Hanging With ‘The Serenader’
Travel Blog • Jim Benning • 03.07.08 | 10:34 AM ET
In the southern Mexican town of San Cristóbal de las Casas, Steve Wilson shadows a for-hire singer and guitar player named Roberto as he waits for gigs and plays a serenade. I loved Wilson’s observation about the street musician and the power of the moment.
He writes: “An objective listener would easily recognize Roberto’s musical weaknesses—a limited vocal range, some awkward pauses during a difficult finger-picking section, even a few wrong notes—but in this moment, in the white courtyard lit by the moon, who but the coldest of cold fish could be objective?”
Too true. I’ve enjoyed countless third-rate mariachis around Mexico—and there are many—for the same reason.
Photo by Bomba Rosa via Flickr, (Creative Commons).
Related on World Hum:
* The Dancing Old Men of Patzcuaro
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Jim Benning is the editor and co-founder of World Hum.
