César Castro

Hailing from Veracruz, Mexico, César Castro is a son jarocho and fandango specialist based in L.A. Castro was mentored by son jarocho maestro Andrés Alfonso Vergara and later by Vergara and Gilberto Gutiérrez, who invited him to join Grupo Mono Blanco and who introduced him to the fandango. By the age of fifteen, he began teaching zapateado (percussive dance), requinto and jarana at Veracruz’s Casa de la Cultura. In 2001, Castro began working with Chicanos in Los Angeles through a binational exchange. Castro moved to Los Angeles in 2004, where he played with Chicano/rock group Quetzal and started his own group, Cambalache. He continues to teach son jarocho at local high schools, community centres, universities and within the California State prison system.