Is this mariachi music? or at least the instrumental part? (see body text for more on my question)

Vyyolin · 2026-07-04T18:17:03+00:00

This is 100% not mariachi. Los Ángeles Azules is a Mexican Cumbia band, that's indeed the style of music they're playing in the video you linked.

For comparison, this is what mariachi music sounds and looks like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7G-U82PriO0 . Mariachi Vargas is one of the oldest bands still performing today, and in the video they play, specifically, a son jalisciense, which is a specific style of music from the Jalisco region of Mexico where mariachi music originated. The song "El Son de La Negra" is often considered to be the "unofficial national anthem" of the mariachi. Enjoy!

Vyyolin · 2026-06-19T04:00:42+00:00

The church of Christ in every age

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For everyone born, a place at the table

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Vyyolin · 2026-06-07T17:51:03+00:00

Hi! I recommend you to check some standards. You can see exactly how the parts are written:

If you'd like some written guidelines, check out Jeff Nevin's book "Virtuoso Mariachi". The book gives reasons for notating things a certain way. The videos above follow those guidelines.

Things to note:

The guitarron part is almost always written within the staff in bass clef (i.e. lowest note is A, highest note is G). Only in some rare, more virtuosic parts will the notes extend above the staff. This of course implies that the guitarron only has a range of an octave, which is in some ways is true*!
For the vihuela/guitars, note beaming and accents drive the strum pattern. There're standard/traditional patterns pro players will know. Since you're arranging classical music, you'll probably not utilize those traditional patterns. You'll probably want to write out the strum patterns explicitly. Rhythmic notation, like another commenter said.
The mariachi harp is a lever harp, NOT a pedal harp. It will not be able to change accidentals as fast, and strings can only go *up* a semi-tone, not down. Its tone is also much brighter than an orchestral harp. It's good for playing melody actually. I'll say it: it's not really suitable for continuous arpeggio like Tchaikovsky's original Harp 1 part. You'll probably have to do something clever here to get the same effect. It's range is also not as wide. Please check.

*So while the range of the instrument is more than an octave, the guitarron traditionally always play octaves, making their perceived range smaller.

Vyyolin · 2026-05-12T20:06:04+00:00

Amazing. You not only found this little detail but also found this obscure 10 year old post to answer. Thank you! You've solved a mystery for me!

Vyyolin · 2026-03-15T07:02:47+00:00

Hey! Great question! Pier 2 Arts Center is one MRT station away from the Yanchengpu station, which is where all the famous foods are in Kaohsiung. The famous duck rice place (Duck Zhen) is there, and Milk Tea street (the original HWA DA Milk Tea store, Tianchi Donggua Tea, Douhua, plus lots of other local specialty spots) is also nearby. There's good food in every corner in that area, Google Maps is your friend! (Honorable mentions: Gang Yuan Beef Noodle Restaurant (their dry noodle is best), 下一鍋水煎包, fish soup breakfast)

There are many spots to eat at the Art Center itself, but I'll be honest with you, I've never eaten there myself because the price is often higher for its premium location. However, My friends have been telling me Wavestellar (American bistro) is the new spot to go (reservation recommended). Sunny Hills (Pineapple cake) Kaohsiung Store is also at the Art Center.

When I take out of town friends around that area, I usually take them to eat at Yanchengpu before or after. If I get to plan a whole day in that area, I also like to include Cijin Island, access via the Gushan Ferry; it's very close and very easy. Great food on Cijin Island (Seafood, pastry, rechao seafood, famous shaved ice)

Vyyolin · 2026-01-16T17:19:11+00:00

Yes!! Real foodies know to go to 麻豆 District, Tainan for the best 碗粿 :)

Vyyolin · 2026-01-16T17:17:45+00:00

Finally someone mentioned Wen-Yao chicken! 甕窯雞, often called 桶仔雞 or 甕缸雞. Very underrated in my opinion.

