Composed of students from La Jolla Music Society’s after-school music program, the Community Music Center, Mariachi Águila was established in 2022 by Program Director Serafin Paredes. Advanced students are invited to participate in this ensemble to continue their musical studies and follow their passions in a supportive learning environment. Mariachi Águila participated in the University of San Diego Mariachi Conference in 2023 and 2024. Students from the ensemble also performed with artists from Mariachi Juvenil and won first place at the California State Fair Youth Mariachi Competition in Sacramento in July 2024.
The award-winning Community Music Center (CMC), operated by La Jolla Music Society, is a free after-school music program that will be celebrating its 25th Anniversary this year. Based in Logan Heights at the Logan Memorial Educational Campus (formerly Memorial Preparatory), the CMC provides students in grades 4-12 with culturally affirming, bilingual, hands-on music instruction and performance opportunities. It is designed to increase students’ self-confidence and resilience, while providing a safe and equitable environment for studying and creating music.
The CMC provides free instruments and free group lessons three days a week in seven different instrument families. Students also participate in two recitals each year, which builds self-confidence and pride. In addition to providing free instruments and books for classroom use and at-home practice, students who meet attendance and musical proficiency requirements for two years are awarded a new instrument that they can keep for life.
Featuring Special Guests from Mariachi Juvenil
Serafin Paredes established Mariachi Juvenil de San Diego in 2001 with three main goals. Those goals are to have a place where his students could further their musical knowledge, continue their education after high school, and connect with their culture through music. To help achieve these goals, in 2003 Mariachi Juvenil de San Diego became the first and only non-profit mariachi in San Diego.
Members of Mariachi Juvenil de San Diego had to maintain a certain grade point average during high school to remain a member of the mariachi. To keep students motivated to continue their education after high school, Mariachi Juvenil de San Diego would give members a small scholarship to help pay for their college expenses. Former and current members of Mariachi Juvenil de San Diego have continued their education at institutions such as San Diego City College, San Diego Mesa College, Southwestern College, San Diego State University, California State University Dominguez Hills, University of California San Diego, University of San Diego, George Mason University, University of San Francisco, National University, and Stanford University to name a few.
In 2003, Serafin Paredes attended the Tucson International Mariachi Conference where he saw students interacting and learning from professional mariachi musicians through educational workshops. Being there inspired Paredes to bring his own conference to San Diego. For the past 14 years, Mariachi Juvenil de San Diego has being hosting their Annual Mariachi Conference in March, where students from San Diego, other parts of the United States, and Mexico get together for two days and showcase their talent. The purpose of this event is to give students a space to master their musical skills, develop leadership skills, and mainly, to learn to respect the rich and living tradition of Mexican folklore.
Throughout the years, Mariachi Juvenil de San Diego has been given the opportunity to travel and perform in places like San Juan Capistrano, Los Angeles, Sacramento, Tucson, Albuquerque and Santa Fe, Tijuana, Baja California, and Guadalajara. In 2018, the group had the privilege to travel to Japan and perform around Nagoya, Osaka, Kyoto, and Tokyo alongside the Greater San Diego Chamber Orchestra, Sergio Caratachea, Javier Rodriguez, and Yoshi Oshima.