For the second program I coordinated, I invited UA professors Celestino Fernandez and Raquel Rubio-Goldsmith to speak about the role of women in the Mexican Revolution as portrayed through the corrido. We also had music that evening (corridos!), featuring Justin Enriquez and Juan Aguilar, of the group “Los Cuatro Vientos” who were joined by two additonal musicians from the restaurant, La Fuente. It was a night to remember!
Dr. Raquel Rubio-Goldsmith
Dr. Celestino Fernandez
From the news release: “Raquel Rubio Goldsmith, historian and lecturer in the UA Department of Mexican American and Raza Studies, will discuss the significant role women played during the Mexican Revolution. Celestino Fernandez, Professor, UA Department of Sociology, will discuss the corrido as a popular song form and its importance in communicating values, issues and ideas during the Revolution and into the present. The presentations will be illustrated by a performance from the local musical quartet Los Cuatro Vientos”.
The program was videotaped and is available for viewing below. It is divided into 8 separate sections. My thanks to Antonio Arroyo for filming it.
Part 1Part 2Part 3Part 4Part 5Part 6Part 7Part 8 La Adelita, probably the most famous of all the corridos of the Revolution.
Several years later, in 2016, I presented a lecture on the corrido Mexicano in Special Collections. It was titled, “What’s to Know about corridos anyway?“ I included it in my blog back then. It includes references for further reading and a number of corridos performed by some of Mexico’s best singers. Enjoy!
You may be wondering, oh boy, what’s he up to now? Why architecture? Let me explain…In 2011, I was transferred from the Fine Arts Library to Special Collections at the University of Arizona Libraries. I have done a variety of work while there, including managing the department’s exhibits and events programming and curating exhibits. While that work was extremely rewarding and I had a great time creating some fun exhibits and programs, in 2019, my duties changed. I now serve as curator for the Library’s performing arts and architectural collections and I manage reference service for the department. My passion for local history and love of local architecture help fuel my desire to learn all I can about the topic, particularly about the various architects who have worked in Tucson and Arizona. My intention with this posting is to introduce folks to the collections housed in Special Collections and to promote use of these collections among students, scholars and the general public.
THE ARIZONA ARCHITECTURAL ARCHIVES
The University of Arizona has had an architecture degree program in place since at least the 1960s and for a time, the School of Architecture had its own departmental library. However, over the years, because of decreased state funding, budgets for things like departmental libraries have shrunk to the point that collections and services have been consolidated where possible and facilities such as the Architecture Library have been closed. The College of Architecture’s library closed in the mid-2000s and the bulk of its collections were absorbed by the University Libraries.
The majority of the architecture-related holdings housed in Special Collections at the University of Arizona come from a collection called the “Arizona Architectural Archives”. This collection was started in 1976 at the College of Architecture Library and its purpose was “to provide documentation of the architecturally significant structures in Arizona, and of the architects and builders who have played a significant role in their field in the state”.
(Gresham, 1982. “Collections of Drawings and other records related to the buildings and the practice of architecture in Arizona”. Arizona Architectural Archives).
Initially, the collection included works by the following architects:
Place and Place (1918-1967) 88 projects are represented, most of which were completed before 1955. Roy Place is credited with creating the “style” of the UA campus. Many of the early campus structures were built by his firm, which at the time was called Lyman and Place. John B. Lyman, who had moved to Tucson in 1917 partnered with Roy Place to build the Mines and Engineering Building, the Steward Observatory, the University Library (now the Arizona State Museum) and the Memorial Fountain, among other structures on the UA campus. After Lyman left the firm in 1924, Roy Place continued building on campus and his son joined him as a partner in 1940. Place also designed the Pima County Courthouse, Mansfeld Jr. High, the Arizona School for the Deaf and Blind, and the Pioneer Hotel. He died in 1950 and his son Lew continued the work of the firm until 1976. The collection of drawings by Roy Place and his associates was donated by Lew Place in 1976.
Pima County Courthouse, Roy Place, 1928.
