Guadalajara, capital of Jalisco State in west-central Mexico, stands on a high plateau about 240 kilometres (150 miles) from the Pacific Ocean. Sea breezes give the city a spring-like semitropical climate. In recent decades, Guadalajara has grown, modernized, and industrialized. Yet it preserves much of its traditional beauty—with parks, fountains, monuments, and flower-lined boulevards—and retains qualities that once made it Mexico’s “biggest small town”.

Son is a general term for a rural Mexican dance music characterized by triple time and a rhyming refrain. This example from the Jalisco region features a typical mariachi ensemble: violins, guitars, trumpets, and a harp. Trumpets, which were added in the 1930s, contributed to the music’s popularity outside of Mexico. The Jalisco region is highly regarded for the complexity of its son melodies, because complexity has been lost in many urban centres. Song lyrics usually concern love and romance.