Music of Tucson, Arizona

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Tucson, Arizona has a strong, growing independent music culture that focuses on locally grown and locally derived musical genres. The city is home to musical organizations that seek to nurture artists from the local music scene as well as introduce the community to other musical styles from beyond Southern Arizona.

Contents

Regional musical genres

Tucson is home to both home-grown and imported musical styles and influences, including:

Notable musical organizations

Tucson Area Music Awards (TAMMIES)

The annual public-choice music awards – nicknamed the TAMMIES [4] – seeks to recognize local talent by highlighting Tucson's best musical performers. [5] The awards are held in the fall and are sponsored by Tucson Weekly magazine.

Recurring musical festivals and fairs

Notable musicians, bands, and groups

The following Tucson-based artists have been featured in a variety of local and national media.

Notable venues

Related Research Articles

Tucson, Arizona City in Arizona, United States

Tucson is a city in and the county seat of Pima County, Arizona, United States, and is home to the University of Arizona. It is the second largest city in Arizona, with a population of 542,629 in the 2020 United States Census, while the population of the entire Tucson metropolitan statistical area (MSA) is 1,043,433. The Tucson MSA forms part of the larger Tucson-Nogales combined statistical area (CSA). Tucson is the second most-populated city in Arizona behind Phoenix, both of which anchor the Arizona Sun Corridor. The city is 108 miles (174 km) southeast of Phoenix and 60 mi (97 km) north of the U.S.–Mexico border. Tucson is the 33rd largest city and the 58th largest metropolitan area in the United States (2014).

Southwestern United States Geographical region of the United States

The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural region of the United States that generally includes Arizona, New Mexico, and adjacent portions of California, Colorado, Nevada, Oklahoma, Texas, and Utah. The largest cities by metropolitan area are Phoenix, Las Vegas, El Paso, Albuquerque, and Tucson. Prior to 1848, in the historical region of Santa Fe de Nuevo México as well as parts of Alta California and Coahuila y Tejas, settlement was almost non-existent outside of Nuevo México's Pueblos and Spanish or Mexican municipalities. Much of the area had been a part of New Spain and Mexico until the United States acquired the area through the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo in 1848 and the smaller Gadsden Purchase in 1854.

The music of Arizona began with Indigenous music of North America made by Indigenous peoples of Arizona. In the 20th century, Mexican immigrants popularized Banda, corridos, mariachi and conjunto. Other major influences come from styles popular throughout the rest of the United States.

Mariachi Folk music from Mexico

Mariachi is a genre of regional Mexican music that dates back to at least the 18th century, evolving over time in the countryside of various regions of western Mexico. The usual mariachi group today consists of as many as eight violins, two trumpets and at least one guitar, including a high-pitched vihuela and an acoustic bass guitar called a guitarrón, and all players taking turns singing lead and doing backup vocals.

Palm Desert Scene Music culture in Southern California often described as "desert rock".

The Palm Desert Scene is a group of related bands and musicians from Palm Desert, California. Their hard rock sound – sometimes described as desert rock – contains elements of heavy metal, psychedelia, blues, punk, alternative, grunge, and other genres. It often features distinctive repetitive drum beats, a propensity for free-form jamming, and "trance-like" or "sludgy" grooves. The involved musicians often play in multiple bands simultaneously, and there is a high rate of collaboration between bands. The Palm Desert Scene is also notable for fostering stoner rock pioneers Kyuss. The term "stoner rock" is sometimes used interchangeably with the term "desert rock". However, not all Palm Desert scene bands are "stoner rock" and not all stoner rock bands sound exactly like those in Palm Desert. Palm Desert has been named by Blender magazine as "one of the top seven rock n' roll cities in America".