Henry O. Jaastad A Norwegian born in 1872, Jaastad immigrated to the US in 1886. He moved to Tucson in 1902 and worked as a cabinet maker and carpenter. He also studied electrical engineering at the University of Arizona. He became an architect in 1908 and designed mainly residential buildings. He was a member of the Tucson City Council and also mayor from 1933 to 1947. He expanded his architectural practice over the years and built churches, schools and hospital buildings as well as other buildings for public use. He died in 1965 at the age of 93. Public buildings built by Jaastad include Roskruge Jr. High, Drachmann School, the Southern Arizona Bank, and the YWCA buildings. Nearly 300 projects were completed. Annie Graham Rockfellow worked for him as the lead designer for the firm but never received proper credit for her work.
Henry O. Jaastad
Annie Graham Rockfellow
El Conquistador Hotel, 1928. Annie Rockfellow, designer.
D. Burr DuBois 1901-1979. DuBois graduated from the School of Architecture at the University of Michigan and moved to Tucson in 1926. He worked for a number of different architects including Henry O. Jaastad and James MacMillan, but always did his own work as well. He built the Himmel branch of the Tucson Public Library and was responsible for several additons to various University of Arizona buildings, including the Student Union Memorial building. His collection includes 570 drawings and five boxes of records and cover the time period, 1937-1968.
Apache Santa Cruz Hall, D. Burr DuBois, 1957.
Russell Hastings 1909-1979. Hastings moved to Tucson in 1931 to study archaeology but didn’t stay long, but he returned in 1939. By 1950 he had become a registered architect with the State of Arizona and he designed residential buildings, schools and other dwellings. These include the Adair Funeral Home, the Immaculate Heart Academy, Magee Jr. High, two A & W restaurants and many residential dwellings. The collection includes 110 projects and over 1000 drawings done between 1950-1978.
Adair Funeral Home
Over time, since the closing of the School of Architecture Library, the Arizona Architectural Archives collection was moved to a variety of locations. The University of Arizona Libraries acquired the bulk of the collection in 2011, although some of it now resides at the Tucson division of the Arizona Historical society. (See library_Architectural-Drawing.pdf)
While inventories of the collections that are housed in Special Collections exist, they are not yet publicly available. However, they can be searched and viewed with assistance and advance notice. You can reach me at jrdiaz@email.arizona.edu or contact Special Collecions at: askspcoll@email.arizona.edu and I or one of my colleagues will be more than happy to help you.
NEW ADDITIONS:
The following collections are available to the public, and, with the exception of the Joesler drawings noted below, have finding aids that are available in Arizona Archives Online. They include:
Judith Chafee Papers MS 606: This collection includes a variety of materials pertaining to the life and work of architect Judith Chafee. The majority of the collection are project files and architectural plans corresponding to Chafee’s award winning designs, but it also includes photographs, artwork, poetry, publications, office documents, and teaching files from Chafee’s time as an architecture professor. A brand new book about Judith Chafee, titled Powerhouse: The Life and Work of Judith Chafee, written by Kathryn McGuire and Christopher Domin, is now available. A companion exhibit is also available for viewing at the School of Architecture.
Judith Chafee
Judith Chafee, The Ramada House, 1975.
Biographical profile of Judith Chafee produced by KUAT Television
Thomas Gist papers, 1918-2000 MS 655 “This collection consists of the personal and professional papers and drawings of Tucson architect, Tom Gist (1918-2000). His unique design and building style made his homes an important part of Tucson’s Historical Districts. The bulk of the material relate to his work as an architect and include his drawings, plans, contracts, and other important information pertaining to his work. The rest of the collection stems from his personal life and contains various awards, degrees, photos, scrapbooks, and journals including his work with the Tucson National History club.” (from the finding aid)
Thomas Gist and his wifeA Tom Gist home.
