Ella Vigil, recorder, 1975
File — Box: 3, CD: 302
Scope and Content
From the Collection:
The collection consists of 591 recordings of folk songs, folklore and local histories collected by Ruben Cobos from 1944-1974 in northern New Mexico and southern Colorado. Also included in the collection are about 270 additional recordings of selected music - a few from New Mexico, many from Mexico and Latin America, and others from Spain, Europe and the U.S. The recordings vary in quality between good, fair, and poor. They contain both musical and spoken content. Most recordings are in Spanish, however, a few are in English. Others are Bilingual or represent the use of Spanglish.
The informants are mainly from New Mexico and Colorado, with a few from California, Texas and Mexico. The collections focuses heavily on spoken Spanish, with examples of poetry, riddles, proverbs, legends, anecdotes, folk tales, mysteries, prayers, nursery rhymes, games, jokes, language use, tricky words, tongue twisters, memories, local history and family history. The Spanish songs include alabados, entriegas for weddings and baptisms, inditas, corridos and ballads, pastores, posadas, love songs, folk dance music, etc. Traditions of Los Juanes and Los Manueles, Penitente morada practices, including women Penitentes, Holy Week songs and activities and the role of the church, santos and fiestas in the lives of the people are also included. There are also several lectures on folklore, music and culture by Cobos and other scholars, including Fray Angelico Chavez, Charles Briggs, Alfonso Ortiz, Arthur Leon Campa, Marta Weigle, Guadalupe Baca Vaughn, Anita Thomas and others. Included also are autobiographical accounts by Ruben Cobos and his wife Elvira.
Songs and stories about and for children, their health and education are included. Although the majority of the information is about Spanish and Hispanic traditions, the collection also provides some materials by and about non-Hispanics and the relationship between the races. A small amount of stories and songs relate to Apaches, Navajos, Pueblos, Mexicanos, African Americans, and Anglos (gringos).
Songs and stories by or about males show them in every walk of life, as rich and poor, old and young, as husbands, widowers, fathers, sons, relatives, compadres, friends, orphans, opponents, collaborators, kings, princes, commoners, giants, ranchers, cowboys, shepherds, farmers, woodcutters, shoemakers, vendors, railroaders, hunters, priests, doctors, teachers, politicians, attorneys, meteorologists, soldiers, witches, simpletons, gamblers, murderers, drunks, adulturers and thieves.
Recordings by and about women add value and perspective to the collection. Females are rich and poor, old and young, girl friends, lovers, adulteresses, wives, widows, mothers, comadres, church attendees, housekeepers for priests, nuns, princesses, queens, teachers, curanderas, cooks and witches. Some of the characters found in the collection are Cinderella, Genoveva de Brabanate, Goldilocks, Delgadina, La Llorona, Doña Cebolla, Dona Fortuna and the Virgin Mary, as well as San Antonio, San Pedro, Bartoldo, Don Cacahuate, Juan Charrasqueado, Pedro and Juan de Urdemalas, Ali Baba, Don Dinero, Tio Botitas and others.
The collection contains descriptions, traditions, local history and songs for New Mexico, Colorado, Texas, Missouri, Kansas and Mexico. There are references to the Civil War in New Mexico, the Spanish American War, World War I and World War II. Stories tell of superstitions, supernatural, unexplained phenomenon, balls of fire and light, lightening, a comet, the sun, moon, finding treasure, ghosts, devils and magic. Additional topics include traditional food and cooking, health and home remedies. Included also are stories and references to insects, animals, birds, fish and snakes, as well as floods and storms, and automobiles and airplanes.
