Texas Folklife: The Folklorist Next Door
Folklorists explore foodways, music, ritual celebrations, and more. Several episode producers participated in Texas Folklife's Community Folklife Fellowship program where they received mentorship, training workshops, and project support.
Learn more at TexasFolklife.org
This project is funded in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts
Executive Producer: Jeannelle Ramirez
Technical Producer: Lamont Jack Pearley
Texas Folklife: The Folklorist Next Door
The Sound of Community: Puerto Rican Plena in Texas
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Born in the working-class neighborhoods of Ponce, Puerto Rico, over a century ago, plena is a genre of music that continues to travel wherever Puerto Ricans gather and build community. Communal in nature, it is played at social gatherings of all sorts – celebrations, funerals, protests, and open jam sessions called “plenazos.” In this episode, we will identify the characteristics of plena as defined by practitioners in the Houston, DFW, San Antonio, and Austin areas, and explore how it has been connecting Puerto Rican communities across Texas.
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Episode Producer: Adam Rosario
Narrator/Interviewer: Adam Rosario
Interviewees: Héctor Matos Miranda, Danny Rodríguez, Enqrique Quiñones Arocho, Joaquín Hernández, Leonard Vázquez
Music:
Opening sequence and instrument demo
percussion and cuatro puertorriqueño: Adam Rosario
Closing sequence (Tamborfest ATX 2026 live recording)
“Bailala” by Rafael Concepción Collazo
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Credits for The Folklorist Next Door Series
Technical Producer: Lamont Jack Pearley
Executive Producer: Jeannelle Ramirez
Learn more at TexasFolklife.org
This project is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts