The beautiful blend of violin, trumpet, guitar, bass and flute sounds heard at many events on campus are coming from UT Arlington's very own Mariachi Los Jinetes. The student-led musical group is bringing pride and appreciation for Hispanic culture to UTA.
Los Jinetes started at UTA in 2021, when three students decided to bring mariachi music to campus. Christina Perez and Angel Hinojoza, along with alumnus Emmanuel Aguilera, gathered a group of just seven students and began their first year as a band.
"We were a very tiny organization when we first started, but now I am proud to say we have 17 members," said Perez, vice president of Los Jinetes and senior criminology major. "I think whenever we booked more gigs across campus, students got really excited to see UTA actually had a mariachi band. That really started the boom for us here."
Jacob Antunez, president of Los Jinetes and a junior marketing major, says much of their success is thanks to the support of the Hispanic-Serving Institutions Initiatives and the Center of Mexican American Studies. He notes that Los Jinetes went from performing only once or twice a semester to now having five to six gigs a month.
"We're more than just a club. I think now Los Jinetes has a strong pact—you know, we're friends who want to play mariachi music and bring some culture to UTA," said Antunez.
Los Jinetes has aspirations to become even more integrated within UTA by one day being part of the academic music program.
Perez says she sees Los Jinetes having a solid presence at UTA for years to come—she believes the group has the potential to grow into a bigger and better organization on campus.
"The group is just progressively always sounding better, and we're always getting such positive comments from anybody who hears us," Perez said.
Hinojoza, a senior visual design major, says connecting with their heritage is one of the most important reason Los Jinetes started up.
"It was really important to have more ways to showcase our culture," said Hinojoza. "Not only do we improve individually as players and as a group, but we also connect with our heritage and help others do the same."
"I think people being able to hear the music that our culture really prides itself in makes a huge difference here on campus," he continued. "We'll be playing outside for performances or during practice, and people will just stop by to listen and enjoy the music."
