Don Cruz Lizárraga

Clarinet player and bandleader Don Cruz Lizárraga was one of the originators of the banda tradition of Mexico. Together with his horn-dominated band La Banda El Recodo, Lizárraga brought the ranchera Cumbias, baladas, corridos, balades ritmica, boleros, and pasos dobles of Mexico to the international stage. Lizárraga's interests in music didn't surface until shortly after his 19th birthday when he began to teach himself to play the clarinet. Within a year, he had mastered the instrument and secured his father's permission to join a local tambora marching band. Lizárraga quic...