Traditional Mexican Folk Music:

Violinist Raquel Paraíso is from Lagunilla, Salamanca, Spain. She studied violin at the Conservatory of

Music of Salamanca, where she co-founded the Sirinx school of music, noted for innovative teaching methods.

In 1989 she moved to the U.S. to study at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where she obtained masters’

degrees in Violin Performance and Ethnomusicology, and a Ph.D. in Ethnomusicology. Her research targets

cultural politics of music and music production of place, identity and ethnicity in Latin American, at large, and

Mexican music, in particular. Her master’s thesis examines the music of the Tierra Caliente of Guerrero and

violinist Juan Reynoso.

Raquel teaches violin at CIMI-Universidad Veracruzana, Xalapa, Veracruz, and performs with the group

Sotavento in the U.S., Canada, Latin American and Europe. She moved to Xalapa, Veracruz, in 2017 to be

near her field research in the Huasteca region and other parts of Mexico.

Born in Mexico City, Francisco (Pancho) López moved to the United States when he was 18 to study

math and medical physics at the universities of Oregon-Eugene, and Wisconsin-Madison. A self-taught

musician and multi-instrumentalist and passionate about Latin American music, he is a founding member of

Sotavento, a group blending traditional and contemporary musical styles. His experience as a composer,

performer, and educator have made him key in fostering awareness of eclectic music in younger generations

around the world. Together with Raquel, he teaches workshops on regional styles and co-authored the book,

A Collection of Latin American Folk Songs (Hal Leonard, 1999)

Pancho lives in Xalapa, Veracruz, returning periodically to the U.S. to lead workshops on Latin American

traditional music for ACE (Arts in Community Education)— the outreach program of the Milwaukee Symphony

Orchestra, performing at festivals such as Festival of Texas Fiddling in Blanco, TX, and to work with Fire of

Tierra Caliente!

Paul Anastasio moved from classical to popular and folk music. He studied with jazz violinist Joe

Venuti, worked in Merle Haggard’s band, Asleep at the Wheel, the Gatlin Brothers, and Loretta Lynn. Paul

first heard Mexican violin genius Juan Reynoso in 1996 and fell in love. Learning this style was in danger of

dying out, he began studying, collecting, transcribing, archiving and sharing the repertoire. He returned with

2,700 hours of audio and video and transcribed over 700 pieces. Today, the project continues via Zoom

lessons to Mexico thanks to the invaluable support of multiple grants.

Louisiana musician Tina Pilione, best-known for her work in Cajun music, was introduced to Juan

Reynoso in 2002 and was smitten by his style and determined to learn his music. Tina focuses on mastering

the intricate and diverse guitar styles, and, using notebooks of lyrics, she sings many of the gustos, boleros

and other sub-styles. Tina continues her work with Paul, indexing vast audio and video archives from his visits

to Tierra Caliente.