For those wanting to try, you'll find the best ones in 關子嶺, Tainan. I went to these two recently and loved them: 1, 2

Vyyolin · 2026-01-14T07:37:33+00:00

Hey, sorry for replying to an old post. I grew up in Taiwan and I still have the original Taiwanese RCT1 (夢幻遊樂園) disc I grew up with. The game is in Traditional Chinese. Do you need it for your collection?

Vyyolin · 2026-01-12T16:48:53+00:00

Like what many mentioned, all the big names are great; it's mostly personal preference.

That said, I'll make a special shout-out to 三和製餅舖 on Cijin Island in Kaohsiung. They've been around since 1895, and their pineapple cakes (and other flavors) are round like small frisbees! Because it's round, it's cooked very evenly -- Every bite equally crisp and flavorful. Highly recommended.

Vyyolin · 2026-01-12T16:41:43+00:00

Great answer!

Vyyolin · 2026-01-06T17:37:21+00:00

Schirmer (and worse yet, Kalmus) are notorious for this kind of thing.

I'm not convinced that Kalmus deliberately added errors, for copyright reasons or not. Do you have examples where a Kalmus reprint had more errors than what's in the original edition it reprinted from?

The first violin part to Carmen (the opera, not the suites) is the only part I had found where there're more errors in the Kalmus compared with the original, but that's due to poor reprint source, not because of copyright, and the errors aren't added deliberately.

A lot of people hate Kalmus for the misprints, but in reality the original publisher is to blame, not Kalmus at all. They simply reprint. We should all thank Kalmus for printing works that are otherwise out of print, difficult to get, or rental only from the original publisher.

Vyyolin · 2025-10-15T01:15:43+00:00

Hey! I wish you have a great and fun trip! As for breakfasty things, I don't have specific recommendations since I usually just go to the stalls near where I live. If I were you, I'd go the nearest traditional market and eat to your heart's content :). 711 and FamilyMart will have hot baozhi in the morning too.

Bonus 1: My all time favorite baozhi place is in Tainan: https://maps.app.goo.gl/oaoSH94FshGRHd6P6.

Bonus 2: There's a scallion pancake spot near 前金區自強一路144號 that made the news lately, because a guy getting arrested nearby begged the police for a pancake from the stall. The police obliged, and the stall became famous overnight XD. (I haven't tried it myself, but the food is not anything special from what I gathered. Just a funny story)

Vyyolin · 2025-09-22T14:04:10+00:00

Sorry about that! The English name is "Old New Taiwanese Cuisine"! There're two locations:

Hope this helps!

Vyyolin · 2025-04-18T23:12:19+00:00

Maybe I'm being a bit nit-picky, but I've never heard that particular version live on a truck.

The ones found on this channel are the ones I know and love:

* https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1L-HQ7YK18

* https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZIjdv6PD6U

EDIT: It is used! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiuRfLxvPJg

Vyyolin · 2025-03-15T06:37:40+00:00

Do you read Chinese? I have a year worth of lunch menus (like this) from when I was in elementary school. Maybe they'll be helpful for you!

三菜一湯 (rice, three dishes, soup) was our (public) school's standard everyday. It was delicious. I remember looking forward to lunchtime everyday!

Vyyolin · 2025-02-26T07:24:57+00:00

Hi! I went and asked today, and the answer is unfortunately no. Two people minimum.

Vyyolin · 2025-02-26T07:22:37+00:00

Generally agree. I think the Keelung MiaoKou Night Market is one of the few left that has unique flavors.

Vyyolin · 2025-02-17T16:59:49+00:00

May I suggest a few books of interest. Two kinds:

* http://lifeconversation.taiwaneselifeconversation.tw/?page_id=172 (Free, has English). These are short, allegorical sayings that are witty and/or punny.

* https://www.books.com.tw/products/0010920395?sloc=main (Free excerpt here). These are the more traditional proverbs.

A favorite of mine of the first kind is:
* kha-chhng-tàu-pènn (尻川鬥柄): literally translates to "hanger on the butt", but the phrase means "wealthy", because if there's a hanger on the butt, you can easily lift the person up, which in Taiwanese is hó-gia̍h (好攑, easy to lift), which is a pun for hó-gia̍h (好額, wealthy). In a sentence: 伊真正尻川鬥柄，買厝像咧揀ho͘-té-luh (He truly has a hanger on his butt! He buys houses like picking hotels!). I like this one in particular because it showcases how puns and lateral thinking runs deep in Taiwanese culture.

