Nearly everyone has heard of the late Flaco Jimenez, because of his work with everyone from The Texas Tornados, The Mavericks, to even the Rolling Stones. But Flaco is just part of a rich musical tradition unique to Texas, following in the footsteps of his father, Don Santiago Jimenez, one of the true pioneers of Conjunto music.

For those unfamiliar, here’s a very quick description of Conjunto music. There’s so much more, so this is just to give you an idea.

Conjunto music is Texas “roots” music that dates back to the end of the 19^th century. Like Blues and Traditional Country, Conjunto tells the stories of the everyday lives of the working class. It is also dance music, characterized by a strong, unrelenting beat and bright accordion melodies, evidence of the fusion of German and Mexican immigrant cultures in south Texas at the beginning of the 20^th century. It was tremendously popular among working-class Mexican-American Texans beginning in the post-World War II era and remains a hidden gem in the history of American music.

For more context, listen to our exclusive interviews to hear the story of Conjunto, its counterpart Orquesta Tejana, and the next generation fusion known as Tejano. In our interviews, the stories are told by the musicians themselves, in their own words and voices in English, Spanish, or Spanglish, in conversation with our own Baldomero "El Parrandero" Cuellar. We add selections from their catalogs to give further context and help you get to know the artists and their music.

We also recommend that you go see a show. In Austin, a great place to start is our Rancho Alegre Conjunto Music Festival if it's coming up, or any of our other events like the Conjunto Dance Series for Seniors we present in the spring in conjunction with the Kyle Area Senior Zone.