Luisa Chavez, recorder, 1975
File — Box: 4, CD: 407
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
Felicitas Torres, born 1904, Truchas, NM. Notes in Cobos folder. Begins at 00:04 and ends at 43:41. 1. Proverbs, dichos (starts out as poor recording, better later on, examples, if not pardon enemies will have no friends, if pardon others God will be our friend; close the door, open the door to hell); 2. Cuento (poor recording, story about a mother whose son who was killed in a fight by his friend, boy did not run away, but waited for the police to come for him, the mother said she forgave him, gave him clean clothes of her son to wear, gave him her son's horse to ride away, not want him in prison, blessed him, after his burial the son appeared to the mother to thank him for forgiving his friend, saying he was in heaven and she would go there, too, then disappeared, ghost story, women, moral of story); 3. Chiste (poor recording, a European flew to Texas, met a Texan who said everything in Texas was big, episode of the two huge doors, bathroom and the swimming pool sized toilet bowl); 3. Cancion (good to fair recording, song about wanting to be an angel with harp in heaven, conversation about time when prayers and songs were allowed in public schools, education); 4. Chiste (good recording, sordos, family of four people with hearing impairments, they desired to communicate with hearing people, a relative in the mountain was branding his cattle, vacas come to visit, no hearing aids in past, how they each misinterpret what the relative said, language, humor, misunderstanding); 5. Cuento (good recording, story about her husband's experience when he was eight years old, Hispanic, he and his father Luciano, went to Santa Clara Pueblo, Native Americans, Indians, to sell grain and wood, invited to stay over night with Indian friend in his home, while friend went to an Indian secret ceremony, Luciano spied on them and Indians saw him, friend was angry with him and asked him to leave before they killed him, Indians were locked up in a house, kissing a goat, with a corn plant, he and his Dad escaped, never come back to pueblo again, conversation about other stories and about relatives); 6. Chiste (good recording, joke about a boy who tells a mother he cannot go to church or religious classes, does not want God to know him, wants to go to heaven and surprise God); 7. Chiste (good recording, Anglo American man and Mexican wife in airplane, heard that the Americans crashed in plane, Mexican wife not worried because didn't say Mexicans would crash); 8. Chiste (good recording, two compadres, two men discussing their unfaithful wives, women, sleeping with a perico and a piloto); 9. Chiste (good recording, two compadres discussing their wives, which one better); 10. Chiste (good recording, boy goes to war in Vietnam, has the hermanas, sisters, nuns praying for his safety, returns but they still are praying for him); 11. Story about a pig (good recording, cuento del cerdito cochinito, little pig woman, lived in mountains with little pig son, no schools, worried about son becoming fat, to be killed, wanted him to go to college, he does, becomes an advisor, he not see him for five years, she goes to see him, at first not recognize her, but later does, and provides well for her, moral of story); 12. History (good recording, story from about 1850, Felicitas talks about a man who rejected another woman, el hombre que voltiaba a una mujer, he had asked for her in marriage, she was about age fifteen, at same time as he asked for another girl, whom he did marry, the other rejected girl got angry, was known as a bruja, witch, and tried to hurt the man, invited him to come talk to her, le dio un carino y lo voltio, would not let him go, turn away, the man got a pistola, gun, and told her if she no lo voltio, he would kill her, he went back home to his wife and they lived contented for many years, he was named Andres, from Truchas, and lived to be seventy years old, and his wife was Vivianita, the angry woman was from Trampas, predorio, women, marriage); 13. Rhymes (good recording, verses, sayings, examples, el ciego, el sordo, use of the personal form, language, subistes al cielo, bajastes, vajastes, Spanish language); 14. Cancion, song, indita (good recording, that her grandmother used to sing to her, indita, duermete nino, holding child in arms, Native Americans, Indians, Navajos in the canyon coming for the muchachos, children, but child safe with the mother, heya, ahita, Indian rhythm, beat); 15. Rezos, prayers (good recording, bedtime blessing, camas, beds).
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