The Party of the Season runs July 24^th-28. The festival highlights include El Mariachi Tardeada, the Summer Pachanga, Chicano Music Hall of Fame and a fabulous live and online auction featuring everything you ever wanted but didn’t know you did. See lots of great pictures and coverage of Panchagas gone by on LatinLifeDenver.com  from 2018,  2017, more 2017,  2016

Performers include Mariachi Vasquez, Tomás Córdova N Just Friends, Mariachi Aguila Colorado and more.You will find incredible bargains with more “great art and cool stuff” than you have ever imagined at the Annual Auction. The Summer Pachanga invites us to “tirarchancla”, crowd the dance floor and do some boot scooting under the  cool evening skies.

All events are at the Su Teatro Cultural and Performing Arts Center 721 Santa Fe Drive. For tickets and more detailed information go to http://suteatro.org/cmf28/or call (303) 296-0219

Wednesday July 24^th-The XicanIndie presents Chicano Music on Film a FREE SCREENING of two historical films.Tex-Mex;Music of the Texas Mexican Borderlands (1982 Documentary) Greatssuch as acordionista Flaco Jimenez and Lydia Mendoza help trace the history of so called Borderlands music as it moves north and into the mainstream. Great performances and great history all rolled into onefilm. We will also travel closer to home, with the screening of Hispanic Musical Traditions of Southern Colorado-Sangre de Cristo National Heritage Area, a short documentary that parallels the experience in Colorado and New Mexico.

Legends Walk Among Us

Thursday July 25, 6:30-The Chicano Music Hall of Fame– The Chicano Music Festival Hall of Fame has become a center point of the Chicano Music Festival and Art Auction that is presently entering its 27^th year.  Over the years influential musicians such as Freddy Rodriguez, Daniel Valdez, El Mariachi Sangre de Mejico and others have been inducted. It was created to honor the tremendous legacy of the many musicians and supporters who have built a crossover between our Mexican and pre-Columbia ancestry and our present-day life in the U.S. The CMF Hall of Fame class of 2024 will beJulia Pacheco y la Familia Pacheco, Tomás Córdova, Rolando Garcia, Rudy Medina and Richard Olguin Sr.

Julia Pacheco y la Familia Pacheco

Julia Pacheco is a Pueblo, Colorado native who grew up in Eastwood Heights, affectionately and derisively known as Dog Patch. She is the sixth of 14 children born to Ben Pacheco and Frances Padilla who were musicians and singers from Garcia, Colorado and Amalia, New Mexico.  Julia quickly picked up the beautiful voice of her mother and guitar skills of her parents. Father Ben was very traditional and protected his 10 girls, however the 4 boys Jess, Moises, Victor and Rudy all were talented singers and musicians. Not to be denied Julia and sister Jenny taught themselves to play guitar, at 7 years Julia made her first guitar from wood and rubber bands to imitate her mom’s guitar. Julia and Jenny formed their band Sombra. Becoming one the first female fronted bands in the Pueblo area, quickly rising to be a community favorite. Julia was the Pueblo Music Award in 2000. 

Tomás Córdova

Tomás Córdova has been the lead singer forTejano style bands Poquito Mas and Tomás Córdova N Just Friends. He has carved a path for Tejano music to find a foothold in Northern Colorado. He has rich recording history with albums featuring original and covers with both bands.

Rolando R. Garcia has often stated“History doesn’t just repeat itself, it rhymes”. Rolando R. Garcia has exposed the KUVO 89.3 radio listening audience to the original1950sand early 1960’s1960s Rhythm and Blues genre through his program the R&B Jukebox. A one-of-a-kind program broadcast worldwide. Hehas maintained a passion for the genre born from Jazz, Rhythm and Blues and has found the crossover to explore and deepen the Chicano connection.  A listener quotes he “is not a “DJ”, he is an on-air host who curates a show.

Rudy Medina

Rudy Medina is a band leader, saxophonist, singer with an unforgettable voice capable of incredibly high registers.From his early days of performing in the1970s and 1980s and still today. Rudy has dedicated his time and talents to the highest quality of the sights and sounds of what has become the Chicano experience in Denver, CO. Growing up in the Westside near 1st and Fox, he graduated from West High School and performed in such bands as Nubia, Brick City and currently Counter Point. He also expresses his Chicano identity as avisual and tattoo artist.

Richard Olguin Sr.

Richard J. Olguin, Sr. began playing the drums as a 12-year-old boy from East Denver.   At 16, he and other musically inclined friends began rehearsing at his parent’s 3.2 bar called Benny’s Inn on 28^th& Larimer. Richard’s band “The Galaxies”, began playing teen clubs, skating rinks and community centers.  He played in a variety of venues including exotic clubs like 400 Club and Chez Paris.  Underage, he played the Wigwam club as a member of “The Gigolos”.  For the next 7 years they were the house band at the Capri Motor Hotel.  He was the drummer with the Bob Parker Swingtet, a 16-piece Orchestra that played clubs across the city and state.  Healso toured from New York to California with “The Riff Notes”.

As a member of the house trio at the famed Rossonian Club, he backed up Nancy Wilson and other visiting artists. The legendary James Brown made an after-hours stop at the club. Richard and Sammy Mayfield (another Denver musical legend) had the honor of backing up the famed Mr. Dynamite, which ended with Brown and Richard engaging in a late-night drumming duel.He has continued to work as a musician for over 50 years. As a member of the Musicians Union, Richard found work everywhere he could and played until about 10 years ago

Friday, Chicano Resistance Jam- 6:00 PM Bring your axe get in free, bring your talent and join in with some of the most improvisational musicians around. The Chicano Music Festival’s Resistance Jam allows musicians to pull up a chair and break out the jam. Utilizing a Circle Jam format musician will rotate with each being allowed to “choose and lead” a song.

Saturday., Summer Pachanga-6:00 to 11 PM Continuing the theme of Tex-Mex meets Manito, the New Mexico inspired Rudy Bustos Band plays alongside Colorado Tejano styled TomásCórdova N Just Friends. Featured in the evening is the annual auction with items gathered over the last six months. Included are Alaska Airline tickets, hotel and vacation stays and art that represents the work of some of the best Chicano artists in the Southwest. The auction will be live and virtual.

Sunday, Mariachi Tardeada 1:00-4:00 PM Mariachi Aguila opens the afternoon mariachi extravaganza, followed by the all-female Mariachi Alma de Folklore and closes with the renowned family Mariachi Vasquez added to the mix and concludes the Annual Auction.

All events are at the Su Teatro Cultural and Performing Arts Center 721 Santa Fe Drive. For tickets and more detailed information go to http://suteatro.org/cmf28/ or call (303) 296-0219.