For singer and violinist Crystal Hernandez, joining a mariachi group was in her blood.
“I grew up seeing and loving mariachi music,” the 24-year-old said. “Seeing my parents and siblings perform, my tíos; how much joy it brought to my family, to audiences… there wasn’t ever a moment of doubt. Mariachi evokes a passion that, sometimes, other music can’t.”
Earlier this year, Hernandez officially joined the Mariachi Reyna de Los Angeles performing group, started in 1994 by her father, maestro and Orange County restauranteur José L. Hernandez. This year, the group celebrates its 30th year as “America’s first all-female mariachi ensemble,” officials said, bringing “sensitivity, beauty, warmth and a vivacious spirit to the historic art of mariachi.”
An anniversary concert on Friday, Sept. 6 at the La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts also kicked off Hispanic Heritage Month. The packed show featured current and alumni Mariachi Reyna ensemble members, bridging different generations of diverse women who, members say, all share a passion for Mexican mariachi music and culture.
Leaders and members shared that Mariachi Reyna “provided a north star” for young girls participating in Hernandez’s after-school music education nonprofit, the Mariachi Heritage Society.
Over the past three decades, the group has signed with record labels; shared the stage with renowned musicians like Vicki Carr, Guadalupe Pineda and Lucha Villa; been nominated for a Grammy Award, and performed at venues across L.A., Orange County, the Inland Empire, Mexicali — and even the White House’s Cinco de Mayo celebration in 2009.
“The mariachi world was traditionally not a place for girls,” said founder Jose Hernandez, “so I thought this was a chance to do something for women who want to learn to play at a very high level. Men never really took (women) seriously as musicians, so Reyna became that first all-female group. To me, it’s a huge gap that needed to be filled, and I think Reyna has done that.”
Hernandez, 66, has composed and arranged the music for every show, plus seven original Mariachi Reyna de Los Angeles albums, and directs several renowned mariachi groups. Before the 30th anniversary show, he said that writing for women is “much different” because of what they bring into a song — their unique voices, emotions, life experiences and professional musicianship.
“Sometimes it’s more passionate, like they could sound more hurt than when a man sings, and that’s what I love about it,” he said. “Mexicans are brought up very nationalistic and prideful, doesn’t matter where you are. Putting on the suit — or the skirt — is like wearing the Mexican flag, for us. It’s our identity.”
Many Mariachi Reyna members, who come from all over Southern California, Mexico and Mexicali, have gone on to become mothers or pursue careers, but they always come back — and many returned for the 30th anniversary. Hernandez is inspired by their dedication and consistency to the craft.
“Some have become like my little sisters or my own daughters,” he said. “They’re professional women, but mariachi is a big part of their lives.”
Brisa Peña, a violinist and vocalist, moved out to L.A. from Tucson to join the group in 2018. A lifelong mariachi lover and musician, she was inspired by the artists’ tenacity in a “very male-dominated” world. She envisions the group winning a Grammy Award someday.
“Reyna de Los Angeles always stood out to me — I loved their style the most,” Peña said. “Being onstage with all women, I can’t even explain how it feels when we do a show, when we travel all together. It’s very empowering to be able to do what we do and sound the way we sound.”
Alumna Luisa Fregoso shared that being a part of the group “opened so many doors.”
“Little girls could see, for example, women performing the trumpet at a high-caliber — an instrument many stereotype as being a ‘manly’ instrument,” Fregoso said. “More little girls (joined) wanting to play guitarron, vihuela and trumpet, which is opposite of the usual — the violin.”
As the group’s director, Jose Hernandez also hopes that through diverse shows and notable renditions, more people — especially those not traditionally exposed to mariachi — will see it as a “highly respected form of music” that syncs with many different genres, from American pop to orchestral music.
“When they say (music) is a universal language, I’ve seen and lived it,” Hernandez said. “People all of sudden become more respectful of each other.”
A lifelong musician, his daughter Crystal knows the spirit of musical camaraderie well. As a child, she first joined a smaller group of kids, the children and siblings of other performers in her father’s nonprofit, which made her fall even more in love with mariachi. She remembers opening up for the female ensemble as a child, learning traditional songs at age 5 and performing with her twin brother Jose. Later, she majored in music education at Texas Christian University, always wanting to teach mariachi music and culture to others.
Joining Mariachi Reyna’s roster this year was always “something I was excited to be a part of… I look up to them so much,” Crystal Hernandez shared. Her first rehearsal, she recalled, was “so emotional.” She’d grown up listening to these women perform with their whole hearts — along with famous Latin American vocalists like Lola Beltrán, Amalia Mendoza, Rocío Dúrcal and others — and now she would be sharing the stage alongside them.
With Mariachi Reyna celebrating 30 years and beyond, Hernandez sees it as “important to showcase the talent of women… that they’re not limited to a certain standard or role within the genre, but have just the same capability as a man, to be able to do it all.”
The inclusive group, she said, has “forged a way for other women musicians to join or form their own mariachi groups — all inspired by Mariachi Reyna.” It’s a way for younger generations to be able to show the world “how proud we are to be Mexican.”
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“For me, it connects me to my culture and my family. It carries on the legacy, so that Mexican culture and the stories aren’t forgotten. Every time we perform and wear the traditional ‘traje de charro,’ we keep the history of our ancestors alive. It’s something we always have to be respectful of, honoring our ancestors as best as we can, and representing them well.”
The group’s 30th anniversary album, “Alma de Reyna,” debuts on all platforms on Sept. 20. Hernandez says he looks forward to creating and performing more music that showcases Mexican heritage with a “modern” flavor.