UIC hosts vibrant Latin American music festival
The UIC School of Theatre and Music hosted its inaugural three-day Latin American Music Festival from April 11 through 13, which was a lively celebration of music and culture. Inspired by a student-driven initiative, the festival included faculty and students from UIC, Universidad de Veracruzana México and Indiana University’s Latin American Music Center, along with leading scholars and artists from Chicago’s Hispanic communities.
In crediting the origins of this event, Brent C. Talbot, PhD, professor and head of music at UIC, shared in his welcome speech that: “A group of students came to my office to demand that I include a course on how to teach banda, salsa and mariachi as part of the bachelor of music in music education degree. As the new head of music, I thought this was one of many brilliant suggestions by our students to center our Latino/a/e population and agreed to include the course in our proposal.”
The event began on Thursday, April 11 with a mariachi festival. Community and high school mariachi groups were invited to take part in workshops and seminars led by special guests. The highlight of the day was an afternoon concert in the Illinois Room at Student Center East, featuring the Mariachi de la Universidad de Veracruzana México and UIC’s own Mariachi Fuego.
Friday, April 12 featured the choral festival, welcoming high school choirs to take part in the theme: “Singing Together, Learning Together, Belonging Together.” The festival included commissioned work from Chicago A Cappella’s ¡Cantaré! Chicago, a program designed to bring Mexican composers directly into Chicago classrooms. In the evening, attendees enjoyed a concert titled “Celebrating Chilean Music: From the Colonial Villancico to the Nueva Cancion,” starring Indiana University’s Latin American Music Center’s Chamber Ensemble and the professional early music group, Tonos del Sur, with a pre-lecture by Chilean scholar Paul Feller.
The festival concluded on Saturday, April 13 with a block party, encouraging the community to join together in a day full of music, dance and celebration. The Collaborative Institute of Cultural Arts, Sones De México, Mariachi de la Universidad de Veracruzana México and many more international and Chicagoland artists and DJs performed at the event, which also included food trucks, artisans, vendors and other activities.
“The Latin American Music Festival is an awesome addition to the events we have on campus,” stated Emily Hernandez (’25). “It’s not just enjoyable but it’s also really helpful and valuable for the community to experience different cultures. As a Latina student, seeing my culture, music and food makes me feel at home and proud of my heritage.”
As Talbot noted in his welcome speech, Latine students form the largest representative group at UIC, making up 39% of the department of music. Particularly in the last five years, these students have been instrumental in constructing the department’s development and atmosphere. They have urged their educators to make greater efforts to represent their cultures in the curricula, in the hiring of faculty and in day-to-day programming experiences.
Ultimately, the Latin American Music Festival at UIC was not simply showcase of talent, but also a testament to the diversity and inclusivity that the department aims to represent. It was a weekend of music, culture and community, exhibiting the rich musical traditions of Latin America and highlighting the talent and contributions of Latine students at UIC.