When Camila Ortega was just a toddler growing up in Richmond she was introduced to Los Cenzontles Cultural Arts Academy when one of her older sisters began attending classes there. By age 4, she was in a dance class of her own.
Now 17, she is still a student and also a performer — one of five Ortega sisters to learn Mexican folk music and dance at the academy. Staying close to cultural traditions is a value deeply held by her family, Ortega said. At Los Cenzontles, they found a community where this value is shared and encouraged.
“Los Cenzontles has benefited me in so many ways,” she said. “One way is having patience. It is not easy picking up an instrument, but having dedication and support from the teachers is amazing.”
In addition to learning dance, Ortega has learned to play a variety of traditional instruments, including the guitar-like jarana and vihuela. She also plays the pandero, a small hand drum similar to a tambourine, and another percussion instrument called the quijada, which is made from the jawbone of a cow or other large animal.
Ortega and her siblings are among thousands of young people from Richmond, San Pablo, and surrounding areas who’ve studied cultural arts at the academy.
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“Los Cenzontles has benefited me in so many ways. One way is having patience. It is not easy picking up an instrument, but having dedication and support from the teachers is amazing.”
— Camila Ortega, Los Cenzontles music and dance student since age 4
The organization’s homebase is a modest strip-mall storefront on the border of Richmond and San Pablo. But inside is a vibrant community space and state-of-the-art performing arts and production facility. Mexican folk art and photographs honoring the organization’s history line the walls. On most afternoons, young people can be found in the various practice rooms and studios playing traditional instruments, practicing dance, and learning about audio and video production.
From ’80s band to performing with Grammy winners
Before it became a nonprofit in 1994, with a mission to promote Mexican cultural preservation and education, Los Cenzontles (The Mockingbirds) was a youth music group, founded by Eugene Rodriguez in 1989. Rodriguez continues to lead the organization as executive director, and the band is still at the center of the academy’s work, with Rodriguez and other longtime band members acting as lead instructors. The core group regularly tours, performs at the academy, and has released dozens of albums — many of which showcase the students.
Visit Los Cenzontles for information about programming and events. Bird of Four Hundred Voices: A Mexican American Memoir of Music and Belonging by founder Eugene Rodriguez (Heyday Books) will be released Aug. 6.
Over the years, the group has performed and recorded with the likes of Grammy-winners and other top performers, including Los Lobos, Jackson Browne, Taj Mahal, Ry Cooder, The Chieftains, and Flaco Jimenez — all in service of preserving and advancing Mexican musical styles, arts, and customs.
Now, the organization is celebrating its 35 years of cultural contributions and community involvement with the release of a memoir written by Rodriguez about his life and journey with Los Cenzontles. In Bird of Four Hundred Voices: A Mexican American Memoir of Music and Belonging, Rodriguez recounts the challenges the small group of artists faced as they built their organization into a local cultural institution, while examining the importance of cultural arts education for many Latino youths. The memoir is set to be released by Heyday Books on Aug. 6.
“In a society that tries, in countless ways, to convince us to devalue ourselves, the cultural arts can help our children build resourcefulness and resilience that can protect their sense of self,” said Rodriguez in a statement announcing the memoir.
In addition to the book, a full-length documentary on the history of Los Cenzontles is scheduled to premiere this fall. Multiple events will be on tap to celebrate both releases.
At one recent “music and tacos” event at the academy in May, community members and supporters turned out to celebrate the organization’s achievements and enjoy some live performances. Ortega was one of the musicians on stage — but it wasn’t the teen’s first time playing live with the band. The young musician has already toured extensively with Los Cenzontles, including a recent trip to the Sonoran Desert where the group was accompanied by none other than Linda Ronstadt, a longtime collaborator.
Ortega summed up the impact of Los Cenzontles for Richmondside.
“The organization not only brings the community together,” she said, “but demonstrates that one space can make a big difference.”