Calexico (band) American rock band

Calexico is a Tucson, Arizona-based Americana, Tex-Mex, indie rock band. The band's two main members, Joey Burns and John Convertino, first played together in Los Angeles as part of the group Giant Sand. They have recorded a number of albums on Quarterstick Records, while their 2005 EP In the Reins, recorded with Iron & Wine, reached the Billboard 200 album charts. Their musical style is influenced by traditional Latin sounds of mariachi, conjunto, cumbia, and tejano mixed with country, jazz, and post-rock.

New Mexico is a state of the Southwest United States. The state has music traditions dating back to the ancient Anasazi and Pueblo people, Navajo, Apache, and the Spanish Santa Fe de Nuevo México; these old traditions are found in both their original folk forms and as a modern folk genre known as New Mexico music.

Naked Prey was an American rock band from Tucson, Arizona. United States, which was formed in 1982 by the former Green on Red drummer Van Christian and David Seeger, who had been in the original line-up of the Giant Sandworms as well as The Pedestrians, a band credited with having performed the first punk rock show in Tucson. Other artists who recorded or performed with the band included members of Green on Red and the Sand Rubies, John Convertino and Joey Burns, later of Calexico, Chuck Prophet, Rainer Ptacek and longtime drummer Tommy Larkins, who currently plays with Jonathan Richman, famously appearing with him as half of the two-man Greek chorus in There's Something About Mary. Christian himself also performed with The Band of Blacky Ranchette and was in the original lineup of The Friends of Dean Martinez.

Roger Clyne American singer

Roger Meade Clyne is the lead singer, primary songwriter, and rhythm guitar player for the American rock band Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers. His previous bands include The Refreshments and the Mortals.

The Tucson Symphony Orchestra, or TSO, is the primary professional orchestra of Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1928, when the season consisted of just two concerts, the TSO is the oldest continuously running performing arts organization in the Southwest. The TSO's season now runs from September to May and consists of over 60 concerts, including a Classics Series of eight programs, a Pops Series of four programs, a Masterworks series of five chamber orchestra programs, a number of one-night only specials, and run-out concerts to surrounding areas, such as Oro Valley, Green Valley, Bisbee, Safford, Thatcher, and Nogales. The TSO also provides educational programming that reaches over 40,000 school children each season. Within the TSO are a number of standing chamber ensembles, including a string quartet, string quintet, piano trio, harp trio, brass quintet, and woodwind quintet. These ensembles help provide educational programming through school visits, perform recitals annually, and also perform at private and community events.

Amparanoia

Amparanoia is the pseudonym of Spanish singer/guitarist Amparo Sánchez combining her first name with the word 'paranoia'. It was also the name of the band she fronted from 1996 to 2006. Debut album, El Poder de Machín, has been described as being "bright, exuberant... with a heavy Latin influence", whereas the 2002-released Somos Viento has been called "a more acoustic blend of Cuban and reggae forms".

Travis Edmonson was an American folk singer, who performed both as a soloist and in the duo Bud & Travis.

Brad Lancaster

Brad Stewart Lancaster is an expert in the field of rainwater harvesting and water management. He is also a permaculture teacher, designer, consultant and co-founder of Desert Harvesters, a non-profit organization.

Tucson Arizona Boys Chorus Choir

The Tucson Arizona Boys Chorus is a boys' choir based in Tucson, Arizona, which performs locally, nationally, and internationally. Founded in 1939 and incorporated as a non-profit educational organization in 1945, its mission is to facilitate music education and social development among Tucson youth ages 6 to 21. The chorus, presently numbering 150 members, sends out touring companies of 30 boys each who sing folk songs, Western ballads, Mexican songs, Christmas carols, spirituals, pop music, classical music, Broadway show tunes, and American patriotic songs. The boys also perform rope tricks. The chorus has performed in major venues around the world as well as on television and radio, and in collaboration with symphony orchestras and arts organizations. It has released albums both under its own label, TABC Records, and with Capitol Records, United Artists, and C.P. MacGregor.

Marianne Dissard is a singer, lyricist and author, and filmmaker who lived in the United States from 1985 to 2013, including Tucson, Arizona from 1994 to 2013. "A central figure in Tucson's desert music community" with her unique hybrid of French Chanson and Americana, she is noted as a "charismatic performer" and for the quality of her lyrics.

