Rancho Alegre

"El Gallo" Dez is a brand new voice in Tejano music who is just now embarking on his first adventure in the genre. Luckily for him, he is already off to a great start, having been discovered by Tejano music icon Shelly Lares, who is producing his music, mentoring him, and guiding him on this path.

We caught up with the California native on a beautiful summer day here in Austin and got to know more about his background and what bro...

Jimmy Gonzalez passed away 6/6/2018. Thanks to an assist from Freddie and Marc Martinez, we recorded this interview at Most Precious Blood Catholic Church in Corpus Christi in December 2012.

Most Tejano fans know where they were when they heard that Jimmy Gonzalez, bandleader of Grupo Mazz, passed away. We happened to be on an interview trip to San Antonio that day along with our friend and board member Joe Olvera of lovemytejano....

Beatriz Llamas, La Paloma Del Norte, passed away yesterday, May 15, 2023. This interview was recorded at her home in San Antonio in June 2015.

Known as La Paloma Del Norte, Beatriz was the first female recording artist on the storied Tejano record label Bego Records. Her strong, passionate voice, ever-present cat-eye makeup, and engaging stage presence made an indelible impression on Tejano and Conjunto fans all over Texas and bey...

Festival Coordinators Piper LeMoine and Monica Castilleja discuss the 2023 Rancho Alegre Conjunto Music Festival. Audio taken from our Facebook Live broadcast on 4/24/23, so it might be a little choppy.

Complete information available at https://www.ranchoalegre.org/festival

For any questions about the festival, please email us at info@ranchoalegre.org.

Recorded in July 2011 at El Torreón Restaurant in San Antonio, Texas.

Joe Gonzales passed away today in San Antonio at the age of 61. He was known in the Conjunto world as "El Gambler" because of his time playing bass with Ruben Naranjo y Los Gamblers in the later years of Ruben's career, as well as his friendship with the beloved legend. After Ruben's passing, Joe began his own group and switched over to accordion and primera vo...

Recorded in June 2019 at Austin Central Library

In June 2019, Rancho Alegre finally caught up to Little Miss Dynamite herself, Shelly Lares. We had been after her since we first started doing interviews in 2011 and the stars finally aligned and our schedules finally allowed for us to finally meet.

And let's just say that the award-winning, hard-working musician, vocalist, entrepreneur, producer, arranger, bandleader, songwriter, an...

Recorded live on KOOP radio in Austin 3/25/17.

This episode is another blast from the past! Let's go back to March 2017 when Rancho Alegre's own Piper LeMoine sat in for Dot Matrix on her spectacular Girlie Show, which plays nothing but music by female artists.

What happened was radio magic - 11 female Tejano musicians in the studio at once. Most were from the Austin area, with a couple from San Marcos and another from San Antonio...

Recorded on 10/3/15 at the KOOP studios, Austin Texas. BJ Moncivais passed away in August 2018.

Rancho Alegre talked with BJ Moncivais of legendary Austin, Texas-based Chicano record label, Valmon Records. BJ's parents, Ben and Lupe Moncivais, started the label in the 1950s and recorded some of central Texas' favorite Tejano musicians like Little Joe and the Latinaires, Manuel Donley, Roy Montelongo, and more.

During the interview,...

Recorded in January 2013 at their home in Midlothian, Texas.

Conjunto Baraja de Oro is one of the hottest bands going these days. Affectionately known as Conjunto BDO or simply BDO, North Texas husband and wife duo Mario and Betty Barajas are taking the Conjunto world by storm, boasting multiple Tejano Music Award nominations, incredibly well-attended shows, high-quality songwriting and recordings, and a loyal army of fans.

Mario h...

Recorded in August 2017 at the Yarborough Branch of the Austin Public Library. Chencho Flores passed away in January 2021 due to complications of COVID-19 at the age of 91.

At the time of this interview, Chencho was 88 years old and had just started his own Conjunto earlier that year after a long tenure with Conjunto Los Pinkys.

This in-depth conversation, which we believe to be the only recorded interview with the very shy and hum...

Recorded in October 2011 at Roberto Pulido's ranch in Edinburg, Texas.

Rancho Alegre hit the road in October 2011 to interview some of our favorite artists in San Antonio, Alice, Robstown, then Edinburg, McAllen, and Mercedes. It was an unbelievable trip that we will always remember. Especially our visit with Roberto Pulido…

We showed up at his ranch in Edinburg, and he waves us to the back of the property to his shop where he make...

Recorded in 2011 at Janie's Record Shop in San Antonio, Texas.

Long known for their popurris, San Antonio's Los Aguilares have enjoyed great success over their 58-year career in music. With brothers Genaro on vocals and bass, and Emilio on accordion, the group became a fan favorite and, like other hard-working conjuntos, toured extensively around Texas and the rest of the country.

After Emilio’s passing in 2009, the band continued ...

Recorded in 2012 at Christus Spohn hospital in Corpus Christi. In this interview, we switch between Spanish and English constantly - a perfect example of a typical South Texas dialect and conversation.

Rick De La Rosa has conjunto running through his veins. The family name alone evokes the sights and sounds of his father Alfredo, his uncles Tony and Adan, and his aunt Eva, and their rich history, building and dominating the conjun...

Conjunto music legend Alfredo De La Rosa passed away on April 8, 2022. A member of one of the most storied and influential musical family dynasties in Texas music, Alfredo spent many years playing with brothers Tony and Adan and sister Eva as well as with his own Conjunto. His style was steeped in the classic Conjunto of the Coastal Bend: a clean, straightforward sound driven by a strong, unrelenting beat and equally strong vocals,...

Recorded on two occasions, in 2012 and 2018 at the Little Joe Museum in Temple, Texas.

The “King of the Brown Sound” is a fitting nickname for Little Joe Hernandez. The music he has played over his storied career has blended together everything from mariachi, orquesta, conjunto, country, doo-wop, Sinatra-style standards, jazz, rock, salsa, and whatever else sounds and feels right, creating a sound that has resonated with Chicanos f...

Rocky Hernandez is a beloved Tejano music legend who very rarely gives interviews and has retired from public performances. Just the mention of his name among Tejano fans or musicians immediately inspires a smile and a great memory, along with, invariably, a mention of his phenomenal talent. So you can imagine how honored we were that he agreed to sit down with us to reflect on his life, career, and whatever else was on his mind.

W...

Johnny Hernandez has seen it all in over six decades in Tejano music. From his beginnings with his brothers in Little Joe and the Latinaires to his solo career and everything in between, Johnny remains one of the most passionate performers, one of its strongest talents, and a tireless advocate for Tejano music.

We got the rare honor of interviewing the legend during his visit to Austin in December 2016 when he came to perform with ...

Recorded in 2011 and 2012 at Mingo's home in San Antonio.

What can you say about Mingo Saldivar? Dubbed “The Dancing Cowboy” because of his inimitable, engaging, passionate performance style, Mingo entertained audiences all over the world (including Africa!) for over 50 years before retiring in the mid-2010s.

At the time of the interview, he was recognized with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Tejano Music Awards, just one of ...

Nick Villarreal passed away in July 2017. This interview was recorded in September 2011 at El Torreón Restaurant in San Antonio.

Conjunto legend Nick Villarreal, or “Nicky Snick,” if you prefer, was a character larger than life itself. He was a man with charisma so strong, it’s almost radioactive. From his jokes to his laugh, to that big booming voice, he was just FUN.

A member of the Zimmerle family of San Antonio, Nick specialize...