The informants are mainly from New Mexico and Colorado, with a few from California, Texas and Mexico. The collections focuses heavily on spoken Spanish, with examples of poetry, riddles, proverbs, legends, anecdotes, folk tales, mysteries, prayers, nursery rhymes, games, jokes, language use, tricky words, tongue twisters, memories, local history and family history. The Spanish songs include alabados, entriegas for weddings and baptisms, inditas, corridos and ballads, pastores, posadas, love songs, folk dance music, etc. Traditions of Los Juanes and Los Manueles, Penitente morada practices, including women Penitentes, Holy Week songs and activities and the role of the church, santos and fiestas in the lives of the people are also included. There are also several lectures on folklore, music and culture by Cobos and other scholars, including Fray Angelico Chavez, Charles Briggs, Alfonso Ortiz, Arthur Leon Campa, Marta Weigle, Guadalupe Baca Vaughn, Anita Thomas and others. Included also are autobiographical accounts by Ruben Cobos and his wife Elvira.
Songs and stories about and for children, their health and education are included. Although the majority of the information is about Spanish and Hispanic traditions, the collection also provides some materials by and about non-Hispanics and the relationship between the races. A small amount of stories and songs relate to Apaches, Navajos, Pueblos, Mexicanos, African Americans, and Anglos (gringos).
Songs and stories by or about males show them in every walk of life, as rich and poor, old and young, as husbands, widowers, fathers, sons, relatives, compadres, friends, orphans, opponents, collaborators, kings, princes, commoners, giants, ranchers, cowboys, shepherds, farmers, woodcutters, shoemakers, vendors, railroaders, hunters, priests, doctors, teachers, politicians, attorneys, meteorologists, soldiers, witches, simpletons, gamblers, murderers, drunks, adulturers and thieves.
Recordings by and about women add value and perspective to the collection. Females are rich and poor, old and young, girl friends, lovers, adulteresses, wives, widows, mothers, comadres, church attendees, housekeepers for priests, nuns, princesses, queens, teachers, curanderas, cooks and witches. Some of the characters found in the collection are Cinderella, Genoveva de Brabanate, Goldilocks, Delgadina, La Llorona, Doña Cebolla, Dona Fortuna and the Virgin Mary, as well as San Antonio, San Pedro, Bartoldo, Don Cacahuate, Juan Charrasqueado, Pedro and Juan de Urdemalas, Ali Baba, Don Dinero, Tio Botitas and others.
The collection contains descriptions, traditions, local history and songs for New Mexico, Colorado, Texas, Missouri, Kansas and Mexico. There are references to the Civil War in New Mexico, the Spanish American War, World War I and World War II. Stories tell of superstitions, supernatural, unexplained phenomenon, balls of fire and light, lightening, a comet, the sun, moon, finding treasure, ghosts, devils and magic. Additional topics include traditional food and cooking, health and home remedies. Included also are stories and references to insects, animals, birds, fish and snakes, as well as floods and storms, and automobiles and airplanes.
Dates
- 1975
Language of Materials
From the Collection:
English, Spanish
Access Restrictions
The collection is open for research.
Extent
From the Collection: 13 boxes (12.25 cu. ft.)
General
Benigno Romero, b. 1882, Fort Garland, Colorado. Begins at 00:01 and ends at 20:00. May 11, 1975. 1. Bendicion de la mesa, blessing of the food at the table (fair recording, prayer, verses); 2. Conversacion (good recording, El Rito, New Mexico, humble people, more traditional, Spanglish, Bilingual, language, esta norte del highway, speaker was a Penitente member but left the group due to internal politics, Penitentes traditions, Sabado de Gloria, Semana Santa, Holy Week, religion, personal experience, local history).
Margarito Espinosa, b. 1919 in San Francisco, aka El Rito, lives in La Valle, Colorado. Similar material on CD 287. Begins at 20:11 and ends at 39:01. 1. Conversacion (good recording, local history, personal experience); 2. Story, Un buen con un mal se paga (good recording, cuento, serpent, snake, coyote, wisdom); 3. El ojo del buey (good recording, rainbow, code switching, English, Bilingual, language, sign of rain, when the ojo del buey is North it is going to rain the next day and if it is to the South then it will be very dry the next day); 4. Las cabanuelas (good recording, story, in the winter the cabanuelas would come, a rainy time); 5. El rey y el anillo perdido (good recording, story, cuento, there was a king who had a very pretty princess and his servents were enfatuated with her, she lost her ring and they were looking for it, women).
