Zaira Meneses and Juan Carlos Marin make up the new Boston-based band, El Huateque. The duo came together in 2018 after receiving a Boston Foundation grant. El Huateque play Son Jarocho music, a genre that hails from Veracruz, Mexico. Influenced mostly by African rhythms, Spanish techniques, sephardi melodies, and native Mexican music, Son Jarocho is largely improvisational in style. The resulting songs touch on stories from the port of Veracruz, with verses and phrases inspired by workers, fisherman, exotic birds, and other wild animal from the region. El Huateque’s music seeks to bring happiness and unite the community by encouraging audience members to dance and engage with the musicians.
El Huateque
