Son Jarocho, El Chuchumbé, y Fandango–Afro-Mexicano Musical Traditions of Veracruz – Story Map #1

Mexico is world renowned for its rich cultural diversity, but the Gulf Coastal state of Veracruz boasts an exceptionally complex and layered history that’s matched by few other regions in the country. Home to Mayan civilizations that began thousands of years ago and whose cultures continue to shape Veracruz today, the state’s colonial legacy is as old as encounter: beginning in 1519 with the landing of Hernán Cortés and his followers at what is now the port city of Veracruz. In the wake of the conquest, the region’s wealthy hacendados (landed elites) imported more African slaves than anywhere else in New Spain. The trauma of the trans-Atlantic slave trade failed to eradicate African cultural heritage and traditions, which continued in many forms, but which are especially evident in Veracruz’s food, song, and dance. The musical style of son jarocho (made popular in the United States by Richie Valens’s recording of “La Bamba,” a traditional son jarocho song) developed from such Afro-Mexican traditions, as did the dances of el chuchumbé and the Veracruz style of fandango, both of which are associated with the musical style. This music and dance also relate to the history of cimarron communities in Veracruz–which is to say, run-away slave communities that resisted Spanish domination.

For this project, students will explore the cultural history Veracruz, specifically son jarocho music and the dances it inspires–el chuchumbé and fandango. This is the first of two Story Map projects, in which students research elements of cultural history related to Mexico for the course HIST 3308: History of Mexico. Resources available through the Library of Congress’s Digital Collections–including blogsLinks to an external site., filmsLinks to an external site., essaysLinks to an external site., printsLinks to an external site., mapsLinks to an external site., and others–as well as primary sources like “Dance of the People: The Chuchumbé” in Colonial Lives: Documents on Latin American History, 1550-1850” (New York: Oxford University Press, 2000) and selected scholarly, secondary sources provided by the instructor, informs this assignment. 

As part of your Story Map, you will create a 10-minute long videocast using Panopto, made available via the Canvas learning management system, in which they will discuss the historical and cultural significance of their findings in the style of a lesson or report targeting a popular-but-educated audience. This video should be integrated into your Story Map, along with relevant images and primary sources, which you will contextualize through short descriptions and formal citations. The instructor evaluates the student’s ability to present a coherent, informed discussion of the historical legacy and significance of san jarocho, el chuchumbé, and fandango as it relates to Afro-Mexicano cultural traditions, and their technical competence in incorporating their videocast and relevant materials into the Story Map in an accessible, logical, creative, and aesthetically dynamic way. Students should also make connections with Mexico’s larger colonial history.

This assignment requires students to use no fewer than three resources from the Library of Congress Digital Collections and two external sources to earn full credit.

I WILL CREATE THE VIDEOCAST  USING THE INFORMATION YOU CREATE. THIS IS A TWO PART ASSIGNMENT OF WHICH I WILL NEED THE SECOND PART DONE ALSO