Austin, Texas - After two full years off due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Austin-based nonprofit organization Ranch Alegre announced its return to live music events with the 2022 Rancho Alegre Conjunto Music Festival, scheduled for Friday April 29 through Sunday May 1. The event is free admission and all ages are welcome.
Conjunto music legend Alfredo De La Rosa passed away on April 8, 2022. A member of one of the most storied and influential musical family dynasties in Texas music, Alfredo spent many years playing with brothers Tony and Adan and sister Eva as well as with his own Conjunto.
We are so excited and honored to release this album on our label, Rancho Alegre Records, and we can’t wait for you to hear it. This is a special one for the folks who love old-style Conjunto from the 1940s and the beautiful simplicity of acordeón y bajo sexto duo. No drums. No bajo eléctrico. Just a squeezebox played by one of the masters who still uses both sets of buttons and perfectly complimented by skillful, soulful bajista JJ Barrera.
We are so excited to announce that Rancho Alegre will be presenting a short showcase of Tejano and Conjunto music during Folk Unlocked, this year's virtual conference presented by Folk Alliance International! Many thanks to the Texas Music Office for the invitation!
We interviewed Austin Conjunto legend Chencho Flores back in August 2017. At the time, Chencho was 88 years old and had just started his own conjunto earlier that year after a long tenure with Conjunto Los Pinkys.
The entertainment world has been abuzz for months, anxiously awaiting the December 4th debut of Selena: The Series, the new Netflix Original series that takes a deeper dive into the early years of Selena y Los Dinos and the dynamics of the Quintanilla family during the band’s rise to stardom. The series is currently #1 on the streaming provider, with millions of viewers tuning in over the past three days.
In this interview from 2013, Rancho Alegre's Baldomero Cuellar sat down with a true Conjunto legend, Jose "Pico" Ramirez. Best known as one of the original members of Ruben Naranjo y Los Gamblers from Alice, Texas, Pico supplied strong but intricate bajo sexto to Naranjo's simple, yet elegant accordion, as well as second voice harmonies that were second to none. This sound made the group famous and their personal interactions with fans made them beloved.
In this interview, recorded in August 2017, Baldomero Cuellar talks with Vicente "Chente" Alonzo, an Austin conjunto music legend with nearly 60 years in the business. While he has played bajo sexto with several different bands, he is most recognizable as the longtime second voice and bajista for El Montopolis Kid Johnny Degollado, with whom he began playing in 1957. Most recently, he was with Chencho Flores y Su Conjunto.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 16, 2020
Media Contact: Piper LeMoine
Media Contact Phone: 512-609-9208
Media Contact Email: info@ranchoalegre.org
It's that time again - this is our 2nd year in this incredible day of philanthropy in Austin and we're really looking forward to participating again this year! Last year was amazing - let's make it even better! Early gifts are accepted and encouraged - there are bonuses for total number of donations, total number of dollars and more.
Give online here: https://www.amplifyatx.org/organizations/ranchoalegre
