Mariachi Unidos takes the stage in Burlingame

Attracting students with varying levels of experience and cultural identities, Mariachi Unidos is a band composed of 50 students representing each of the district’s seven schools. 

Gigi Gonzalez, the Student and Community Engagement coordinator for the district, said the band is a great form of cultural exchange. 

“Burlingame doesn’t necessarily have a reputation of being super diverse, but there is so much diversity in our student demographics,” Gonzalez said. “I’ve really enjoyed watching students from different backgrounds take an interest in it.” 

Though Isabel Aguayo was already learning how to play trumpet in music class, the fourth grader wanted to join mariachi to learn a different way to play her instrument. Growing up around her Mexican family, she’s heard mariachi played often at parties and knew she wanted to try the style.

“Mariachi music sounds really cool,” Aguayo said. “If it’s just one instrument, I feel like it’s not that cool. When I’m with more people, I feel more confident.”

That familiarity is not shared by all of the students, which Gonzalez believes is part of the greatness of the program. She said the district tried to look toward students who might not have previous experience and provide them an opportunity to be exposed to music.

Each week, instructors from Mariachi Academy in San Jose travel to McKinley Elementary School to teach students from third to seventh grade in their choice of trumpet, violin, guitar and the guitarrón. 

Students also receive vocal instructions and learn the meaning of each of the songs they sing, offering an added bonus of multilingual instruction. Gonzalez said it’s been particularly nice to see students with previous experience speaking Spanish flourish and sing along. 

In the inaugural concert, the band performed De Colores, Cielito Lindo and Si Tu Tambien Te Vas. 

For Zamora-Osorio and fellow middle schooler Melanie Miranda, being a part of the band has made them feel proud of their Mexican heritage. Miranda said it has helped her find friends who spoke Spanish and people to connect with over shared heritage.

“I really did enjoy the students who are from a Latino background seeing them get to highlight their own culture and enjoy it in a community that doesn’t necessarily have a lot of Latinos,” Gonzalez said. 

Students shared that their parents are just as proud, if not more, of their involvement in the mariachi band. 

“Right after my mom signed me up for the thing, she told my whole bloodline about it,” Zamora-Osorio said. “She was like ‘yeah, she’s taking classes, she’s so good’ and it was like we just had the orientation.” 

The same pride is shared with those not of Hispanic heritage. For fourth grader Jasmine Tsui, she likes being able to learn about music that she doesn’t usually listen to. 

“I’m Chinese and so I can experience a different type of music and I was able to perform it,” Tsui said. “[My parents] were very proud of me.”

Tsui, who is learning guitar, and her friends Aguayo and Alexandra Zee, who both play the trumpet, all said their parents are very proud of them. For Zee, she’s particularly proud of herself when she finds herself able to play new notes with which she once struggled.

The program’s popularity was made evident by the packed house at the last school board meeting of the school year where the band performed one song for a full auditorium of parents and supporters. To increase the impact of the band, Gonzalez hopes next year they can dedicate time to sharing the history and background of mariachi. 

Gonzalez said that although the program was only established in January, she can already witness the students’ sense of belonging grow. 

“Being part of a thing after school that belongs to the Burlingame district I feel more connected to the school already and also feel more connected with my race and my heritage,” Zamora-Osorio said.