From Central America to Austin

By Mariana Munoz
Sep. 5, 2014

Jeana & Juan Carlos Ureña and Guadalupe Urbina collaborate in a song
on stage at the 2014 Centroamericanto Fest.

AUSTIN, TEXAS— The lights are dim and all eyes are on the three figures behind the microphones at the Cactus Café. For one night, the spotlight is on Central American music, which with little music industry to speak of, has long awaited its opportunity to take the stage.

The Centroamericanto Fest exhibits artists from Central America and is in its fourth year in Austin. Mauricio Callejas, singer-songwriter from El Salvador and founder of the fest, aimed to form a virtual community around the concept of Central American music.

“When I moved to Austin 12 years ago, I decided to stay in contact with my musician friends in El Salvador. I started “Centroamericanto.net, an online radio show,” he said.  

What started as an online opportunity for Central American artists to gain exposure eventually evolved into a festival. His first attempt at organizing a festival was in 2005 while he was visiting family in El Salvador.

“Performers exchanged ideas and gave each other advice; it was a very enriching opportunity. We wanted to repeat the experience but this time, in Austin,” Callejas said.

The lack of infrastructure for a music industry in Central America has been a great obstacle for musicians who suffer from the lack of mainstream exposure.

In Central American countries, royalties are handled by a single organization that was founded about a century ago and hasn’t been able to keep up with the new technologies.

“There are some alternative radios and online radios that are doing a great job in promoting the music, but if you listen to mainstream radio, there’s almost zero music playing from local artists.”

Teresa Iglesias de Ramos, who is a vocalist for the band formed by Mauricio Callejas, describes the difference Centroamericanto Fest has made in the lives of struggling musicians in terms of making the giving them the opportunity to expose their music.

“Centroamericanto Fest is a door for them to come and share their culture, music, rhythms.” It has taken the first step, beginning with online exposure and podcasts. “All of this is done free of charge to the artist,” she said.

Financial limitations have been a significant obstacle for Central American musicians. Roselia Isabel Labbé, Ramos’ sister, describes the monetary struggle faced in these countries where the income is very low.

“People make just enough money to live, but they don’t have extra money to make investments and they save for months just to buy an instrument,” she said.

While the purpose of many music festivals is at least, in part, to make profit, Callejas’ event is meant to support the unknown artists.

“The vision here is to create a festival that invites the unknown quality and cultural richness that is struggling to find that venue and provide that venue so that their voices can be heard,” Callejas said.

The festival has gone beyond being just another music celebration and has transcended into vocalizing messages of peace—musicians used the stage to speak out about the current situation in the world.

Esteban Alvarez, a pianist originally from Costa Rica, believes that Costa Rica is one of the few countries in the world that has demonstrated that peace is possible and that if all countries in the world acted that way, we would not be where we are right now.

“Peace has its own rules—we cannot achieve peace through violence. On behalf my country, on behalf of Central America, our music is our weapon to say that peace is achievable,” Alvarez said.

Callejas plans on organizing Centroamericanto Fest every year.

 Mauricio Callejas, founder of Centroamericanto Fest.

“We are always talking about the next edition. We’re already planning next year’s fest. I know there is a lot of Central American immigrants in the U.S. and we just need to find them and organize them,” Callejas added.