At a party we attended, they had hired a harpist, Paco Collado, to play for the guests. You might think that harp music isn’t the music for any kind of party other than a tea party, but Mexican harp music is.

Paco plays music called Jarocha from the state of Veracruz, (See and hear Jarocha music played) which is energetic, fun, party music. “La Bamba” is a traditional Jarocha song made famous in the U.S. by Ritchie Valens.

Paco goes from table to table playing for everybody. One of the things that he does is sing versos where he incorporates the names of the guests into humorous songs he makes up as he is playing.

I spent a lot of time quizzing him on the music of Veracruz. He gave me a great background in the classic songs and history of Musica Jarocha.

You can hear Paco play on most Mondays and Wednesdays at Daiquiri Dick’s Restaurant at Playa los Muertos. Paco is also available for hire. I don’t know what his rates are but he is worth whatever he charges. I’m sure we will hire him next time we have a special event.

You can contact him at pacoharp@hotmail.com or at 044-322-125-2072. He speaks English so don’t be afraid to call.