill, and we got to experience the spectacular show she put on in front of the hometown crowd.

And, at the Latin Grammys, she pulled out all the “spectacle” stops when she, Celso Piña, and Totó la Momposina performed, “Zapata Se Queda” from the album.  (Yes, THAT Zapata!)

The thank you by Lila Downs, posted on her website:

¡GRACIAS por creer en el folklor! Gracias por darnos ánimos cuando andamos tristes, por hacer con su cariño y palabras de buena fe que sigamos creyendo en Zapata, en México, en la tradición, en nuestros pueblos… ¡En la magia y la fe interminable de Latinoamérica!

(Thank you for believing in the folklore!  Thank you for giving us courage when we’re sad, to make with love and words of good faith that continue to believe in Zapata, in Mexico, in tradition, in our towns …In magic and the endless faith of Latin America!)

I strongly encourage you to check out the CD, Pecados y Milagros.  It really conveys the life, the love, the history, and the reverence that is the essence of Oaxaca.

Also, there’s a terrific review of her Latin Grammy performance at Examiner.com.

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The gates are open

Posted in Buildings, Creativity, Culture, People, Travel & Tourism, tagged , , , , , , , , on July 17, 2012| 1 Comment »

Intricately designed and executed iron gates have been installed at either end of Antiguo Callejón de San Pablo, ushering visitors into the “Old meets new” grounds of the Centro Académico y Cultural San Pablo.

Iron gate

Oaxaca’s favorite son and Mexico’s foremost living artist, Francisco Toledo, narrates a video documenting the construction of the gates.  It’s in Spanish, but even if you don’t understand the language, it’s worth watching, anyway.

By the way, today is Toledo’s 70th birthday.  ¡Feliz cumpleaños, maestro!

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Alejandra Robles – Ma (yo) en Oaxaca

Posted in Creativity, Culture, Music, Parks & Plazas, People, tagged , , , , , , , , on May 6, 2012| 2 Comments »

As the promotional material for Ma (yo) en Oaxaca, Mujer (es) Arte y Cultura explains (loose translation), like a skilled weaver, women create the fabric of life… part of the history of humanity, intelligence that moves, the look that looks, which is regarded in the construction of better horizons of life for her and those who are around her.  And so, from May 3rd through 13th, the women of Oaxaca are being celebrated with workshops, exhibitions, lectures, and concerts.

Last night, under the supermoon, one of the accomplished women of Oaxaca, Alejandra Robles, gave a free concert, just a block away, in the Plaza de la Danza…

Ma (yo) en Oaxaca is a party for all of the principles of inclusion and participation to make possible the knowledge and appreciation of the cultural richness of groups which, for various reasons, have been marginalized.

¡Viva las mujeres!

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Hip hop in Oaxaca?

Posted in Creativity, Culture, Music, People, Protests, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 19, 2012| 1 Comment »

Hip hop is probably not the first thing that pops to mind when you think of Oaxaca.  However, I can assure you, there is more to Oaxaca than colonial architecture, religious processions, colorful traje (costume), and traditional music.  As repeated blockades and occupations attest, and the El Silencio Mata posters illustrate, there are voices struggling to be heard.

For one of those voices, check out this trailer from the documentary film, Cuando Una Mujer Avanza (When a Woman Takes a Step Forward), about “Mare” a young Zapotec hip hop artist from Oaxaca.  As the promo states, her unique life experience is a rarely heard perspective on life and community liberation.  As an up and coming MC in a state known for popular and indigenous rebellion, Mare’s life and experience has been channeled into very powerful and conscious rapping and singing.

Update:  Check out the article, Mare Is a Rapper Hell-Bent on Equality for Women in Mexico.

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Beyond bunnies and thinking

Posted in Celebrations, Churches, Culture, Holidays, Music, Religion, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 16, 2012| Leave a Comment »

It’s been a week since the end of Semana Santa and I’m still sorting through photos and videos and reflecting on impressions and feelings.  However, I’m finding that, with too much thinking, the experience slips through the fingers and the magic vanishes.

Thus, I give you the night of Pascuas (Easter) at Carmen Alto…

And then, the hisses, bangs, and brilliant explosions of a castillo…

Flaming castillo

brought Semana Santa to a spectacular close.

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¡Prospero año a todos!

Posted in Celebrations, Culture, Holidays, tagged , , , , , , , , on December 31, 2011| 2 Comments »

A little craziness from the November 2, 2011 comparsa in Vista Hermosa…

Muchisimas gracias to all my readers.  Thank you for stopping by, your perceptive comments, and your encouragement.  Peace and joy in 2012, if not in the world, at least in your heart!

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This is… Oaxaca de Juárez

Posted in Celebrations, Creativity, Culture, Music, Travel & Tourism, tagged , , , , , , on December 6, 2011| Leave a Comment »

As promised…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iOSX6wpOnd4&feature=player_embedded

And, there is SO much more!!!

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Fuegos Artificiales, Oaxaca Style

Posted in Celebrations, tagged , , , , , , , on September 8, 2011| Leave a Comment »

As I mentioned a few days ago, El Grito and Mexican Independence Day are coming and, besides flags and green, white and red decorations, it also means parades and fuegos artificiales (fireworks).   The latter will, no doubt be grand and, if last year is any indication, the rooftop with have a ringside view.

In anticipation, I thought I’d share a video from the rooftop of the nightly fireworks during July’s Sinfonía de Luz y Sonido throughout this year’s Guelaguetza.