John W. Murphey records 1919-1972 (bulk 1920-1950)MS 603 Along with Leo B. Keith and Helen Geyer Murphey , his wife, John W. Murphey owned and operated a number of commercial ventures in Southern Arizona beginning in the 1920s. In 1928 the John W. Murphey and Leo B. Keith Building Company was incorporated and Josias Joesler was hired as the firm’s architect. Fourteen years later, in 1942, the company was re-organized as the Murphey and Keith partnership, at which time Josias Joesler sold his shares. Into the 1950s, Murphey and his associates constructed homes, performed renovations, sold property, and leased houses in the Tucson area. Large projects include whites-only housing developments such as the Catalina Foothills Estates and Broadway Village, commercial spaces at Broadway Village and St. Phillips Plaza, the Hacienda Del Sol hotel, and the El Conquistador hotel. After Joesler’s death in 1956, Murphey began working with architects Blanton and Cole.
Josias Joesler: Born in Switzerland in 1895, Joesler was educated in various places throughout Europe. He moved to Los Angeles in 1926, and shortly thereafter met John and Helen Murphey. After settling in Tucson in 1927, Joesler worked with John Murphey for thirty years, until his death in 1956. Joesler designed over 400 projects, including commercial buildings, churches and residences. St. Phillips Plaza and St. Phillips in The Hills are among his many works that showcase his love for the Spanish neo-colonial style of architecture. Today, his Tucson homes are highly sought out and they command a hefty price. For more information see: Josias Joesler | Through Our Parents’ Eyes.
Backlog: Much of the material contained in the Library’s architectural collections has yet to be fully processed. Among these are:
Architecture One office files
Aros and Goldblatt office records and drawings
Atkinson drawings
Cain, Nelson and Wares office files and drawings
Cole drawings
Gourley office files and drawings
Green, Ellery office files and drawings
Hall drawings
Hockings drawings
Lockard, Kirby drawings
Luepke, Gordon drawings
Sakellar, Nicholas office files and drawings
Wilde, Willam office files and drawings
Zube office files
While the above collections constitute the bulk of our backlog, there is more material available. If you have any questions or would like to find out more about our collections, please contact me at jrdiaz@email.arizona.edu.
Work is underway to acquire a handful of additional collections, but given that architectural drawings take up a lot of space, time will tell how much more material the Library will be able to accomodate as it is running out of storage space.
“Special Collections hosts its third annual evening of song, featuring local musicians performing Mexican corridos in Spanish. Similar to English ballads, corridos tell the story of an event, a person or a place, and often include words of wisdom for those tempted by lust or greed. A brief lecture, titled, “An Introduction to the Corrido” will be given by Bob Diaz, Special Collections curator for the performing arts. This program is supported by the Mexican American Studies department”.
Wow, what can I say? I’m so glad that “Una Noche de Corridos” event turned out so well, in spite of the fact that the musicians that agreed to play for us were not able to make it after all. We had over 100 people in attendance. I had asked the musicians to show up 15 minutes early. By 6pm, they still hadn’t shown up. I was sweating bullets by then.
When 6pm rolled around it was time to start the program. I gave my presentation on the corrido, and fumbled a bit along the way with having to toggle back and forth from one program to another, but I got through it. The audience was very receptive and understanding, and they seemed to enjoy the videos I presented.
Once I ended my part of the program (see my previous blog post, What’s to know about corridos, anyway?, as I used it as the basis for the presentation), it was time to announce that our expected musicians hadn’t shown up. I then asked if there were any other musicians in the house who wanted to sing. I knew Bobby Benton was there with his guitar, so I figured I could count on him. He agreed to sing. And lo and behold, to everyone’s delight and surprise another individual also came forward. Her name is Tiffany Alvarez. I had my guitar on hand, so she used it to perform. Tiffany is a biologist and mariachi musician who has performed with Mariachi Mujer 2000, and Bobby Benton is a native of Barrio Anita, and a well respected singer whose talents can be heard on the cd recording titled Heroes and Horses: Corridos from the Arizona-Sonoran Borderlands.
They each sang three songs, and accompanied one another on guitar. The songs included: El Siete Leguas, La Herradera, El Corrido de Nogales, and El Preso Numero Nueve. The audience just ate it up. They loved it!
Again, I can’t say how grateful I am to these two wonderful individuals!
