That stereotypical "Mexican" song and how it came about

[00:00:00]Listen to this.

[00:00:02]>> [music] >> This is Jarabe Tapatío. Excuse my Spanish. Or more popularly known in the West as the Mexican Hat Dance Song. It's been used in countless shows and movies to represent Mexico. Like in >> Or is it? I guess I'll keep singing. My cell phone appears to be ringing.

[00:00:24]>> Can I just eat some of your Thank you.

[00:00:27]Thank you.

[00:00:28]>> But how did the song come to be used to mean Mexico? And what makes it sound Mexican? So the name of the song, Jarabe Tapatío, points to its interesting origins. So the last part, Tapatío, means someone or something that originates from Guadalajara, the capital city of Jalisco, Mexico. And the word jarabe means syrup in Spanish. If we think about syrup, it's a mixture of water and sugar. So the use of the word jarabe here refers to how the song's made using a mixture of different songs.

[00:00:55]So the song Jarabe Tapatío means songs from Tapatío or songs from Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico. Songs that have been around in that Mexican region for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. So any jarabe song is this essentially just a song that strings together a bunch of melodies from traditional Mexican folk songs. One research paper I found in Spanish exploring the origins of Jarabe Tapatío cited melodies from 11 folk songs being stitched together to create Jarabe Tapatío, like the song here.

[00:01:25]>> [music and singing] >> Sounds kind of similar to Jarabe Tapatío that we heard earlier now. But how did Jarabe Tapatío come to be known as the Mexican Hat Dance Song? So Jarabe Tapatío was not only a song, but also a courtship dance originating from Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico. It's a type of Mexican folk dance where pairs of men and women seemingly express their romantic affection towards each other.

[00:01:48]It originated in the 18th century from traditional Spanish couple dances like fandango and seguidillas that were way more uptight and rigid and done to rhythmic Spanish folk music with barely any touching, like But, it started to evolve in Mexico, a Spanish colony back then, mixing in more syncopated and sophisticated rhythm brought from Africa with slavery at the time, with way more physical touching between the couples done to Mexican folk songs for the overarching Jarabe dance form.

[00:02:22]So cool. Though, in the late 18th century, the Jarabe dance was banned by the Spanish Catholic Church, citing suggestive pelvic movements and flirtatious interactions between men and women as being morally offensive. But, it actually backfired, and Jarabe then became a secret mechanism for political protest with underground circles gathering, plotting government overthrow, and doing the dance in solidarity, making it a symbol of Mexican nationalism. But, a specific Jarabe dance and song, Jarabe Tapatío, Jarabe from Jalisco, Mexico, that I showed at the beginning of the video, became really popular globally in 1919 when the famous Russian ballerina, Anna Pavlova, visited Mexico and fell in love with specifically Jarabe Tapatío, treating it with as much respect as for classical European ballets. And with that, in 1920, the Mexican government, seeking to reunify the nation after a long bloody civil war post independence from Spain, declared Jarabe Tapatío the official dance of Mexico and shortened the accompanying song to a more accessible 2 minute 30 second version.

[00:03:32]Not just that, but in the '50s and '60s, with a popular Mexican folk ensemble, Ballet Folklórico de México's tour of America, especially their performance at the 1962 Seattle World's Fair, where they played Jarabe Tapatío, the song got cemented as the Mexican hat dance song in American pop culture, referring to the climax section of the dance when the guy throws his hat onto the floor and the couple dances around it.

[00:03:58]Now, enough history. What makes the Jarabe Tapatío sound Mexican musically?

[00:04:02]The biggest reason lies in the rhythm.

[00:04:04]It uses what's known as a triplet rhythm commonly found in Spanish and Latin music. It might be easier to just show what's going on versus making it more confusing with a long explanation. So, most modern Western songs more or less use a straight rhythm like Here are some examples.

[00:04:23]>> [music] >> But the triplet time rhythm in Spanish and Latin music feels more like which only a song sounds like Sounds much more Latin and Spanish feeling. And that sort of triplet rhythmic feel is also often accentuated during performances of the song using what's known as zapateado or essentially Mexican tap dancing where they do a syncopated rhythm with their feet to Jarabe like Has even more of a Mexican flavor now.

[00:05:00]And another really important element that makes the song sound iconically Mexican is the instrumentation with their use of what's known as the mariachi band, a traditional Mexican music ensemble featuring violins >> [music] >> playing the main cloak of the song and trumpets harmonizing and doubling on the hook for that big Mexican sound. Then a small five-string guitar known as the vihuela doing the background accompaniment. And finally, a large bass guitar known as the guitarrón >> [music] >> joining the guitar with a simple jumpy rhythm for the standard Mexican folk sound.

[00:05:36]So cool. A final element that makes the sound so festive, not necessarily only used in Mexican folk music, is the use of what's known as the major scale. If you watch my other videos, I mentioned this concept before, too, but basically a major scale is made up of seven notes.

[00:05:52]And to put it simply, if we play a melody using notes from the major scale, it's going to sound quite happy.

[00:06:03]Which is what the melody for the Mexican Hat Dance song does for the most part.

[00:06:08]Helps too that it's played with a trumpet, which is known to have a bright sound. Not to mention the jumpy rhythm, too, for a light-hearted, cheerful vibe.

[00:06:15]Now, important thing to clarify here is that in Western culture, when people say Mexican Hat Dance, they're not only referring to the song we've been discussing all along, Jarabe Tapatío.

[00:06:23]They also refer to another popular Mexican folk song, La Raspa, which you might recognize, too, that goes like La Raspa is a social folk dance from Eastern Mexico, versus Jarabe Tapatío we've been talking about, which again is a courtship dance. Unlike Jarabe Tapatío, La Raspa is not the official dance of Mexico, but it's kind of really known in the West as another prominent Mexican Hat Dance due to it being taught in American schools starting in the '40s and '50s with its relatively slower and simpler dance moves versus the Jarabe Tapatío's fast, intricate feet rhythm.

[00:07:03]>> [music] >> So, in Western countries like America, the Mexican Hat Dance actually refers to a made-up song that strings together both the simpler La Raspa followed by the more complex Jarabe Tapatío that goes like >> [music] >> And in America, it's also common for schools to add custom English lyrics on top, have the kids sing along, kind of acting as dance instructions.

[00:07:32]The lyrics just kind of further enhance the stereotype. And depending on the context the songs used in, the lyrics also change, like >> I dance. I dance. I dance. And that's the end of that. Or is it? I guess I'll keep singing.

[00:07:44]>> So fun. Highly recommend checking out the full Jarabe Tapatío song since it's made from stitching together over nine Mexican folk themes as discussed in the beginning. There's a lot of interesting twists and turns not commonly heard on the western Mexican hat dance song version that just kind of takes the first minute or so of the song and loops it for simplicity. It's so cool that actually seemingly short simple song has such a rich history and came to swing Mexico even more so than the Mexican national anthem itself, at least globally. Check out all the videos on my channel to learn more about hidden sounds, melodies, chords used in pop culture that once you become aware of, just cannot help but notice everywhere.

[00:08:20]And let me comment down below with your favorite musical themes or what videos you might want to see next. This video idea also came from several comments on my recent uploads, too, so really appreciate it. I'll see you guys in the next one. Thanks.

[00:08:32]>> [music]