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Sept. comes in with a BANG

Posted in Gardens, Home, Weather, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on September 2, 2011| Leave a Comment »

Yesterday, the clouds gathered, the sky darkened, and about 5 PM…

And, yes, I did jump!

However, it’s no laughing matter for the farmers and folks who live near rivers.  Río Atoyac, which runs alongside the heart of the city and which one must cross to reach the airport, rapidly reached flood stage and breached its banks in several places (Noticias has video).  In addition, because the ground is already supersaturated, mudslides have already begun to occur in the mountains.

CONAGUA explains that the large area of atmospheric instability over the Gulf of Tehuantepec along with tropical depression 13 in the Gulf of Mexico (that’s the one threatening Louisiana), are the moisture-laden culprits.

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The Pupa and the Plumbago

Posted in Gardens, Nature & Science, tagged , , , , on July 18, 2011| Leave a Comment »

Back on January 10th, I posted a photo of a pupa that had materialized on my plumbago while I’d been up in the USA for a month.Butterfly pupa hanging on a plumbago stem
What I haven’t mentioned is that the next day, it moved!  It began traveling up and down the plumbago.  I ran inside, grabbed my new Canon G12, set it to video, and began recording.  Video was edited, music was added, and the following resulted:

However, that isn’t the end of the story.  I kept close tabs on the terrace’s new resident, checking daily, but no more plumbago strolling; the pupa remained firmly fastened to one of the branches.

Then on April 17th, over 3 months later, I noticed a significant change in the pupa…

Butterfly pupa
A butt protruding?  Was a butterfly in the process of emerging???  Daily observations continued… no change.  I returned to the USA for a month, returned to find… NO change!

Finally, on July 2nd, I couldn’t stand it any longer.  With the Skype encouragement from my friend G, I snipped the pupa from its home of almost six months and began a dissection;  the industrial strength silk was peeled away and the woody chrysalis was cut into with my gardening shears… a hollow shell of the “butt end” and an empty cottony interior was revealed!

Open chrysalis, silk from pupa, shell, and leaves from plumbagoThe butterfly had flown…

 

Save

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Danza de la Pluma

Posted in Celebrations, tagged , , , , , on July 8, 2011| 6 Comments »

A brief slice from the hours and hours of dancing done by the Danzantes de Promesa, in the plaza in front of the church in Teotitlán del Valle, during the multi-day fiesta honoring Preciosa Sangre de Nuestro Señor Jesucristo.

The Danza de la Pluma consists of 41 “bailles” (pieces of music) that, on the surface, reenact the conquest.  Cortes and his troops are played by very young through teenage boys.  They occasionally march around, but mostly stay seated.  The Danzantes representing the Aztec, on the other hand, are young (and not so young!) men and dance at least 70% of the time.  In addition, Moctezuma has some solos and La Malinche and Doña Marina perform several lively dances.

A 20+ piece orchestra accompanies the dancers, playing the proscribed music, including, incongruous to me, waltzes, polkas, and schottisches. According to the Harris article referenced below, at the end of the 19th century the orchestra replaced the original indigenous drum and flute.

The subtext and “hidden” narratives of the danza are multiple and complex and I’m only in the infant stages of understanding.  For now, until my Spanish language skills improve significantly and I can talk with someone who is a member of the community, I will leave it to the two scholarly articles listed at the end of this post to attempt interpretation.

By the way, the day was overcast and windy at times, with gusts threatening those enormous and extremely top-heavy headdresses.

References:

Cohen, Jeffrey.  Danza de la Pluma:  Symbols of submission and separation in a Mexican Fiesta.  Anthropological Quarterly, Jul 93, Vol. 66 Issue 3, p. 149-158.

Harris, Max. The Return of Moctezuma.  The Drama Review, Sp 97, Vol. 41 Issue 1, p. 106, 29 p.

Now that I’ve done some research (alas, after the fact)… I want to see it again!

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Procesión del Silencio, Oaxaca 2011

Posted in Celebrations, Holidays, tagged , , , , , on April 24, 2011| Leave a Comment »

The Procesión del Silencio departed from the Iglesia de la Preciosa Sangre de Cristo and proceeded up the Alcalá to Gómez Farias, where it turned left and left again and down García Vigil to Independencia and then back up the Alcalá. Once the procession began, fellow blogger Chris (Oaxaca-The Year After) and I left the masses on the Alcalá and positioned ourselves on a wall overlooking García Vigil, for an unobstructed view.

Out of respect for what is being commemorated, tradition calls for participants and spectators to remain silent, save for the solemn drum beat and haunting sounds of a chirimia that herald the procession’s arrival and continue to play as the faithful from various neighborhoods and churches carry banners, crosses, and images of the crucified Jesus and his grieving mother through the streets of the city.

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Día de la Virgen de Dolores 2011

Posted in Celebrations, Holidays, tagged , , , , on April 16, 2011| Leave a Comment »

Yesterday, Oaxaca’s faithful celebrated el día de la Virgen de Dolores… commemorating the pain and suffering of the Virgin Mary upon the death of her son.  I may not be a believer, but there is something appealing about the religious celebrations here.  Special altars were constructed in courtyards and businesses… and benedictions and bands were heard in various parts of the city.
The 5-star ex-convento hotel, Camino Real invited the public to a program, replete with a benediction, speeches by local dignitaries, poetry, and a concert of sacred music by Coro de la Ciudad (Chorus of the City) and Sexteto de Cuerdas Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart String Sextet).
Sorry about the abrupt ending.  The learning continues…

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