Interview of Frank T. Encinias (continuation), June 28, 1973
File — Box: 1, CD: 6.2
Scope and Content
From the Collection:
The original Curtis field recordings have been reformatted to CDs from reel to reel tapes. As in the goal of the Robb archive, Curtis and her associates at the Fine Arts Library have captured part of the rich musical heritage and history of the people of New Mexico. The collection includes both music and oral interviews.
Among the recording are Navajo morning songs and blessing ways, a Navajo music and dance workshop, Keresan children’s play - game songs, Laguna and other Pueblo songs, and All American Championship Indian powwow dances in the Mescalero Reservation and Ruidoso, New Mexico. The collection contains Native American recordings made in New Mexico by Philip Encino and Lorenzo Aragon. In addition, there are songs from the South Cheyenne, other Plains Indians and the Indians of Mexico, Venezuela, Colombia and Ayacucho, Peru. Among the Hispanic or Spanish pieces are traditional and original New Mexican and Mexican folk songs, alabados and matachines from San Jose parish, Albuquerque and Spanish Christmas shepherd pageants in Albuquerque. There are also songs from Holy Week passion celebrations in Villanueva and Tome, New Mexico; Cordova, Spain; and among the Tarahumara Indians, from Cusarare, in Chihuahua, Mexico. These recordings feature the native instruments of the Tarahumara - flutes, drums and the chapareque. Other recordings contain Spanish music at a UNM campus Cinco de Mayo Celebration, Catholic masses and church music programs, Spanish wedding music, and popular Spanish dance bands. Included also are recorded lectures by Cleofes Vigil on New Mexico Hispanic music traditions and on New Mexico territorial corridos or ballads by Ruben Cobos. Represented also are Anglo American old time fiddle contests in Portales, New Mexico, country western music from Clovis, and cowboy songs performed by Steve Cormier. There are also recordings of African American religious gospel music from Mount Olive Baptist Church and Grant Chapel, in Albuquerque.
Charlemaud Curtis and her associates also conducted interviews with old timers from Albuquerque, Santa Rosa, Clovis, La Joya and Lordsburg. Sometimes they did them during the music events they were taping and other times made special trips to record people. Individuals were also making interesting comments within the various musical programs as they were being taped. Some were individuals that Curtis knew through her family or were folks she met in her recording trips. The interviews represent the views of a Mexican American immigrant as well as several Hispanics and Anglo Americans.
One set of interviews covers the history of the development of music institutions in Albuquerque, including the UNM music department and local community concerts, opera, and the civic orchestra. Another group of interviews deals with Santa Rosa, New Mexico - giving both the Spanish and Anglo American view of the town’s development. They tell about the town and area history, cattle and sheep ranching, the first water and electric facilities, and the impact of the railroad and interstate highway on the town (Route 66) and the depression. There are also accounts of early American pioneers in Santa Rosa, doctors and the 1918 flu epidemic, Hispanic distrust of Santa Rosa bankers, trading at stores on credit, and the working of the sheep partido system in the area. Also included are stories of the early New Mexico Spanish settlers’ hardy faith, team spirit, foods and songs. Others describe making santos with a machete and local dyes, Spanish place names, the Santa Fe Trail and San Miguel County politics. In a 1976 interview, Judge Moise, from Santa Rosa, comments on Rudolfo Anaya’s Bless Me Ultima, a novel based in Santa Rosa . We also learn about early Anglo American ranch families in Clovis and an Anglo American pioneer woman’s life in Quay County. Covered, too, are the views of a Mexican American man in Lordsburg on migrant farm labor, working for the railroad, local foods and getting his first social security checks from the government. There are also discussions of the origin and characters of the Los Pastores performances at San Jose parish, in the south valley of Albuquerque and the history of La Joya land grant, Thomas Campbell, the church and school, and that town’s fiesta traditions.
There are program flyers and/or notes from a couple of these events in Box 2. This collection is part of the John Donald Robb Archive of Southwestern Music.
