The program is being offered to students in all grade levels at Humble Middle School, Ross Sterling Middle School and Humble High School. Instruments are provided to students to support their learning, district officials said.
Mariachi was introduced as a UIL competition option for fine arts in 2019. District officials noted a full mariachi ensemble—which includes a collection of at least 20 members playing guitar, vihuela, guitarron, guitarra de golpe, violin and trumpet—is needed to qualify for the UIL competition.
According to HISD Director of Fine Arts Destry Balch, it may take several years before the district has an ensemble ready to compete at the UIL tournament.
“We expect the process to take about three years before we have a full group of vocalists, guitarists, violinists and trumpets,” Balch said in a statement. “For 2021-22 and the following school year, we will train students on vocals and guitar. We want a strong foundation before adding violins and trumpets to the full group.”
For HISD Mariachi Director Samara Martinez, who helped jumpstart the program when she was hired in August, joining the ensemble entails more than learning a new instrument.
“Mariachi is helping students connect with not only their instrument of choice, but also with the amazing culture that’s connected to it,” Martinez said in a statement.
Martinez was born in Tula de Allende in the Mexican state of Hidalgo. She found her passion for mariachi when she was introduced to the mariachi program at Project Chrysalis Middle School in Houston. She eventually received a bachelor’s degree in music education from Stephen F. Austin State University.
Prior to joining HISD, Martinez spent five years teaching music at Houston ISD’s Lewis Elementary School, where she started a mariachi program and a violin program through a partnership with The Houston Symphony.
According to Martinez, the goal for the program is to compete at the state level, which includes the UIL State Mariachi Festival. The event, usually held in February, has previously attracted more than 80 schools from across the state. She said she also hopes to compete in the Mariachi Vargas Competition in San Antonio.
Edward Garza, a sixth-grade student at Humble Middle School who plays guitar in Martinez’s mariachi class, said he has found joy in participating in the program.
“My favorite instrument to play is the guitar,” Garza said in a statement. “I’ve only been playing for four months, and I love it.”
For more information about the district’s mariachi program, contact Martinez at [email protected].
