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Betty Salazar, Celia Jordan, Irene Gabaldon, Tomas Jesson, Ruben Cobos, Manuel Sandoval, recorders, 1971

 File — Box: 4, CD: 331A

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.

Dates

  • 1971

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

CD I of IIII. Salazar, 1971: Arthur Cordova, age 21, Albuquerque, NM. Similar to CD 60. Begins at 00:25 and ends at 4:29. 1. El toro y el coyote (fair recording, story, the coyote hunted the bull because he was hungry, one day a different coyote asked him why he was following the bull and he explained the bull had bags of food attached to him and he wanted them to fall down so he could eat, bolas, testicles); 2. Story, Pancho Villa (fair recording, anecdote, Pancho Villa saw a poor man and forced him to eat horse shit, Pancho Villa laughed so hard that he dropped the gun and the poor man picked it up and made Pancho do the same); 3. Dichos (fair recording, sayings, chistes, humor); 4. Don Cacahuate (fair recording, don Cachuate asked a family to spend the night in their home and they allowed him to sleep in the room with their daughter, he stole from her, play on words, language).

General

Salazar, 1971: Odilia Lovato, age 48, Cimarron, NM. Begins at 4:25 and ends at 23:59. Similar to CD 60. 1. Refranes (fair recording, five verses, sayings, advise, better now than later, not everything that glitters is gold); 2. Cuento (fair to poor recording, story, there was a man on a horse); 3. Cuento, San Pedro (fair recording, story, the heaven open up and doves fly, religious influence, speaks English, Spanish, language, Bilingual, says selfishness in English); 4. Tesoros, brujas (fair recording, story, women, witches, hidden treasure, a man studied magic, he knew where the treasure of Pancho Villa was hidden, speaker's mother was muted due to a spell that the witches had placed on her, personal experiences with witch and magic).

General

Salazar, 1971: John Salazar, age 50, Raton, NM. Similar to CD 60. Begins at 24:01 and ends at 32:17. Cuentos (fair to poor recording, stories, a boy tells his father that he wants to be a ladron, a burglar, and the Dad takes him to a man who trains him to be a good burglar, the boy steals eggs; don Cacahuate, with a very jealous wife and she wanted to accompany him to go work in the U.S.).

General

Salazar, 1971: Ted Ortiz, age 26, Raton, NM. Similar to CD 60. Begins at 32:20 Ends at 33:15. Cuento, hunting deer (fair recording, story, by Raton, New Mexico, they arrived at a lake and saw eleven deer drinking but they could only kill one deer each, matando muchos venados con un solo tiro).

General

Sandoval, 1971: Anonymous. Similar to CD 60. Begins at 33:18 and ends at 62:00. Personal experiences, becoming a Penitente brother (poor recording, background on Penitentes).

General

Cobos, 1971. Chicano Program, 1971. Similar to CD 59. Part I, Mr. Antonio Mondragon, of Albuquerque and Meliton Trujillo of Taos, NM. Performer: Cleofas Vigil, San Cristobal, NM. 1. Alabado ; 2. Valse de entriega de novios (good recording, tradition, wedding, ); 3. Sobre las olas (good recording); 4. Las cuadrillas, (good recording, partial); 5. Cutilio Talian.

General

Cobos, 1971: Velorio a la Santa Cruz, Escondida, Socorro, NM, May 3, 1971. Wake, funeral, death, muerte.

General

Cobos, 1971: Varias alabanzas, Dios te salve, Luz hermosa, Bendito, etc.

General

Cobos, 1971: Chicano Program, 1971, Part II. Similar to CD 59. La palma; La golondrina; En la cima de una montana; Cancion de cuna.

General

Cobos, 1971: Cleofas Vigil or influenced by him. Similar to CD 59. 1. Cuando el tiempo se me llegue, muerte, death; 2. Indita de Manuel Maes, cibolero; 3. Mi partida; 4. Ay, Juana, women; 5. Alabado.

General

Jordan, 1971: Domitilia Vialpando, age 85, Albuquerque, NM. Similar to CD 59. Rezos, prayers.

General

Gabaldon, 1971: Natividad Garcia, age 83, Old Town Albuquerque, NM. Viejo Vilmas y otros poetas, other stories. Similar to CD 59.

Creator

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