Mexico is a land of many musical traditions. Each of its many Indian groups has its own musical systems, occasions, and repertories. Among large-city dwellers there are many "communities of taste," ranging from preferences for Western classical music to international popular and protest music. The rural mestizos (a mixture of Spanish and Amerindian populations and cultures) also maintain a variety of musical traditions. Mestizo music, along with related traditions among Mexican-Americans, is included in the 1978 Festival of American Folklife.

The music of Mexican mestizos has many common roots. Language, poetic structures, most musical ...