Canto Nuevo - Then and Now

The Canto Nuevo Group was formed in the city of Oaxaca, Mexico, in 1980 at the request of the Office of Cultural Activities of Benito Juarez University, then engaged in organizing a contest of Latin American folk music. Originally compromising eight musicians, the group was reduced to six by 1986 when Leticia, the female vocals lead singer, joined the group and helped achieve its distinctive character.

From the beginnings in 1980, the group has had two primary goals: 1) Offer Latin American folk music as an alternative to the musical fare generally serving Latin American at the time, and 2) to help disseminate more traditional music, currently heard in most of Latin America, that gives voice to social concerns. The influence of indigenous, Caribbean and other rhythms is clearly discernible in their music.

By way of grant monies the group was hosted at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin in early November 1990. Five of the group of six were able to make the journey, their first trip outside of Mexico. During their stay I was fortunate to work closely with them helping to provide sound equipment for their concert at Lawrence as well as attending other social events. As a result, the group stated upon their departure, “If you are ever in Oaxaca, you have friends!”.

Thirty years later, I finally made it to Oaxaca. While the group had long since disbanded, I was honored to reconnect with the five mainly through the gracious efforts of two former members: Hector Jaime Gallegos Garcia (“Jaime”) and Jorge Vasquez Romer (“Jorge”).

Although no sound recordings of their concert exist at Lawrence University today, I was able to acquire two sets of mp3 files of their music from the 1980’s through the efforts of Jaime’s wife, Antonia. While four of the five members no longer play in public, my Carol and I were guests at the home of Jose Luis Gallegos Garcia (Jaime’s brother) and his now wife Leticia Amador Vasquez (“Letti”) for a private concert. 30 years later, their timeless musical skills and voices have endured better than ever.