Ramón Ayala - Biography
Texas left Mexico in 1836 and made itself a bona fide nation. But Mexico never left Texas. You may see less of it in the icy streets and glassy shopping temples of Dallas, but head down to the tropical environs of the Rio Grande Valley and you’ll know that Hispanic culture rules, and wherever a radio plays or a car stereo blasts, you’ll know it has a king: Ramón Ayala. As is always the case, music penetrates cultures in peculiar and unexpected ways. Germans and Czechs didn’t just migrate to the Texas Hill Country west of Austin; they went to the north of Mexico, too, and they made certain to bring with them two essentials: braumeisters and accordions. Polkas and waltzes were the beloved tunes of their European homeland; in North America, they fused with the traditional Mexican genre of ranchera, a brand of solo guitar and vocals that is tinted with nationalism and deals with the travails of love, loss, home, and country. What resulted from this inspired amalgamation was a wonderful genre indigenous both to Northern Mexico and Southern Tejas: norteño. Ramón Ayala is the king of the accordion, and in his deft hands, sound leaps out of it and dances in the air.
Ayala was born on December 8, 1945, in Nuevo León, Mexico. He was playing the accordion by the age of six, supported with enthusiasm by a musically inclined family. By adolescence, he was helping to support the household as a professional musician. After moving to the town of Reynosa, on the Texas border in the Rio Grande Valley, his career launched in vivid fashion. In the early 1960s, Ayala joined forces with Cornelio Reyna to form Los Relámpagos del Norte ("The Lightning from the North”), with Reyna providing vocals and playing the bajo sexto (a twelve-string bass); together, they released over 20 albums in the 1960s, and were essential in the birth of norteño music. At first, they appealed not to fans in Mexico, but to migrant workers working north of the border in the cotton fields and avocado and grapefruit orchards of Texas. It was a crucial leap for the norteño sound; from the Valley it would wind northwards, and sow the seeds for the Tejano genre. There are numerous outstanding compilations of the best work of Relámpagos del Norte, including Callejon Sin Salida (1997 Orfeon), 100% Oro (1999 Max), and the comprehensive double-disc set, Mejor De Los Relampagos Del Norte (2001 Orfeon). Reyna and Ayala would part ways in 1971, but in the course of a decade, they were an impressively influential duo.
Ayala’s next group was even more popular. Los Bravos del Norte was a continuation of Los Relámpagos del Norte, with the addition of a succession of vocalists. Ayala was a shrew producer and manager, and the smooth transition led to even greater commercial success. The group expanded, the performances and production took on a slick, professional air, and Ayala firmly established himself as the master of the corridos, the traditional Spanish ballad. As the 1970s segued into the 1980s, his popularity was indomitable, and Ayala branched into cinema, making a total of thirteen films. By the 1990s, Los Bravos del Norte were legendary in the Latin music community, and institutions like the Latin Grammy Awards were established to acknowledge the pervasive influence of various Latin genres. La Leyenda Continúa (1999 Joey) was nominated for Best Norteño Performance at the 2000 Latin Grammy Awards; two years later, Ayala and los Bravos del Norte won the award with El Número Cien (2002 Freddie). By the 21st century, Mexican genres warranted their own place at the US Grammy awards, thanks in large part to the efforts of indefatigable artists like Ramón Ayala. In that year Ayala and los Bravos del Norte’s En Vivo: El Hombre y Su Música (2002 Freddie) won the award for Best Mexican-American album. Ayala continues to record and perform, and with over 105 releases to date, he continues to inspire new generations from both sides of the border with the joyous, evocative sound of his inspired accordion performances.