Conjunto Cultivar

Who’d have figured that traditional Mexican folk music could sound so authentic played by two non-Latino sisters from Pacific Palisades?

Conjunto Jardin--formed just a year ago in Los Angeles and featuring siblings Libby and Cindy Harding--offers a spirited updating of son jarocho, an uplifting musical style from the state of Veracruz on the Gulf of Mexico with roots in Spanish, African and indigenous Mexican cultures.

Listening to Latino music was part of growing up in the Harding household. Tim Harding is a respected folk musician and professor emeritus at Cal State Los Angeles who happily shared his passion for jarocho.

“It all goes back to our dad,” said Libby Harding during a recent telephone interview. “He spent a lot of time in Mexico, and jarocho was one of his favorite musical styles. Some of the best musicians would come over to our house every Sunday . . . playing and singing this really festive, rich music.”

The quintet--which makes its Orange County debut tonight in San Juan Capistrano--also includes keyboardist Gary Johnson, percussionist Marcel Adjibi and bassist Rick Moors.

In Conjunto Jardin (the name is Spanish for, roughly, Garden Band), Libby strums the jarana, a small, eight-string, guitar-like instrument. Cindy picks the requinto, a four-string guitar used to play percussive melodies. Both use a call-and-response style to sing lead and harmony.

To absorb more of the culture and its history, the Harding sisters hav attended festivals in Veracruz and studied under Alberto de la Rosa, a renowned jarocho player and professor at the University of Veracruz, Xalapa.

Libby says the band members admire and respect traditional jarocho music; still, Conjunto Jardin aims to blaze its own path.

“We’re taking the music’s roots and adding modern touches, like electronic keyboards, in order to make the music somewhat more accessible to mainstream pop and rock audiences,” she explains. “Still, I am very protective of certain parts of the tradition. There was talk of adding maracas or a full drum set--but that I won’t do.”

*

Conjunto Jardin’s debut CD, “Nuevo Son Jarocho,” includes material from traditional jarocho tunes (“La Bamba,” “El Palomo”) to “Cruzando en el Barco,” a valiha, or song from Madagascar traditionally played on a bamboo harp with lyrics in Spanish and Benin, an African dialect.

The melding of Latin and West African music is prominent throughout, and, in a separate interview, Cindy Harding suggested that Adjibi’s work on high hat and congas brings the dance-inducing rhythms of Afro-pop to the group’s mix.

“The African influence brings a kind of syncopation and drive that is very exciting and lively,” adds Cindy, who is also a member of the Andean fusion group Huayucaltia.

“Jarocho is a tradition that continues to evolve, so we’ve really just taken it to our own place. We’re not trying to be Mexicans or compete with the incredible traditional players . . . down there. We’re hopeful that there’s a market for what we’re doing, and that people will feel the same alegre [happy] spirit that we do.”

* The Multicultural Arts Society presents Conjunto Jardin--featuring guest dancers from Club Veracruzano--tonight at Marco F. Forster Middle School, 25601 Camino del Avion, San Juan Capistrano. 7 and 9 p.m. $6 (949) 496-WMAS.