Felipe Valdez, b. 1913, age 62 from San Luis, Colorado. Similar to CD 287. Begins at 39:12 and ends at 64:55. 1. Juegos (good recording, games, children, traditions, personal experience); 2. En el baile (good recording, story, personal experience, local history, use of truje, Spanish, language, the single men would bet for a dance with the married men's wives, marriage, women); 3. El bastonero, man with the billy club, bouncer, authority (good recording, personal experience, local history, a fight would break out and the bastonero would end the dance, they only played violins and guitars at the dance); 4. Luces en la sala de baile (good recording, personal experience, local dances, there was no electricity in these times, just lanterns or faroles for light); 5. El valse chiquiao, chiquiado (good recording, personal experience, description of music or dance, tradition for weddings, marriage); 6. Dicho (good recording, saying, verde, green); 7. Conversacion (good recording, personal experience, wisdom, luminarias); 8. Oremos (good recording, local tradition, personal experience, versito, empanadas, dulces, food, cooking); 9. Los Manueles (good recording, honoring those named Manuel, Emmanuel, tradition New Years Day celebration, January 1); 10. Cancion, Ando en busca (good recording, song, singing, guitar); 11. Cancion, El lirio (good recording, song, singing, guitar); 12. Alabado, Jesucristo se ha perdido (good recording, song, religion, verses).
Margarito Espinosa, b. 1919 in San Francisco, aka El Rito, lives in La Valle, Colorado. Similar material on CD 287. Begins at 20:11 and ends at 39:01. 1. Conversacion (good recording, local history, personal experience); 2. Story, Un buen con un mal se paga (good recording, cuento, serpent, snake, coyote, wisdom); 3. El ojo del buey (good recording, rainbow, code switching, English, Bilingual, language, sign of rain, when the ojo del buey is North it is going to rain the next day and if it is to the South then it will be very dry the next day); 4. Las cabanuelas (good recording, story, in the winter the cabanuelas would come, a rainy time); 5. El rey y el anillo perdido (good recording, story, cuento, there was a king who had a very pretty princess and his servents were enfatuated with her, she lost her ring and they were looking for it, women).
Felipe Valdez, b. 1913, age 62 from San Luis, Colorado. Similar to CD 287. Begins at 39:12 and ends at 64:55. 1. Juegos (good recording, games, children, traditions, personal experience); 2. En el baile (good recording, story, personal experience, local history, use of truje, Spanish, language, the single men would bet for a dance with the married men's wives, marriage, women); 3. El bastonero, man with the billy club, bouncer, authority (good recording, personal experience, local history, a fight would break out and the bastonero would end the dance, they only played violins and guitars at the dance); 4. Luces en la sala de baile (good recording, personal experience, local dances, there was no electricity in these times, just lanterns or faroles for light); 5. El valse chiquiao, chiquiado (good recording, personal experience, description of music or dance, tradition for weddings, marriage); 6. Dicho (good recording, saying, verde, green); 7. Conversacion (good recording, personal experience, wisdom, luminarias); 8. Oremos (good recording, local tradition, personal experience, versito, empanadas, dulces, food, cooking); 9. Los Manueles (good recording, honoring those named Manuel, Emmanuel, tradition New Years Day celebration, January 1); 10. Cancion, Ando en busca (good recording, song, singing, guitar); 11. Cancion, El lirio (good recording, song, singing, guitar); 12. Alabado, Jesucristo se ha perdido (good recording, song, religion, verses).
Creator
- From the Collection: Cobos, Rubén (Person)
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
cswrref@unm.edu
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
cswrref@unm.edu