Difficulty: Beginner
Mexico
Our good friends from México City are willing to talk about everything: good, bad or ugly. Here we have their take on kidnapping, one of the growing fears of Mexicans.
Difficulty: Beginner
Mexico
Antonio Vargas is a versatile Mexican artist living in Los Cabos. He has done cartoons, commercial drawings, paintings and a lot of sculptures. In this episode Antonio is going to show us some of his cartoons containing the adventures of Surfo.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Mexico
Our surf-loving friend Antonio Vargas is a talented illustrator with a varied career. Here we see some of his more commercial work and some of what he does for fun—like an illustrated magazine and notebook doodles.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Mexico
You may know the baraja española, the Spanish deck of cards, with its classic renderings of kings and knights in four suits. Our illustrator friend Antonio Vargas created a uniquely Mexican baraja with native imagery drawing from the pre-Columbian Aztec, Olmec, Toltec and Mayan cultures.
Difficulty: Beginner
Mexico
Arriving in December of ‘71, a young Arturo Vega decides that it is New York where he is going to clavar, or stay put. His journey began in Mexico, where he began his artistic life as an actor and participant in experimental theater or “happenings”—an art form which was not well received by the powers that be in that country.
Difficulty: Beginner
Mexico
A little research tells us that the musical comedy Arturo did with Héctor Suárez at the Teatro de los Insurgentes was Sigue tu onda (Follow Your Wave), a Spanish language adaptation of a Broadway show known to American theater-goers as Your Own Thing. Soon Arturo himself would be heading to New York on a tip from Paul McCartney’s agent that he could land a spot in Hair...
Difficulty: Beginner
Mexico
Some people could see Arturo Vega as just a guy who happened to design the Ramones logo, but the truth is that he had to get his hands dirty with hard work, and that meant loading tons of equipment, manning the lights and basically doing whatever was needed by the band. The reward was great: thousands, maybe millions, wearing an image that he created.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Spain
Many Americans know that Barcelona is one of the most fun towns in Spain. This is of course no secret to Spaniards themselves. Arume tells us why she likes to holiday in Barcelona whenever she gets the chance.
Difficulty: Adv-Intermediate
Spain
Arume studies filmmaking in her native Spain. She talks about what life is like for her now that she has graduated from high school and is out on her own.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Spain
Malaga gets over 300 days of sunshine every year, so it’s no surprise that Arume has chosen it for her vacation. She’s been studying hard and learning a lot over the past year, and luckily she’s agreed to fill us in!
Difficulty: Intermediate
Spain
Fuengirola, is an extremely popular seaside destination on the Costa Del Sol, in the province of Málaga. Not only are there five miles of sandy beaches, bars and hotels, but also you can find the remains of a genuine Roman Villa and a medieval Moorish fortress. Arume dropped in before summer itself became history.
Difficulty: Adv-Intermediate
Puerto Rico
Nelly Ocacia and Benjamín Moldonado are both 19-year-old university students, and enjoy dancing with the Ballet Folklórico Guamanique when not studying. We caught up with them at the airport in San Juan, where they were welcoming new arrivals and seeing off departing passengers, much to the delight of travelers.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Argentina
Bajofondo is the fusion of different musicians from the Río de la Plata area, Uruguayans and Argentineans. In 2003, they won the Latin Grammy for “Best Pop Instrumental Album” for their new genre: Electronic Tango. We interviewed Luciano Supervielle and Martín Ferres after a show in Germany about their most recent European tour.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Argentina
Bajofondo is, according to the group, a “collective of composers, singers and artists.” They started out as the Bajofondo Tango Club with a strong tango influence, but have since broadened their sound. Here they talk about the collective and begin a discussion of their sound.
Difficulty: Adv-Intermediate
Mexico
Why is it that some musicians have such synergy together? Belanova describes the fusión that is created when each distinct musical personality comes together, and how this unique “fusion” has brought them from after-class practice to stadium-filled tours.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Mexico
Edgar Huerta, keyboardist of Belanova, refers to Joselo of Cafe Tacuba as un cuate. The word comes from the indigenous Nahuatl word coatl, which means “twin.” But Joselo is not Edgar’s gemelo, cuate is known by all Mexicans to refer to a “good buddy,” a “dear friend.”
Difficulty: Adv-Intermediate
Mexico
Belanova is appreciative and proud that so many of Latin America’s and Mexico’s biggest stars, such Joselo and Coti saw fit to take the time to join them on their tour. The band is humble, but not without ambition; they have set their sites beyond the habla hispana, seeing potential fans in Australia, Italy and even Japan.
Difficulty: Intermediate
Mexico
These guys are partially obsessed with stardom, or at least with astronomy. Now they’re talking about “el núcleo de Belanova,” the core of their energy.
Difficulty: Adv-Intermediate
Argentina
In this Electronic Press Kit (EPK), Bersuit Vergarabat’s members talk about the inspirations for and the process behind many of the songs on their album, Hijos del Culo, while talking a bit about the social commentary that runs strongly throughout their music.
Difficulty: Adv-Intermediate
Argentina
In part two of the EPK, Bersuit gives background to the remaining songs on Hijos del Culo revealing more of their take on politics and society. Note the way they mix humor and seriousness in their definitions of “psicópata.”
Difficulty: Intermediate
Uruguay
Though Natalia Oreiro may seem to have it all—talent, beauty, brains, personality and success—she wasn’t born with a silver spoon in her mouth. Her family suffered economically, and moved many times trying to better their situation. This was a bit unsettling for little Natalia, and perhaps contributed to her being a handful for her primary school teachers.
Difficulty: Adv-Intermediate
Uruguay
Natalia reflects on her first real experiences with acting and modeling. As a young girl she was drawn to the stage, performing in many of her high school’s chorus and theatrical productions. Her mature stage presence and passion for the art soon landed her a number of roles in paid advertisements. She was well on her way to becoming a star.
Difficulty: Adv-Intermediate
Uruguay
Natalia was quickly growing up. Like most teens, she was anxious to explore the world. At thirteen she began to go out dancing with her best friend, Rosa. Ivan, the high school hunk, was to become her first love.
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