After the program, folks stuck around to enjoy some food and beverages. I met many wonderful people last night. My good friends Mima and Pernela were there too. We sang happy birthday to Mima, and I mentioned that Pernela had won a corrido contest at Tucson Meet Yourself. She said she was going to get me back for that one. She brought her sister Gloria, who used to babysit me when I was a baby. I love Gloria. She reminds me of Mrs Jones. She and Irene, my sister, were great friends in their youth.
By the time I got home last night, it was nearly 9pm. I was exhausted, and still a bit in shock over what happened. Thank goodness it all turned out so well!
Here is a very nice note I just received from someone who attended:
Hello Bob:
Just a quick note to say how much my son and I enjoyed last night’s program! We had a great time.
I really enjoyed the musicians and the snacks after. The whole thing reminded me of when I was a kid and my dad and uncles would sit in the backyard on a Saturday night playing the guitar and singing, all while the beer and tequila flowed. Of course, my mother wasn’t happy about the last part but I remember when my grandmother would join in the singing. I haven’t thought about that for a long time, so thank you.
Anyway, I wanted you to know that it was a lot of fun. And we enjoyed your talk, too. My dad used to play all kinds of Jose Jimenez records.
Karen
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P.S.
Writer Xavier Omar Otero wrote this review of the event for the Tucson Weekly.
There is one answer for you. Other writers note that the corrido is derived from a combination of Spanish song styles, not just the romance. Corridos were quite popular during the Mexican American War and reached even greater heights of popularity during the Mexican Revolution. A typical corridista would stand on street corners and sing to the passersby, often distributing the songs on “hojas” or leaves of large pieces of colored paper (referred to in English as broadsides). While some scholars such as Vicente Mendoza argue that the true form died out after the Revolution, others stress that the corrido has merely evolved, and that it flourishes to this day.
Corridos can be written about any number of topics. Some of the more popular corridos are about the Mexican Revolution, its heroes and villains, and the great battles that were fought. Others are about places, or about people who get themselves into trouble for being too bold or stubborn. There are also corridos about horses, cock fighting, and drug running. The latter are called narcocorridos, and they are extremely popular today.
According to the Mexican scholar Vicente Mendoza, a typical corrido usually contains some of the following elements: the initial call of the corridista or the balladeer to the public, sometimes called the formal opening; the stating of the place, date and name of the protagonist of the ballad; the arguments of the protagonist; the message; the farewell of the protagonist; and the farewell of the corridista. (Mendoza, Vicente. La Lirirca Narrativa de Mexico, pp17-18, 1964). Of course, not all corridos follow this formula to the letter, but most corridos do include a closing or farewell message of one kind or another.
Simonett states that, “the corrido is usually sung in 2/4 or 3/4 time, and that its harmony is based on the tonic, dominant and subdominant chords. It is usually constructed of a number of stanzas of four or six octosyllabic lines, and the melodic phrases are repeated for each stanza. Occasionally, the corrido has a melodic refrain, which may be in a different rhythm”. (Simonett, Helena. Banda: Mexican Musical Life Across Borders, 2001).
I grew up listening to El Corrido del Caballo Blanco from the time I was 2. The song opens with the sound of a galloping horse. Anyone who hears that sound who is familiar with Mexican music, recognizes it almost immediately as being the opening to one of Jose Alfredo’s most popular songs.
When I was in my early teens, our local drugstore, El Campo Drugs on the corner of 22nd and Country Club, had a record bin with Mexican albums. One day I asked my mom to buy me one. She liked Mexican music a lot, so it wasn’t hard to convince her. I chose Antonio Aguilar’s album, Corridos. It included some of the most famous corridos ever written, such as Gabino Barrera, Juan Charrasqueado, El Hijo Desobediente, and Rosita Alvirez.
In high school, I learned more about Mexican popular music in a class called “Cultural Awareness”, one of the very first Chicano Studies classes (1974) ever offered in Tucson. Our teachers brought record albums to the classroom that included corridos of the Mexican Revolution. Songs like La Adelita and Valentin de La Sierra (see Ana Gabriel’s version below) resonated with me. They alluded to a history I was not yet familiar with, but was closer to me than I realized. My own grandparents had immigrated to the U.S. both during and after the Mexican Revolution. Their lives were directly impacted by this conflict. It took me a while to realize what this really meant to me.
