Mariachi runs in the Valenzuela family. There are now four generations of mariachi musicians, starting with "Dr. V" – Dr. Alfredo Valenzuela, who was a Tucson Unified teacher for 40 years and launched the mariachi program at Davis Bilingual Elementary Magnet School.
His son, Jaime, is the current music teacher and mariachi director at Davis, and now his son JJ Valenzuela and nephew Bryson Marques have joined the family tradition.
Now the Valenzuelas are going to be featured on "Good Morning America" to showcase the importance of mariachi in Mexican culture and the Tucson community for Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15 - October 15).
When asked about the experience of being interviewed for a national show, Jaime said, "I am very happy to represent our great school Davis, our school district TUSD and of course the city of Tucson, Arizona! What makes me very happy is that I got to do this with my family and the people that I love. I am happy to also represent the tight mariachi community of Tucson!"
The Valenzuelas will appear on "Good Morning America" on Friday, October 6 starting at 7 am Arizona time.
Donations can be made to the Mariachi:
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