Los Cenzontles Mexican Arts Center

Bay Area Latino/a/x Dance Folklife/Other Music Visual/Craft/Material Arts 2006

Los Cenzontles Mexican Arts Center is a grassroots artist-driven organization committed to amplifying the roots of Mexican culture through classes, events, media, and performances.  Founded in San Pablo in 1994 by musician and educator Eugene Rodriguez, Los Cenzontles provides the local community with a family-friendly setting for traditional arts education and cultural events.  The Los Cenzontles Academy connects students of all ages with maestros of traditional Mexican genres instilling a sense of cultural pride and participation in living traditions.  Their calendar of events features performances by students, their own professional touring group, Los Cenzontles, and well-known world musicians and visiting artists.  Los Cenzontles documents this journey of continuing the long tradition of authentic Mexican art with CDs and DVDs to share with the world and future generations.

In 2006, Los Cenzontles received a grant from ACTA’s Living Cultures Grants Program to support the completion of the film Re-Encuentro, the third documentary in a series that comprises its Cultures of Mexico in California project.  Focusing on traditional music and dance, the series highlights both Mexicans and Mexican-Americans in an examination of the changing role of traditions as they evolve on both sides of the border.  The film investigates music and dance from Michoacán and the indigenous Tarascan communities.

In 2004, participation in ACTA’s Traditional Arts Development Program allowed Los Cenzontles to hire web designer Emilian Gaytan to create a website to promote and disseminate information about Los Cenzontles’s documentary Pasajero: A Journey of Time and Memory.