For over two centuries, the vibrant tradition of mariachi music was largely a male domain. That began to change in the 1970s with Rebecca Gonzales, who broke barriers by becoming the first woman to perform with Los Camperos de Nati Cano, the renowned house band at La Fonda restaurant in Los Angeles.
A Pioneering Musician
Gonzales, a third-generation American born in 1953, didn’t grow up speaking Spanish, learning the language later in community college. She began playing the violin at age 10, but initially found her passion in classical music. A shift occurred when she took a mariachi class at San Jose City College, captivated by the joy and energy of the genre. “I’ll never forget coming home to let my father know that night. I said, ‘You know what? This music is really great… I think this is going to be a big part of my life,'” Gonzales recalled in an interview now part of UCLA’s oral history project, Mariachi Music in Los Angeles and beyond.
Gonzales’s talent quickly gained recognition. After performing with a local ensemble, she was invited to play with Los Camperos de Nati Cano after an impromptu performance at La Fonda. She was soon hired by the group’s founder, Nati Cano, becoming a visible presence in a traditionally male space. “That took a lot of guts. That’s inspiring,” said Mary Alfaro Velasco, an L.A.-based performer who interviewed Gonzales for the UCLA archive. “That she went into this all-male, paisa-man environment, as a young Mexican American girl, pochita, that didn’t even speak the language.”
During her eight years with Los Camperos, Gonzales gained celebrity status, performing for audiences that included movie stars like Rock Hudson and Elizabeth Montgomery, and even former Beatle George Harrison. She was even photographed dancing with President Ronald Reagan.
However, her time with Los Camperos wasn’t without difficulty. Gonzales described experiencing harassment while performing, and ultimately left the group due to concerns about the lack of ventilation at La Fonda, which impacted her health. She continued to perform with other groups and eventually founded her own. She was recognized for her contributions with inductions into the Tucson International Mariachi Conference Hall of Fame in 2004 and the Mariachi Spectacular de Albuquerque Hall of Fame in 2023.
A Legacy Preserved
Gonzales passed away last year at the age of 71, but her story lives on through the UCLA oral history project. Jane Collings, the project manager, emphasized the importance of preserving these narratives, particularly those of marginalized communities. “There’s a clear attempt [by the Trump administration] to erase this history and that makes the work of an archive such as this ever more important,” Collings said.
Frequently Asked Questions
What was Rebecca Gonzales’s background?
Rebecca Gonzales was a third-generation American, born in San Jose, California, in 1953. Her mother was born in Arizona and her father in Texas, and her grandparents immigrated from Mexico. She did not learn Spanish until taking classes at a community college.
What made Rebecca Gonzales’s inclusion in Los Camperos significant?
Gonzales was the first woman to be asked to join a high-profile, all-male mariachi group like Los Camperos de Nati Cano, both in the U.S. and Mexico. This broke a long-standing tradition within the genre.
Are there currently women performing with major mariachi groups in Mexico?
According to the source, as of the time of the interview, Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlan and Mariachi Sol de Mexico de Jose Hernandez, two of the biggest bands in Mexico, remain all-male.
How might Gonzales’s story inspire future generations of musicians?
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