Minutes before the curtain opened, a group of Houston-area musicians rushed to perfect their looks for their on-stage debut. Amid laughs and chatter, they scrambled to get their hair bows just right, their makeup done and sparkly jewelry on.
But most importantly, they donned their new matching outfits; grey mariachi suits with “Las Chabelitas” embroidered on their sleeves in intricate burgundy and white patterns..
Las Chabelitas, a mariachi group of 14 women between the ages of 15 to 41, debuted at Talento Bilingüe de Houston on Dec. 14. Las Chabelitas joined a heavily male-dominated mariachi scene as Houston’s second all-female mariachi band.
‘“It was a great start,” said Erin Lara, 41, who plays the violin and sings for Las Chabelitas. “It was the first performance we ever had as a group for more than a couple of songs and I feel like it creates a new bond… rehearsal is rehearsal, but nothing is like that sealant of a performance.”
Las Chabelitas performed classics such as “El Son de La Negra,” “Si Nos Dejan” and “La Mariquita,” and included a few special guests, local singer Vanessa Alonzo and Ballet Folkórico México en Danza.
Most of the performers are high school students. Others are now in college or have full-time jobs. They were brought together by University of Houston Mariachi Director José Longoria, who leads the UH Mariachi Pumas.
For most of these members, Las Chabelitas is not their first mariachi experience, two of them are also part of Mariachi Pumas. But they all said this is the first all-female mariachi they’ve belonged to.
“It’s very refreshing,” said Nayelli Zambrano, 22, who plays the Vihuela for the armonías section of Las Chabelitas. “I’ve been in the mariachi industry for a long time, so I’ve played alongside mostly guys.”
A mysterious meeting
Longoria had been mulling the idea of addressing the need for more female representation in mariachi for years, he said. However, finding the right instrument representation was a challenge.
“The ones that are really hard to get are the trumpet and the guitarrón because not a lot of females play that instrument,” Longoria said.
This summer, after leading the annual mariachi summer camp at the university, Longoria realized that among the 150 high school and middle school students that joined this year, he finally found the instruments he was missing in years past.
He started building a list that consisted of the high school students that stood out to him from camp, college students who are part of Mariachi Pumas and other musicians he has met throughout his career. Then he summoned them all to a meeting at the university.
“I handpicked them because I got to see their (work) ethics,” Longoria said. “They are girls from all over Houston.”
All of the members recall this mysterious meeting. They knew it had to be mariachi-related, but they had no idea it was an all-female venture until they were in the room together.
“It’s a good combination of new to mariachi, and veterans,” Lara said. “There’s a lot of mutual respect. (Longoria) did a wonderful job of picking out the women to form this group.”
Lara has an 18-year career as a music educator and a vocal coach teaching at Klein Independent School District. Mariachi was not part of her own high school experience, but it was one of the many genres her father gravitated toward.
Over the years, Lara has coached many mariachi students, including at least five fellow Chabelitas. But this is the first year Lara ventured as a mariachi player and singer for two new projects, Las Chabelitas and Mariachi Voz Juvenil.
Creating a safe space
The guitarrón, a large, rounded guitar-like instrument that serves as the base of the armonías section of a mariachi, is played by Mia Chavez, a 16-year-old student at High School for the Performing and Visual Arts.
She started learning the guitarrón in middle school, just before the coronavirus pandemic hit. Chavez was new to mariachi at the time and as a lifelong piano player, she wanted a new challenge.
She later successfully auditioned for HSPVA with the guitarrón and perfected her technique.
“Being a girl guitarrón makes such a difference because you don’t see that a lot,” Chavez said. “Now I’m getting new opportunities because of my instrument.”
Chloe McGhee, 17, plays the violin for Las Chavelitas, she is a student at Klein Oak High School who joined her high school marching band a year ago after 4 years of playing in the school orchestra.
Growing up in Georgia, McGhee said she didn’t have any exposure to mariachi, but once she moved to Houston and saw her high school band perform, she knew she had to join.
On the evening of their debut, McGhee’s family – mother Benita McGhee, Nicolious McGhee, and brother Samuel McGhee – proudly watched from the second row as she performed her first vocals solo, with a rendition of Ed Sheeran’s song “Perfect.”
“I think the last time she sang in front of a crowd was when she was in second grade,” her brother said in awe.
Her father recalls the day Chloe came to him with the idea to join mariachi, “She said ‘It’s just something different, I really love the music’… something drew her to mariachi and she’s blossomed ever since then.”
“Seeing her smile and come alive is just so exciting,” Benita said.
The morning before the big debut Longoria watched the new mariachi members huddled in a circle sharing notes during a break from their three-hour rehearsal.
He knows firsthand what a professional mariachi group can do for musicians of all backgrounds, whether they have a career in music or see it as a side gig.
“It’s about creating this safe space,” he said. “It’s an opportunity to do something cool. And why not make some money? Because you can.”
Las Chabelitas plans to start the new year by booking at least one gig per month. It will not always involve a stage and special guests, Longoria said, but every performance will add to their confidence and their skills.
“It starts somewhere, but the possibilities are endless,” Longoria said. “It’s going to motivate other girls, other females, to play mariachi and be someone they can look up to.”
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