San Diego Mariachi Students Win First Place in State Competition

The youth mariachi ensemble Mariachi Juvenil — which includes students from Logan Memorial, San Ysidro High School, Mission Bay High, and Our Lady’s School, plus two from Southwestern College and one from SDSU — won first place at the California State Fair Youth Mariachi Competition in Sacramento. Wendy Charines from San Ysidro High helped coach the singers.

The competition, held on July 21, brought 10 of the best student mariachi ensembles from around the state to compete in the capital. Mariachi Juvenil beat out two other finalists, from San Joaquin and Orange County, for the top prize of $5,000.

Mariachi Juvenil was established in 2001 by Serafin Paredes, a music educator who has been the director of the La Jolla Music Society (LJMS) Community Music Center for 25 years.

LJMS has operated the award-winning afterschool music program, the Community Music Center (CMC), for over 25 years. Based in Logan Heights at the Logan Memorial Educational Campus, the CMC is designed to increase students’ self-confidence and resilience, while providing a safe and equitable environment for studying and creating music. 

Research suggests music students outperform their non-music peers, and by offering free instruments and bilingual instruction, the CMC allows students who may not normally be able to participate in music programs to gain that advantage. 

The CMC provides free instruments and free group lessons three days a week in seven different instrument families for students in grades 4–12. Students also participate in two recitals each year, which builds self-confidence and pride. In addition to providing free instruments and books for classroom use and at-home practice, LJMS awards students who meet attendance and musical proficiency requirements for two years with a new instrument they can keep for life. With the support of a dedicated and qualified nine-member teaching staff, students’ lives are changed forever, building critical learning and life skills through music-making.