Betty Salazar, Celia Jordan, Irene Gabaldon, Tomas Jesson, Ruben Cobos, Manuel Sandoval, recorders
File — Box: 4, CD: 331B
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
- 1944-1974
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 II of IIII. Jesson, 1971: Benito Vazquez, age 25, Las Cruces, NM. Similar to CD 61. Begins at 00:07 and ends at 25:39. 1. Chiste, El coyote y el conejo (fair to poor recording, the coyote wanted to catch the rabbit and eat him but could not because the rabbit was much faster); 2. Story, Los astronautas mexicanos (fair recording, language deficiency, speaks English, codeswitching, Bilingual, three Mexican astronauts consider why the United States had made it to the moon but the Mexicans had not, they made a toast and drank); 3. Story, Los politicos (fair recording, Japan, China, Germany, America, Mexico, Mexican, American, Chinese, German, Japanese, a man from each country got on a plane, they agreed to jump at same time and die for their countries, feo, chiste, joke, funny); 4. Dicho, Nursery rhyme (fair recording, Sana sana, cola de lana, etc., health, sickness); 5. Refranes (fair recordings, verses, Spanish and Mexican, Mexico, Spain, rhyming, wisdom, advice, do not leave for tomorrow what you can do today); 6. El borrachito y el cura (fair recording, anecdote, drunkard and the priest, joke, chiste, funny, humor); 7. Cuento moral (fair recording, El viento, el agua, y la verguenza, shame, power to speak to the wind, water and to embarrassment); 8. Personal experience, Cuento (fair recording, speaker's father told him this story about his own life, father's parents passed away and he had to go live with his auntie but she was a very bad person and she treated him very badly. One day she sent him to get firewood, he found a man singing a slow song); 9. Un fantasma (fair recording, story, personal experience, legend, ghost story, group of men got scared); 10. La Llorona (fair recording, story, the speaker's uncle told him this story, he had a personal experience with La Llorona. One night his uncle went out drinking, had to urinate and did so by the acequia close to his home. He heard a woman scream and could hear hard breathing from a woman, he became terrified and realized it was La Llorona and ran home) 11. Story, Cuento de tesoro enterrado (fair recording, that his aunt told him, personal experience, a crazy horse and sounds of chains chasing his aunt, they couldn't see anything but they could hear the chains, there was a legend that some bandits had buried treasure and that the horse would protect it); 13. Story, Cuento del diablo (poor recording, terror, devil).
General
Jesson, 1971: Daniel Lopez, age 24, Puerto de Luna, NM. Similar to CD 61. Begins at 25:40 and ends at 34:41. 1. Bertoldo y el rey (poor recording, short story, the king was going to hang Bertoldo for commiting a wrong against him, Bertoldo begged him to let him pick the tree to hang him from, he picked the shortest tree he could, it had to grow big before they could hang him on it); 2. Short story, Bertoldo y el rey (poor recording, the king and Bertoldo talk about women, las mujeres, they are not trustworthy said Bertoldo, the king said that his wife was trustworthy and could keeep secrets, Bertoldo said he would show the king that his wife was the same as all women); 3. Story, Juan Charales y la vieja (poor recording, short story, women, about Juan Charles and a woman, profanity); 4. Don Cacahuate (fair to poor recording, short story, profanity, woman); 5. Story, Un hombre rico y el padre (fair recording, a man died and he had many sins so the family paid the priest to hold a mass for him, to get him from purgatory to heaven, priest asked for more and endless masses, son said that one was enough for his father); 6. Personal experience, local history, (fair recording, story, about an old man, Martin, who would steal food from all of the neighbor's gardens); 7. Chiste, Entre el clavel y la rosa (fair recording, story about a woman who was crippled, she would get very angry when people talked about her disability, chiste, two friends bet that one of them will be able to get away with calling her coja, Usted mi senora escoja, es coja, play on words, language).
General
Cobos, 1971" Anonymous, man. Begins at 39:18 and ends at 45:53. 1. Song (fair recording, Jesus Christ, religious song).
General
Cobos, 1971: Musical group, Luis Lopez, Mr. Garcia, anonymous man, nstrumental. Begins at 45:55 and ends at 54:31. 1. Instrumental (fair recording, violin); 2. Song, Baile de entriega (fair recording, instrumental, wedding song, traditional, violin, no lyrics); 3. Song (fair recording, instrumental); 4. Balde Mexicano (fair recording, song, instrumental, violin, guitar, drums); 5. Song, El tallan (fair recording, song, instrumental, about a man who came from Italy, no lyrics).
General
Cobos, 1971: Anonymous Chorus. Begins at 54:38 and ends at 64:29. Singing (fair to poor recording, chorus).
General
Anonymous. Begins at 00:02 and 1:33. Conversation (poor recording).
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