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All-Female Mariachi Band Flor De Toloache Comes To Winston-Salem

Flor de Toloache. Image credit: Andrei Averbuch

You know mariachi when you hear it; the Mexican musical tradition is vibrant and festive. 

Mireya Ramos is the co-founder of Flor de Toloache. She says mariachi started over a century ago with community ensembles playing the harp, violin, and guitar. Trumpets and other instrumentation were added later.

“It's a mix of the native melodies and culture that were already in Mexico with the European instruments that were brought,” she says. 

Flor de Toloache is a New York City-based group that has grown to include women from all over the world — including Egypt, India, Korea, and Italy. 

Ramos says this is reflective of the diversity of New York and that all the women bring unique interpretations to the music.

“The way that we express our music and when we improvise or the way we phrase something musically is very different from somebody that just comes from a mariachi tradition,” says Ramos.

In 2017, the group was the first all-women mariachi band to win Best Ranchero album at the Latin Grammys.

Ramos says that recognition opened doors for new collaborations with artists like John Legend and Miguel, featured on their latest album, Indestructible.

Flor de Toloache performs Saturday at Fiesta and at the Stevens Center in Winston-Salem.

 

 

Bethany joined the staff of WFDD in the fall of 2012. She received her B.A. and M.A. in English Literature from Wake Forest University and focused on Anglo-Irish writing. Between undergraduate studies and graduate school, Bethany served as the intern to Talk of the Nation at NPR in D.C., participating in live NPR Election Night Coverage, Presidential debate broadcasts, regular Talk of the Nation shows, and helping to plan the inaugural broadcast of ‘Talk of the World.' She enjoys engaging with her interests in books, politics, and art in the interdisciplinary world of public radio. Before becoming Assistant News Director, Bethany was a reporter and Associate Producer for WFDD's Triad Arts and Triad Arts Weekend. Originally from Jacksonville, Florida, Bethany enjoys calling the Piedmont home.

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