How many times have I posted to their Facebook wall, asking them to play at home? How many times have I joked with Joel in the elevator, telling him we need him here?
Finally, last night, we were able to see Banda El Recodo for the third time in concert. They played up at the Mazatlán International Center, as part of events leading up to tonight’s Premios Oye, the Latin American Grammy awards. Below is one of the first songs they opened with, the Corrido de Mazatlán, of course.
Their music is so tight; sound was perfect. They all danced, kicked and blowed their horns for two hours non-stop. It was an evening full of joy and life, minus my querido Poncho, of course 😦 Click on any of the photos below to enlarge it, or to view a slideshow.
Every time we see this group, we are so impressed with the event itself. It is incredibly well orchestrated, on Vegas levels. Below I’ll post a slideshow of some of the backdrops, the staging. Banda El Recodo has to employ the best graphics and stage design professionals anywhere! At the start of the concert, a huge screen on the right side got loose and blew dangerously in the wind. It took less than two minutes for a stagehand to get it down and safely secured, and maybe two songs later, it was back up, securely fastened and in working order. Most impressive! Enjoy the slideshow below.
For those of you attending the ceremonies tonight, I can share with you a bit of what we learned last night. This applies to general admission people only (we were not VIPs). They will not let you take in any food or drink, or any sharp items that could hurt someone else. There are 3 or 4 areas where your tickets are checked and your bags/person searched, so no friends getting friends in. Tonight they are expecting 12,000 people, so get in early! Parking was of course crazy, especially when things finished, as you have all those people walking in front of cars trying to get out of the lots. Parking was on the street and in dirt lots like last year; the parking garage was not accessible. They even had the overhead walkway blocked off (you know I wanted to sit up there).
Tonight’s Premios Oye stars are scheduled to include: Alejandro Sanz, Emmanuel, Mijares, Sasha, Benny y Érick, Cristian Castro, Belinda, Alan Tatcher, Danna paola, Francisco Céspedes, Banda El Recodo, Banda Max, Carlos Gatica, Fey, 3Bal MTY, Chamín Correa, Monserrat Olivier, Jan, María Daniela y Sonido, M15, Fobia, Il Volo, Pedro Rivera, José Manuel Figueroa, Juan Solo, Kinky, María José. Miró, Grupo Pesado and Sofí Mayen. Carlos Gatica and Fey will be the masters of ceremony.
Red carpet starts at 7:00 pm, and the awards ceremony at 8:00. Special awards will go to four founders of Sinaloan banda music: Don Cruz Lizárraga, René Camacho, Germán Lizárraga and Salvador Lizárraga. Special tribute for their artistic career will be given to the singer Marco Antonio Muñiz and guitarist Chamín Correa. A special tribute will be offered to our dearly departed “Diva of the Banda”, Jenny Rivera.
I received an announcement today that urged people to dress comfortably, since most of us will be standing during the awards. I know lots of people will dress to the nines, and I’m looking forward to seeing that. But me, I’ll obey the advice, thank you very much!
¡VidaMaz! 