The premiere performance group captivated the audience during the first quarter of the TCU football game versus Houston.
Sangre Royal was a part of the entertainment lineup for Noche de las Ranas, the Hispanic Heritage-themed football game.
The ensemble of 19 students performed ‘Viva Mexico” in their traditional uniforms known as “traje de charros.”
Michelle Puebla, a sophomore violinist, was excited about the opportunity to share her culture in front of such a large audience.
“Although it was very nerve-racking performing at such a large-scale audience, it was definitely fun and exciting,” Puebla said. “After hearing all of the positive comments we got afterwards, I hold such great pride to represent TCU’s mariachi.”
The community reacted positively and many alumni reached out to share how they enjoyed seeing the students perform and represent the university.
The mission of TCU Mariachi Sangre Royal is to educate TCU and the surrounding communities about the art of mariachi, while expanding the member’s musical abilities through a culturally rich music genre, according to their webpage.
The ensemble’s name, which translates to royal blood, is a reference to the red eyes of the TCU horned frog.
The program started as a student group in 2019 and became an official ensemble and course in the School of Music under Fine Arts in the fall semester of 2022.
It is under the direction of the two instructors of the nationally acclaimed Mariachi Espuelas de Plata at North Side High School, Wendy Martinez and Ramon Nino.
Although the group has overall been very successful with performances alongside renowned Mariachi Sol de Mexico among others, Martinez highlighted some of the challenges that the group has faced with being an ethnic organization at a predominantly white institution.
“The ensemble was created as a safe learning space for students that identify with the Mexican culture but also for students that wanted to learn about the genre of Mariachi,” Martinez said, “The intent is not to be a Mariachi for hire per se but to offer performances as a way to represent the diversity on our campus while offering performance opportunities to our students.”
Hispanic/Latino students are the second largest ethnic group at TCU and are growing with only 16% of the student population in 2020 compared to 18% as of fall 2024, according to TCU Institutional Research.
Although Sangre Royal is a group that celebrates and highlights the culture of Mexico and its music, Martinez encourages participation from students of all backgrounds both ethnically and musically.
“Students that have experienced Mariachi believe they need to speak the language or be of Mexican descent, and that is not true at all,” Martinez said. “The language is music and we welcome all students from different backgrounds.”
Sangre Royal will perform their winter concert at 7:00 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 19th in Ed Landreth Hall and then at the College Band Directors National Association (CBDNA) in Spring 2025.
