The World Accordion to Conjunto

The popular group La Tropa F plays Sunday night at the 17th Annual Tejano Conjunto Festival, which takes place May 12-17 at San Antonio’s Guadalupe Theater and in Rosedale Park.

What’s nicer come springtime than lolling around in a shady park, listening to live music with a crowd of happy people? Not much, say the folks at San Antonio’s Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center, which hosts the Annual Tejano Conjunto Festival May 6-10.

A musical style created in the late 1800s when Mexican musicians in South Texas and northern Mexico combined their bajo sextos(12-string bass guitars) with German button accordions, conjunto continues to evolve. Today, conjunto’s traditional four-piece ensemble (accordion, bajo sexto, bass, and drums) merely provides a jumping-off point for bands that also feature guitars, horns, and synthesizers.

Beginning May 6 in Rosedale Park, you can listen to dozens of conjunto acts from as far away as Japan, as well as enjoy a poster contest, the popular students’ accordion recital, food and beverage booths, and plenty of dancing and games.

(Updated: Jan. 2009)

From the May 1998 issue.

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