Donating

Help Purchase Mariachi Luz de Oro Uniforms!

One of Mariachi Luz de Oro’s biggest goals at the moment is to purchase Cal-themed Blue & Gold ‘trajes de charro’ (traditional mariachi suits), and accompanying gold ‘moños’ (traditional bow ties) for all of the mariachi’s active student-musicians. With your financial assistance, all of our performers will be able to proudly sport a mariachi uniform, continue to express our passion for the mariachi art form, and represent our cultural pride on the Berkeley campus and beyond!

Estimated Price Per Suit: $500.00
Fundraising Goal: $15,000

The Mariachi Luz de Oro Scholarship Program

Mariachi Luz de Oro is looking for donors to help kickstart a scholarship program for its student-musicans. We want our students to have the ability to pursue their passion for mariachi music and have that financial support as a means of continuing their education. We believe that no barrier should exist for our student-musicians to pursue their goals, nothing should stop them from reaching their full potential. We would provide this scholarship and students would have the option to utilize the money towards their academics or music related activities and upgrades. This scholarship has the goal to ensure that Mariachi Luz de Oro members feel like their dreams are possible. We are aiming to raise enough funds to award two, $500.00 scholarships every academic school year, with the hope of expanding the award amount annually.

Cost Per Scholarship: $500.00.
Fundraising Goal: $2,000 Per Year.

The Annual UC Berkeley Mariachi Conference, hosted by Mariachi Luz de Oro

Our two-day mariachi conference was founded with the mission to help unify the diverse mariachi ensembles found across collegiate institutions throughout the state of California, offer instrumental workshops led by a lineup of professional mariachi instructors to further-educate and strengthen students’ technical skills and knowledge of mariachi music, and to build a strong and supportive community of mariachi musicians.

Conference Origins:
Beginning in the fall of 2022, the students of Mariachi Luz de Oro set out to establish the very first intercollegiate mariachi conference in the state of California. The goal of this conference was to help bring together the diverse collegiate mariachi ensembles found all throughout the state, and to help bridge the gap in the music education of Mariachi that is rarely taught or supported at collegiate institutions. On March 11th and 12th of 2023, we successfully held this conference with the help of professional mariachi music educators, offering intermediate and advanced-level workshops for violin, trumpet, guitar, vihuela, and guitarrón instruments. With the conference invitations being extended to middle school and high school programs, students of all ages enjoyed studying traditional and contemporary mariachi music pieces (some transcribed by MLO students and alumni) and also got to learn about and dive deeply into music theory and subjects including harmony, scale degrees, rhythm and intonation. With over 100 students in attendance and even more expected to attend in 2024, our conference shows to be promising and we hope to continue to promote the teaching and preservation of the art form of Mariachi for many years to come!

The 2nd Annual UC Berkeley Mariachi Conference is taking place Saturday, April 6th and Sunday, April 7th of 2024! Stay tuned for updates by subscribing to our newsletter here

Musical Necessities

Our student-musicians would benefit greatly from the purchase or donations of musical accessories such as:

• Trumpet Mutes
• Valve Oil
• Sets of Violin Strings
• Sets of Vihuela Strings S
• Sets of Classical Guitar Strings
• Sets of Guitarrón Strings
• Guitar Neck Straps/Tahalís
• Hard Cases for 4/4 Violins
• Hard Cases for Size 2 and Size 3 Guitarrónes
• Hard Cases for Size 2.5 and Size 3 Vihuelas
• Hard Cases for a Full Size Guitar
• Hard Cases for Full Size Trumpets.

Sound System

Mariachi Luz de Oro’s live performances would benefit greatly from the purchase of a proper sound system, a multi-channel mixer, and enough microphones and microphone stands to accommodate most of our performers. As the mariachi is an acoustic instrument-based ensemble, amplification would be beneficial in reaching the ears of larger audiences on and off the Berkeley campus.

Sound System Estimate: $2,000.

Professional Guest Instruction

As a 100% student-run organization, MLO has no professional instructor, musical director, or full-time faculty member appointed to the group by the University. As a result, rehearsals and performances are completely student-led by a team of undergraduate students. Although equipped with some experience in the mariachi world, the students are not professional instructors with the expertise required to assist and teach each musician of our ensemble. MLO would benefit greatly from the visits of a hired mariachi clinician whom would assist the group in strengthening instrumental technical skills, musical repertoire, and vocal performances. Your help in funding this project would ensure the group with access to a professional instructor, and the expansion of each student’s knowledge of the mariachi art form.

Estimated Cost Per Clinic: $500.00.
Fundraising Goal: $3,000 Per Year.