J. Gregory Miller is an American horn player, composer and music arranger.

Ryanhood Independent folk rock band

Ryanhood is a two-man independent folk rock band formed in Boston, Massachusetts and currently based in Tucson, Arizona. They were established in 2003 by Cameron Hood and Ryan Green, the band's moniker itself being a portmanteau of its members' own names. Though they are primarily known for their acoustic blend of folk, rock, and pop influences, Ryanhood has also incorporated electric instrumentation on albums like After Night Came Sun and The World Awaits.

Orkesta Mendoza is a Latin music band from Tucson, Arizona. It was founded by singer and guitarist Sergio Mendoza in 2009. Through the use of Latin percussion, accordion, brass, and steel guitars, the band's style, dubbed "indie mambo", is a combination of ranchera, cumbia, psychedelic and indie rock.

The DUSK Music Festival (DUSK) is an annual two-day music festival held at Jácome Plaza, in Tucson, Arizona in early November. Founded by John Rallis, Page Repp and Pete Turner in 2016, DUSK has three stages where musical artists from genres including rock, indie, country, EDM and hip hop perform for fans. The performances typically begin around 12:00 PM and continue until 11:00 PM on Saturday, and Sunday during the festival with various stages spread out in the urban plaza setting. Approximately 15,000 people attend the festival each year.


Brian Lopez in Tucson, Arizona is a Mexican-American songwriter, singer, and recording artist from Southern Arizona. His music is influenced by grunge rock, cross-border musical traditions and has come to epitomize the sound of the 21st-century American Southwest. Lopez is a significant figure in the development of the Southwest psychedelic rock movement, established a number of noted bands including Mostly Bears and Xixa, and played in the internationally recognized bands Calexico and Giant Sand. His successful and critically acclaimed solo albums include “Ultra,” “Static Noise,” and “Prelude.”

References

  1. Sturman, Dr. Janet, "World of Music and Dance in Tucson, Arizona", content by University of Arizona students enrolled in Music 334
  2. Cowboy music fest debuts here, Arizona Daily Star, Caliente section, Thursday, May 26, 2011. Retrieved: September 5, 2011.
  3. Armstrong, Gene, "A Tucson Music Hub ", Tucson Weekly, September 1, 2011.
  4. Seigel, Stephen, Soundbites, Tucson Weekly, August 25, 2011.
  5. McLemore, Mark, "And The Winner Is...", Arizona Public Media, Arts and Life, August 29, 2011.
  6. Raven, Daniel, "Industrial Strength: Alter Der Ruine grins through the goth", Phoenix New Times, Thursday, Nov 8 2007.
  7. Soundbites, Tucson Weekly, Aug 10, 2011.
  8. "The Black Sun Ensemble (Camera Obscura Records)", Phoenix New Times, May 17, 2001
  9. Smith, Dylan, "Calexico on Jimmy Kimmel Live", Tucson Sentinel, Posted May 6, 2011.
  10. 2009 "Tucson Music Hall of Fame: Calexico" Archived 2009-09-16 at the Wayback Machine , Tammies: Tucson's Music Site, Posted by Tucson Area Music Awards on September 7, 2009.
  11. Newman, Paige, One more gift from two great bands, MSNBC.com, Updated 10/13/2005.
  12. Tucson: Southern Arizona's Music Sanctuary, Metropolitan Tucson Convention & Visitors Bureau, News Release, December 16, 2010.
  13. "Messing With Texas: Alt.Latino's Favorite Music From SXSW 2014". NPR.org. 22 March 2014. Retrieved 28 November 2014.
  14. "'World Music' With A Kick". NPR.org. 20 November 2014. Retrieved 28 November 2014.
  15. "Orkesta Mendoza - virtualWOMEX". womex.com. 2014. Retrieved 28 November 2014.