Corazón de México (5)

   This post is for all the odds and ends that I didn’t have space to put in the other sections of the Mexican festival. In the evening, they had a mariachi band. It was too dark for good photography but I did find a video of the group playing.

In 1987, Jorge Lopez was invited to participate in the recording of Linda Ronstadt's Las Canciones de mi Padre. In working with the greatest mariachi band of all time, Mariachi Vargas, Jorge had the idea of forming his own mariachi band, due to the lack of authentic representation of mariachi music in Canada at the time. In 1988, Jorge began training musicians in traditional Mexican folk music. This gave birth to Mariachi Mexico Amigo. Since then, they have evolved into a professional working ensemble, eager to bring Mexico's native music to the public.  

Mariachi Mexico Amigo, like the great city of Toronto, consists of a diverse mix of international cultures. Jorge is particularly proud of the fact that, although the band members come from all over the world, they respect and do their best to preserve the traditional style and sound of Mexico's great mariachi music. Jorge is just as proud of his son Joao's long standing participation in the band and his assistance in making sure the music is true to its roots.

Viva Mexico Mariachi has become one of the most important exponents of Mexican music and traditions in the multicultural city of Toronto. Their music contributes to solidify the group’s reputation, motivated by the desire to continue offering a taste of Mexico’s musical legacy beyond its frontier.

  Finally they had a Mexican movie, "Santo el enmascarado de plata y Blue Demon contra los monstruos(1970)"

Two nights of films featuring the greatest Lucha Libre (Mexican Free Wresting) artists of all time: El Santo and Blue Demon!

 
When masked wrestlers/superheroes Blue Demon (El Demonio Azul) and El Santo aren’t kicking booty in the ring, they’re investigating weird phenomena, hunting monsters and saving hapless souls from the likes of killer zombies, lecherous vampires and wacky mad doctors!

Corazón de México (4)

  This post is about the papier-mâché figures made by the Linares family of artists who make alebrijes and other figures in a long standing family tradition. The extended families live in a row of houses including their personal workshops on the same street.

  The figures in this exhibit at the Toronto Mexican festival were made for the Day of the Dead (Día de los Muerto) celebrations in Mexico.

  The Day of the Dead is celebrated on November 1^st and 2^nd in Mexico.

The returning souls are welcomed home with an ofrenda of marigolds and other flowers, incense, candles, paper decorations, bread figures, fruits, especially prepared foods, soft drinks or alcohol, embroidered cloths and in some instances, gifts of clothing or work tools. These offerings are set out on the domestic altar – usually a table for Catholic saints and holy pictures. Flower petals are often scattered inside and outside the house to guide the souls on their annual journey. When the deceased have taken the ‘essence’ of the feast, it is enjoyed by the living. On the 2^nd of November, relatives gather in cemeteries to say a fond farewell. Graves are freshly painted for the occasion, and adorned with flowers and greenery.

Celebrations vary from region to region. In some places musicians serenade the dead with songs and music, while dances are preformed in their honour. In towns and cities, market vendors sell sugar skulls, skelton puppets and other seasonal toys. Bakers make delicious panes de muertos (bread of the dead) and paint their shop windows with cavorting skeletons.

Corazón de México (3)

  During the day, the festival had a series of Mexican folk dancers representing a number of regional styles.

Ballet Folklorico Puro Mexico (BFPM) is a Toronto-based, non-profit organization that was founded in 2003 thanks to the enthusiasm of its members, whose only goal is to spread and promote Mexican culture through folkloric dance.

 
The organization works to preserve the rich heritage of traditional regional Mexican dances through researching, recording and teaching, looking to reveal Mexico’s cultural diversity.

Although relatively young, BFPM currently hold dancers who proudly express the art of Mexican folklore. BFPM is guided and taught by Jorge Zarate and Jezreel Vasquez, who have extensive training in the art of Mexican folklore.

Corazón de México (2)

Preparing for the show.

  In the afternoon they had a puppet show preformed by the Marionetas de la Esquina.

Marionetas de la Esquina, a puppet theatre company from Mexico, has been entertaining children and adults alike since 1975. They perform some shows in English and others in Spanish. They have given more than 11,000 performances and 50 workshops and seminars. Since their creation, the company has helped disseminate and develop the art of puppetry in Mexico.

The company keeps a repertoire of 10 shows, each a testimony to the company's wish to experiment with all aspects of puppet theater, from set and puppet design, to dramaturgy. The company has a variety of themes, stages, and puppets that have won recognition in Mexico and abroad. In 2004, the Company was recognized by CONACULTA and included in México en Escena (Mexico on Stage), a programme that supports experienced and renowned groups. In 2006, company member and playwright Amaranta Leyva received the Mexican National Prize for Children's Theater for her play, The Dress. Also, in 2006 the company was awarded by the National Critics of Mexico. (Harbour front website)

Corazón de México (1)

  Yesterday I went to the Toronto Mexican festival which is a joint production of the city’s Mexican community and the Mexican consulate. There’s too much to put into one post so I’m going to spread the experience over several posts of which this post deals with something near and dear to my heart – food!

  The festival was on the Lake front and the dining area overlooked the harbour.

  This is a tamale which I bought - beats the hell out of Taco Bell.

  Here’s some more Mexican food prepared on site while I watched.

  View from my dining area.

  Mexican sweet breads.

  The prices were excellent!

Mexican candy

  They had food preparation demonstrations by the Escuela de Gastronomía Mexicana with Chefs Edmundo Escamilla and Yuri de Gortari.

“The Escuela de Gastronomía Mexicana (School of Mexican Gastronomy) is the only school dedicated to the research, promotion and development of high Mexican cuisine. It was opened by Yuri de Gotari and Edmundo Escamilla who have studied and researched Mexican cuisine from anthropological, social, historical and cultural perspectives for over a decade.

 

Classes include those given by anthropologists, historians as well as more traditional classes about cooking techniques and ingredients. Teachers and students come from abroad to teach and learn with the goal of developing Mexican cuisine at an international level.

 

Mexico has developed a cuisine that is unique to the world and that has been recognized by the United Nations as part of our world heritage. Going beyond the clichés of tacos and burritos, outstanding chefs from Mexico introduce and teach the public the tastes of diverse regions and the techniques and ingredients will allow you to make authentic Mexican dishes.”

Hola Absolut drinkers

Viva Mexico

  Absolut Vodka is Swedish brand of vodka produced in Åhus, Skåne which was purchased by the French company, Pernod Ricard from the Swedish government in 2008. In a spate of Gallic impudence (from a US perspective) they had an ad campaign showing the world political geography according to an Absolut vodka drinker. In Mexico, this campaign had ads displaying North America as if the Americans had lost the Spanish American war.

According to an article in the LA Times:

The campaign taps into the national pride of Mexicans, according to Favio Ucedo, creative director of leading Latino advertising agency Grupo Gallegos in the U.S. Ucedo, who is from Argentina, said: "Mexicans talk about how the Americans stole their land, so this is their way of reclaiming it. It's very relevant and the Mexicans will love the idea."

  I wonder how John Huppenthal, Gov. Jan Brewer and the others in Arizona would feel about it. I can just see it hanging on the wall of a Tucson Unified School district ethnic studies classroom wall.