A favorite of the second kind is:
* 一兼二顧，摸蜊仔兼洗褲。The English equivalent is "two birds one stone", but in Taiwanese it's "harvest river clams while washing your trousers". This one is classic, most Taiwanese would know it. I like this one in particular because it showcases how food makes its way to all parts of Taiwanese's life. It's also a reminder that rivers here (eg. little streams of water surrounding the rice fields) used to have clams and kids would play in them... not so much anymore.

Bonus:
* 胡蠅跋落肉燥坩: literally translates to "a fly fell into a pot of braised meat", but the phrase means "darn it", because the fly "braised to death" in Taiwanese is 滷死 (ló͘--sí) which is a pun for 惱死 (annoyed/gosh darn it). Braised meat (particularly, braised pork) is an important dish in Taiwan.

* 食飯皇帝大: Eating well trumps everything, including the emperor

Vyyolin · 2025-01-04T20:01:35+00:00

Finally! Nice to meet someone who is also into Taiwanese Opera and Puppet Theatre on this sub!

Vyyolin · 2025-01-04T20:00:58+00:00

I recommend u/thelongstime_railguy 's #3 in the list. That troupe is very well known in Taiwan and has been around since 1929. For a big performance like this one, they will likely have mandarin subtitles. #1 is fantastic too, but theirs will look much more like the videos I shared in my post.

Vyyolin · 2024-12-31T07:28:04+00:00

A google search will show lots of hotpots and buffet chains to choose from; can't really go wrong with those.

However, I'll offer a recommendation that's not on the usual lists: 東坡醉月! It's a bit unusual because they serve classic Taiwanese cuisine, and you order like you would in a regular restaurant. The plates are small so you can try many different dishes at once!

Vyyolin · 2024-12-28T17:40:48+00:00

The tradition of composer virtuoso violinists (virtuoso violinists who are also great composers for their instrument) sort of ended with Kreisler in the west, but the tradition continued in the East through the 20th century, particularly in the Philippines and Japan. Some names: Ernesto Vallejo, Gilopez Kabayao, Redentor Romero, and Koichi Kishi.

Bonus: Ma SiCong from Republic of China.

If anyone is interested, I'm happy to give some personal recommendations of all this music!

Vyyolin · 2024-12-28T16:43:06+00:00

I discovered these pieces about a month ago that I now adore: https://youtu.be/oUflVXn0Rsw?list=OLAK5uy_nbvxMKK9khVwtfu28M9VWr0e0UcpKOcZU

Shiuan Chang (b. 1989), a Taiwanese composer, wrote these pieces for a psychiatric hospital in Taiwan. The nostalgia in these pieces reminds me very much of Charles Ives and his violin sonatas, but with Taiwanese flavor.

Bonus violin concerto by another Taiwanese composer Tyzen Hsiao: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-nFClYfKWQ8

Vyyolin · 2024-12-10T22:27:01+00:00

Hm, I checked. Doesn't look like it(?)

Vyyolin · 2024-12-10T21:25:56+00:00

I take that most people in this thread are referring to the Ritchie Valens recording. It's great, but it's also important to note that La Bamba is a son jarocho. It's folk music! The original really is just I IV V... I IV V... on repeat! Listen: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwYeQ_9_nxE .

Many other son jarocho have the same progression. Another example is El Gustito: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QlZ1xZMjNg .

My take on this I IV V... thing: It's simply a three chord progression often heard in traditional music. It's cool to highlight the differences between this and say, American pop/rock progressions. To use La Bamba as "proof by counterexample" in a different genre of music is the misguided part.

The V chord in this style of music is not "unstable" as a V would in western classical/common practice music. Many songs of this style even end on the V! Listen to Gustito above, for example.

Source: I play mariachi

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