Among the recording are Navajo morning songs and blessing ways, a Navajo music and dance workshop, Keresan children’s play - game songs, Laguna and other Pueblo songs, and All American Championship Indian powwow dances in the Mescalero Reservation and Ruidoso, New Mexico. The collection contains Native American recordings made in New Mexico by Philip Encino and Lorenzo Aragon. In addition, there are songs from the South Cheyenne, other Plains Indians and the Indians of Mexico, Venezuela, Colombia and Ayacucho, Peru. Among the Hispanic or Spanish pieces are traditional and original New Mexican and Mexican folk songs, alabados and matachines from San Jose parish, Albuquerque and Spanish Christmas shepherd pageants in Albuquerque. There are also songs from Holy Week passion celebrations in Villanueva and Tome, New Mexico; Cordova, Spain; and among the Tarahumara Indians, from Cusarare, in Chihuahua, Mexico. These recordings feature the native instruments of the Tarahumara - flutes, drums and the chapareque. Other recordings contain Spanish music at a UNM campus Cinco de Mayo Celebration, Catholic masses and church music programs, Spanish wedding music, and popular Spanish dance bands. Included also are recorded lectures by Cleofes Vigil on New Mexico Hispanic music traditions and on New Mexico territorial corridos or ballads by Ruben Cobos. Represented also are Anglo American old time fiddle contests in Portales, New Mexico, country western music from Clovis, and cowboy songs performed by Steve Cormier. There are also recordings of African American religious gospel music from Mount Olive Baptist Church and Grant Chapel, in Albuquerque.
Charlemaud Curtis and her associates also conducted interviews with old timers from Albuquerque, Santa Rosa, Clovis, La Joya and Lordsburg. Sometimes they did them during the music events they were taping and other times made special trips to record people. Individuals were also making interesting comments within the various musical programs as they were being taped. Some were individuals that Curtis knew through her family or were folks she met in her recording trips. The interviews represent the views of a Mexican American immigrant as well as several Hispanics and Anglo Americans.
One set of interviews covers the history of the development of music institutions in Albuquerque, including the UNM music department and local community concerts, opera, and the civic orchestra. Another group of interviews deals with Santa Rosa, New Mexico - giving both the Spanish and Anglo American view of the town’s development. They tell about the town and area history, cattle and sheep ranching, the first water and electric facilities, and the impact of the railroad and interstate highway on the town (Route 66) and the depression. There are also accounts of early American pioneers in Santa Rosa, doctors and the 1918 flu epidemic, Hispanic distrust of Santa Rosa bankers, trading at stores on credit, and the working of the sheep partido system in the area. Also included are stories of the early New Mexico Spanish settlers’ hardy faith, team spirit, foods and songs. Others describe making santos with a machete and local dyes, Spanish place names, the Santa Fe Trail and San Miguel County politics. In a 1976 interview, Judge Moise, from Santa Rosa, comments on Rudolfo Anaya’s Bless Me Ultima, a novel based in Santa Rosa . We also learn about early Anglo American ranch families in Clovis and an Anglo American pioneer woman’s life in Quay County. Covered, too, are the views of a Mexican American man in Lordsburg on migrant farm labor, working for the railroad, local foods and getting his first social security checks from the government. There are also discussions of the origin and characters of the Los Pastores performances at San Jose parish, in the south valley of Albuquerque and the history of La Joya land grant, Thomas Campbell, the church and school, and that town’s fiesta traditions.
There are program flyers and/or notes from a couple of these events in Box 2. This collection is part of the John Donald Robb Archive of Southwestern Music.
Dates
- June 28, 1973
Language of Materials
From the Collection:
English Spanish
Access Restrictions
The collection is open for research.
