Remember your sense of hearing:

It’s said that while in Oaxaca, if you don’t look up while sightseeing, you’ll miss out on a lot (ie, centuries-old detailed carvings, moldings, and frescoes, trees that grow perpendicular to the walls, and elaborately landscaped ceilings). Similarly, if you are not vigilant, your time in the city will not be as culturally complete and informative as it could be. What follows is a sampling of the variety of sounds you can hear from car overhead speakers, truck and scooter horns, steam whistles, stereo systems, and live bands, and an explanation of what each one means. as well as how to tell them apart.

It is not necessary to venture into the towns to experience the plethora of diverse and colorful sounds, which in themselves give you a greater understanding of life in Oaxaca. Simply head out of the Historic Center by taking a bus or taxi, or simply taking a long walk, even a kilometer or two beyond the Periferico and N. Héroes de Chapultepec. I am not referring to the continuous din of donkeys and dogs, toads, turkeys, roosters and the more exotic birds and cattle, but to the man-made joints. Such sounds warn the residents of the city of the proximity of sellers of various goods and services, of religious and secular events, or that a neighbor’s initiation rite is being performed.

Commercial vendors create most of the daily discord in the streets, letting us know what fruits are cheap depending on the season, delicacies that tempt the taste buds of locals, and how important it is for Oaxacans to have their tortillas fresh and other baked goods. The most unusual sound comes from a metal wagon wheeled through the streets, its operator selling hot fried plantain, with sweet cream and other condiments sprinkled on top upon request… simply delicious, and generally a “safe” meal to eat on the street. street. Usually during the nights you can hear the pitch of its steam whistle, starting with a low tenor and building to a high screech…you can’t go wrong. At the other end of the spectrum are the tortilla vendors who often drive down the same neighborhood streets 2-3 times a day, usually in a VW Beetle or scooter, notifying residents of their presence with short beeps from their horns. You might also hear the bread and cake truck trotting through the streets, loudspeaker on top, the driver singing the virtues of their bolillos and variety of sweet bread. When he’s not so worked up, he has music blaring, the same songs day in and day out so neighbors can identify particular songs with baked goods for sale. The same pattern of dividing advertisements between the shouted word and recorded music is found with fruit trucks, vans that sometimes sell oranges simply by the sack of 25, 50 or 100, or bundled with other types of citrus, melons and pineapples, by the public. piece or kilo, scale loaded in the back of the vehicle, young associate bagging, weighing and taking cash. When the voice grows hoarse, we come The Beatles, Revolver. We learn a bit about culture and economics… the price of gasoline and labor in relation to the sale of such perishables and the required profit margins; the importance for residents of having fresh food; lack of proximity to more traditional retail outlets with such offerings; and finally, the availability of at least one person in the household throughout the day to make said purchases. Think about what percentage of your neighbors are home all day to receive those providers. In Oaxaca, with its extended family tradition and the responsibility of shopping entrusted to very young children, it is feasible that this method of marketing will continue.

Distinctly different sounds are made to herald the arrival of needs. It is trite to point out the importance of drinking water. Several times a day, tanker trucks loaded with 5-gallon blue plastic or clear glass bottles patrol every street in each colonia, though sometimes economics may dictate the use of a large tricycle instead of the motorized vehicle. The sound heard is always the same, and unmistakable…..water (aah-gwaaah!). Almost as often, one can’t help but miss the trucks that sell propane by the tank, usually in three sizes of your choice…trade your empty for full. No human voice is used here, but one or more of perhaps three familiar cues… a deep fog horn-like sound, the rumble of a chain being dragged down the street, and/or the recorded sound of a cow mooing followed by a jingles Propane is used residentially primarily for stoves and hot water tanks…there are no underground oil or natural gas lines…here in Oaxaca we already have enough problems for the government to just repair streets and sidewalks and do a little safer the tap water we get from the broken, antiquated and inefficient underground water supply system, let alone embark on moving the entire fuel supply system underground (although downtown sidewalks and streets were recently dug up to bury the utility lines).

Much more often than in earlier times, residents are opting to use larger stationary propane tanks that are filled according to a delivery schedule so that these larger single-pot propane trucks don’t notify households that they are on the street. Similarly, the large water trucks, which fill cisterns and water tanks for domestic use as well as drinking, do not need to signal their presence, as they arrive only on order. But if he’s down when the cowbell signals the arrival of the garbage truck, he’s lost it for another week, unless he tracks down the truck with the week’s garbage in the back of his truck, either that day or another if you know the dates and nearby routes.

There are also three types of informational announcements that you may hear on a regular basis. Once again there are merchants, who do not sell their products on the street, but notify Oaxacans about offers or sales through a speaker on the roof of the car, for example, a supermarket chain that promotes products, or a franchise of pizzas that sells a large one with two selections, plus two liters of soda for only 100 pesos. The second and perhaps most vital type of information residents receive is of a public service nature, consisting of local news. Often, when someone dies in a neighborhood, a truck goes through the streets of the neighborhood reporting not only the death, but also the pertinent details about the mass, the burial, etc.

When there are public works to be carried out that the municipality does not consider within its mandate to attend promptly, the president of the neighborhood may order that the works be carried out by the neighbors, for example, clearing. The announcement traditionally includes where and when the project will start, with a request to be ready to work and bring as many picks, shovels, rakes and wheelbarrows as are available. Listening to this type of exhortation, you know that there is a neighborhood organization that sees part of its duty to pick up what the “higher” levels of government left behind, or that it is not prepared to wait until the government dedicates itself to prioritizing what the neighbors consider it important.

The last type of information that your auditory sense collects in the streets emanates from the celebrations, evidencing the richness and diversity of social life, and signifying the arrival of an important customary or religious event. While often a portion of the event may take place in a hall, church, or hall, in this party-oriented society, the celebration includes at least a portion of the festivities that occur on the streets or in a home, or entirely in a local environment. At any time of the day or night, it’s not unusual to hear the blare of a sound system or the music of a live band echoing through a valley through neighborhoods. There may be a 400-person wedding, a 50th birthday celebration or Quince Años (elaborate celebration when a girl turns 15, similar to a Bat Mitzvah in the Jewish faith) well under way. Depending on the makeup of the crowd, you might hear ear-splitting rap, hip-hop, or that kind of teen-oriented deep-based music, or maybe the more traditional cumbia tunes, or a mix of contemporary DJ music on a solo set, followed by live Latin banda music at the next. The most modest $100 stereo system can be hooked up to a monstrous amp and speakers to create a deafening distraction from a relatively quiet environment. The other type of music often heard comes from more informal bands that make their way through the streets as part of religious customs. Just look in any book that lists the multitude of saints’ days and other ritual dates, and you can pretty well assume you’ll hear banda music moving up and down the streets, getting weaker as the procession recedes and getting stronger until comes to an end. your. Stop and ask what is going on. Have a drink if they offer you a cup of mezcal and eat everything the parties are willing to offer you.

Follow your ears to the source of the music and take a peek if you can, no matter how formal or informal the setting… you just might be welcomed inside and truly have an experience to tell people back home. If you simply “listen to the music,” your Oaxacan experience will be that much richer.