I began to slowly collect record albums in high school, although I didn’t have a strong interest in Mexican music until after I graduated from college and joined KXCI radio in 1983 as a volunteer disc jockey. At that point, I started hosting two radio shows. One was a three hour morning program, and the other was a specialty program called The Chicano Connection. My goal in doing this was to present both American and Latin music to the public. Once I started listening to and collecting more music in Spanish, particularly Mexican folk music, I started to become more familiar and comfortable with the corrido repertoire, and I began to collect songbooks, albums and whatever else I could find. One artist, whose song Doña Elena y El Francés, was one of my uncle’s favorites, was the great actor Ignacio Lopez Tarso. He issued two albums of corridos of the Mexican Revolution. They are comprised of spoken word monologues accompanied by music. Here’s an example.
I have discovered over time that there are a variety of types of recordings of corridos. Some would argue that the only ones that are “authentic” and worth listening to are those that were recorded in the early part of the 20th century, or “in the field” so to speak, by folklorists. These are performed generally by working musicians, who may or may not possess the best voices. They appeal to me on a different level than those recordings that are considered more commercial, and which are quite frankly more readily accessible to the general public. (Below, however, is one set of recordings that were made in the early 20th century that is readily available from Arhoolie Records).
Another recording, one that has the feel of a field recording, but was actually recorded in 2002 , is titled, Heroes and Horses: Corridos from the Arizona Sonora Borderlands. It is also readily available from Smithsonian Folkways. It was compiled by James Griffith, folklorist and co-founder of Tucson Meet Yourself.
Some of Mexico’s greatest ranchera singers, including Miguel Aceves Mejia, Lola Beltran, Lucha Villa and Antonio Aguilar, have helped preserve the corrido by recording them on their albums. Aguilar, for example, has issued several corrido albums, including one about the Mexican Revolution and another one all about horses.
Here’s one more corrido, this time by Lucha Villa. It’s called El Hijo Desobediente.
One of my all time favorite albums of corridos is Amparo Ochoa’s recording, Corridos y Canciones de la Revolucion Mexicana, which was issued in 1983. It includes definitive versions of La Adelita, El Soldado, and Valentin de la Sierra. It also includes a very moving song called La Caritina, written by Victor Cordero, a contemporary composer. The song is about a female revolutionary colonel who fought alongside Pancho Villa, but who was not officially recognized by the Mexican government, and who ends up dying in abject poverty. Here’s Amparo Ochoa singing this song live.
Since the 1970s, narcocorridos have been very popular with the Mexican public. A wildly popular group called Los Tigres Del Norte are largely responsible for popularizing this type of corrido. Other artists such as Chalino Sanchez helped further the form’s popularity.
Corridos continue to be written to this day. Many are political or deal with current events and contemporary issues. Below is an example of a relatively new corrido about President Obama. It was recorded in 2008 by Los Dorados Del Norte. Youtube is a great source for finding these songs. There even exist corridos about Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, some of which are very biting and funny. I’ll leave it to you the reader to explore these on your own. Have fun!
Locally, corridos are very popular in Southern Arizona. Back in the 1980s, a local group called Mariachi America, led by Gilbert Velez, recorded “El Corrido de Tucson”. Tucson Meet Yourself has also held corrido contests for many years, and the University of Arizona Poetry Center has sponsored a number of contests for high school students. Below is an example of such a corrido, written and sung by Araceli Valenzuela. The corrido won the 2010 Bilingual Corrido contest. Alfredo Valenzuela is a local teacher, now retired, who created the youth mariachi program at Davis Elementary School.
Below is a list of books you can read to learn more about the corrido. Those available online are linked to Amazon. Local libraries such as the University of Arizona Library, Pima Community College LIbrary, and the Pima County Public LIbrary also have some materials.
Here are a few corrido recordings that are available for sale online via Amazon.
The Mexican Revolution: Corridos. These recordings are from the early 20th century. They are considered some of the most authentic corrido recordings available.
La Adelita 
