We watched a video without commentary, showing festivals in various states with brilliantly constumed dancers and traditional music. Guillermo said that most of the music has religious associations. It made me sad to think of Mayas hearing the preaching of early missionaries and accepting it as versions of their own gods, resulting in syncretism that continues today. This tableau represents the cult of the cigar-smoking, rum-drinking Maximon/San Simon. The cross is there, but completely misunderstood.
The best part of the day to my mind was the musical presentation of these four brothers, calling themselves AJ.
The musical instruments were designed to immitate nature, and they do that incredibly.
You can find more on YouTube of the same group several years ago.
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