Norten~o Festival a Low-Key Affair

The music was there, loud and clear, and the atmosphere seemed to perfectly capture the ambience of a Latin American country fiesta, but the audiences didn’t quite show up on Friday, the first day of a three-day festival of Latin music at the Whittier Narrows Recreation Area. (Rock en espan~ol was on the menu for Saturday, with Latin pop and mariachi scheduled for Sunday.)

Although a few hundred people did gather close to the stage, where a wide range of artists performed a marathon concert of norten~o music, the low turnout did occasionally affect the music. It was difficult for performers as popular as Los Tiranos del Norte and female vocalist Chelo to give it all away when the crowd would barely applaud at the end of each song, let alone cheer.

A pity too. The sound system was quite effective, and after a few songs it was hard not to be swept away by the material--a languid but heartfelt collection of love poems and social commentary set to a bouncy beat that brings to mind both polkas and waltzes. For most people though, norten~o remains an acquired taste--one that requires familiarity with the concerns and longings of northern Mexicans and their turbulent relationship with the nation across the border.

As the unbearably hot day came to an end, the air became fresher, and the soft pink clouds of the sunset served as a magnificent backdrop for 13-year-old Adan Sanchez (son of the late norten~o superstar Chalino Sanchez), who offered a short but poignant set before giving way to the closing act, Los Tiranos del Norte. They were, without doubt, the stars of the day, performing the song that made them famous, “Hasta la Miel Amarga,” as well as their latest hit, the delicate “Charola de Plata.”

More than just a concert, the festival also included stands with traditional Mexican antojitos (finger foods) and a wonderfully baroque amusement park whose bright lights and gaudy colors merged eerily with the music.