A quick look at the bands playing

Mariachi Los Camperos de Nati Cano: A perennial favorite at the conference, Mariachi Los Camperos de Nati Cano has been one of America's foremost mariachi pioneers for almost 40 years.
Its musical director, Nati Cano, is a native of Ahuisculco in the state of Jalisco, Mexico. He moved to Los Angeles in 1957, where he played and directed Mariachi Chapala for four years. In 1961, he started Los Camperos - one of the most internationally recognized mariachi groups and one of America's first real "show" mariachis, bringing world-class virtuosity and complex arrangements to the art form. It was with Cano and Los Camperos that Tucson's legendary Mariachi Cobre studied as kids, back in the 1960s when they were the first crop of Los Changuitos Feos (The Ugly Little Monkeys) - America's first youth mariachi.
Los Camperos backed singer Linda Ronstadt on her "Canciones de mi Padre" album and subsequent touring. Los Camperos has been a fixture at the Bank One Tucson International Mariachi Conference since 1986, and since 1999 has headed the conference workshops.
"It's been a great experience," Cano says, speaking by phone from his La Fonda restaurant in Los Angeles. "The main thing for me there is to see all these kids growing up and learning and promoting the mariachi music. It makes me want to keep going. As long as the kids are trying to preserve this music, I'll be there. That's what Tucson means to me."
Cano has taught at the UCLA department of ethnomusicology and systematic musicology, and in 1990 became a National Heritage Award winner.
Cano is organizing a national mariachi institute. Last year, he became one of the Bank One Tucson International Mariachi Conference's first Hall of Fame members.

Herencia Mexicana: Headlining the show is a wild card ensemble whose breeding suggests something spectacular.
Herencia Mexicana is a group featuring the sons and daughters of some of the legendary names in Mexican music.
The group features Juan Mendoza Jr., son of "El Tariacuri" from Michoacan, Mexico; Gabriel Solis, son of the "Bolero Ranchero King" Javier Solis; Irma Infante, daughter of the idol from Sinaloa, Mexico, Pedro Infante and the actress/singer Irma Dorantes; Maria Elena Leal Beltrán, daughter of Lola Beltrán; and siblings Laura and Juan Zaizar, who continue Hermanos Zaizar, a title originally attributed to Juan and David Zaizar.
The supergroup was founded by Juan Mendoza Jr. in February 1999. Its members have all performed on Mexican television, and the group has a self-titled CD.

Mariachi Juvenil Tecalitlán: To fans of mariachi music around the country, the name Mariachi Juvenil Tecalitlán does not suggest little kids.
Here are the sons of the main players of the best mariachi in the world, Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán, brandishing the kind of instrumental and vocal firepower that made their fathers famous.
"Mariachi Juvenil Tecalitlán has four excellent CDs and is one of the most underrated mariachis in Mexico, in my opinion," says mariachi historian Jonathan Clark. "They also have many recordings accompanying singers.
"I'm impressed that Tucson would take a chance and bring a group up from Mexico that wasn't already on the festival circuit. I think the other groups on this year's bill face some very serious competition!"
Mariachi Juvenil Tecalitlán started out in the mid-'80s as a young group composed mainly of sons of Mariachi Vargas members. Marco and Fernando Santiago, sons of the late guitarrón virtuoso Nati Santiago, form the foundation of the current group. Few of the original members remain (most of them are in other top groups now), but the group has evolved into one of Mexico's finest.
Its CDs are extraordinary, and the group performs frequently on Mexican TV. Additionally, the Santiago brothers have recorded three trio CDs featuring themselves on guitarrón and vihuela, along with Mexican gut-string guitar luminary Miguel Peña. These little-known CDs are true gems of innovation and would be a welcome addition to any mariachi enthusiast's record collection.
"On many works, the trio plays authentic son jalisciense accompaniment to virtuoso guitar work. Other pieces feature exotic rhythms and extended harmonies seldom heard on mariachi instruments."
The group has supported Lucha Villa, Amalia Mendoza, Aida Cuevas, Angeles Ochoa, Guadalupe Pineda, Lucero, Rozenda Bernal, Alberto Angel "El Cuervo," "Charro" Avitia, Humberto Herrera and Lola Beltrán in concert or on record.

Mariachi Mujer 2000: This year's all-female ensemble, Mariachi Mujer 2000 (Dos Mil), is another of the most respected ensembles on the mariachi circuit.
"We like to think of ourselves as role models for future women mariachis," said the group's director, Marisa Orduño.
Under musical director Laura Sobrino, one of the female pioneers of mariachi music and a popular clinician on the subject of women in mariachi music, the group has shared the stage with some of the greatest mariachi artists in the world, including Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán, Mariachi Cobre and Mariachi America. It also has performed with some of Mexico's most celebrated performers, among them Lucha Villa, Aida Cuevas, Miguel Aceves Mejia, Alejandro Fernandez and the late Lola Beltrán.
Six of the 11 members are former members of the first all-female mariachi show group in the United States, Mariachi Reyna de Los Angeles, which was the runaway favorite of last year's Bank One Tucson International Mariachi Conference. And like Reyna, the group's musical palette is eclectic, embracing everything from classical to jazz, pop, country, salsa and huasteco in fine style.

Mariachi Los Arrieros: This El Paso, Texas-based group has become a favorite on the mariachi circuit for its precision, spirit and versatility.
"I heard them in San Antonio three years ago and they blew me away," raves mariachi expert Clark. "Their CD was a little bit of a disappointment, however. They were much better in person."
"I saw Los Arrieros on our last trip to the Guadalajara festival," notes Alberto Ranjel of Tucson's Mariachi Tapatio. "They are a very good up-and-coming mariachi."
The dozen-member group was formed in 1996, and is directed by Juan Contreras. He and the ensemble members teach mariachi in the Socorro Independent School District. The group has appeared in cities from Guadalajara, Mexico, to Kansas City, Mo., and performed for former President Clinton and Mexico's then-President Zedillo. Everywhere, Mariachi Los Arrieros is considered an ambassador of mariachi.