Extent
From the Collection: 3 boxes (.45 cu. ft., including 89 CDs and 5 folders)
General
Mr. Encinias expresses a strong desire to preserve and teach about the Spanish history of New Mexico, the great faith that carried the Spaniards through hard times. He wrote articles for newspapers, hoped to publish them, gave talks, helped students, etc. Many stories were from his grandfather. Recalled how Spanish carried their saints into the corn field during droughts, prayed for rain, which then came. Describes the dispensas, cool, dark adobe store houses, small high windows. Gives Spanish names of the foods they ate, caldo, posole, rellenos, burritos, chile, rice, meats, beans, tortillas, buñuelos, sopapillas, green corn meal, quelites, greens, verdulagas, zaratios, salvia, cota, tea, etc. Sopapillas of past were served in a bowl of home-made syrup, like a sopa, not hand held like today. Relates beliefly that Hispanos of Santa Rosa were descendants of Spain, Castilla, New Mexico was an echo of Spain. Talks about his grandfather making santos, rough wood carved with a machete, no advanced tools, used water paints, herbs, vegetable dyes, glue from cow hoofs. Meaning of and use of the colors for the saints, making clothing for them, especially the Virgin Mary. Music of New Mexico, first songs of the old kings, Spanish, Arabian, valor, knights, brought by Spanish settlers, later songs adopted to changing events, for example, Juan Felipe Maestas, buffalo hunter killed on the Llano Estacado (Great Plains), inditas, decimas, love songs, poems. Songs for First Communions, weddings, etc. Story of the Golondrinas song, composed by last Arabian Moorish king, when turned Granada over to Isabella and Fernando. Mr. Encinias sings a few lines of it. Mentions story of Eugenio Perez. Mr. Encinias gives examples of New Mexico place names from the Spanish, how they each tell a story. Legend of the Cañon de la Mujer, on a mountain between Santa Fe and Albuquerque. Miguel Sanchez, at sheep herder camp, while looking for their burros, saw Virgin Mary, who called out his name there. His group found him dazed on top a rock, took him home, later he died, saying he saw Virgin calling him. Virgin made several appearances to him in the canyon - miracle of appearance of Virgin Mary. Describes settlements, first towns, land grants, patrons organized a group of people to settle land, patrons have a big house - hacienda, and around it smaller houses of settlers. Celso Baca, first settler of Santa Rosa, his house now a mortuary. Encinias tells how much the early Spanish settlers helped each other – team effort, planting, harvest, corn, wool, mantas, mantillas, drying chile, pumpkins, digging irrigation ditches, acequias. How useful the donkey, burro was for all kinds of work. Tales of the Santa Fe Trail, dangerous Indians. Barlolome Baca asked U.S. government to help protect travelers on the trail. U.S. got soldiers to escort the caravans. Story of Jesus Maria Luna, his grandfather, on return trip on Santa Fe Trail through Apache Canyon, attacked by Indians, survived, and built La Cruz del Partido, erected cross as monument there, in thanks for safety, life. Story of Hermits Peak - legend that hermit predicted area of Agua Negra would someday become a city – Santa Rosa, and after growth and boom, would sink into the ground (sink holes there.) Story of Peter Allison and wagon trail to Kansas, 1884. Anglo trail boss fired on peaceful Indians, who then killed all but Jesus Maria Pacheco, whom Indians spared and sent back to Santa Fe. Mr. Encinias said he himself was born in cave in Tecolote. His father’s father was an Apache, named Frank Encinias, who remained in area after Bosque Redondo roundup. Frank worked at a sheep ranch of Jose Encinias, in Galisteo, and took his name, Frank Encinias, etc. Frank Encinias went to school in Montoya, where Anglos learned Spanish right along with the Hispanic children. Also, Charlemaud Curtis’ mother taught school there. One room school, 3 months a year of school. Frank and his father herded sheep, on open range. Frank worked as cowboy on the Gallegos Ranch, Bell Ranch. Bell Ranch was the old Montoya Land Grant, Fort Bascom was on the old Montoya Ranch. Mentions Orville Smith, the Cohns, etc.
Repository Details
Part of the UNM Center for Southwest Research & Special Collections Repository
Contact:
University of New Mexico Center for Southwest Research & Special Collections
University Libraries, MSC05 3020
1 University of New Mexico
Albuquerque NM 87131
505-277-6451
University of New Mexico Center for Southwest Research & Special Collections
University Libraries, MSC05 3020
1 University of New Mexico
Albuquerque NM 87131
505-277-6451