The MECA Accordion Band players participated in the Killeen,Texas, Juneteenth Parade last week. They won first prize in the parade and will be playing in the Killeen Music/Mariachi 2009 Festival on July 9, 10, and 11 at the KPLE-TV station on Elms Road, Killeen, Texas both in the studio, and outdoors.

The festival will start with a jam session on July 9, Thursday night at 7:30 p.m. On July 10, Friday, during the day, there will be music instruction on all the mariachi instruments, violin, trumpet, accordion and guitar and the mariachi style of playing.

The accordion instructors will be Shelia Lee from Galveston, Texas; Chris Rybak from Halletsville, Texas; and Joe Kraus from Austin, Texas. The mariachi instructors will come from Alice, Texas.

On Friday night, there will be a Noche Mariachi starting at 7:30 pm. Some of the program will be in the studio and some outside in the parking lot. The outdoor session will be similar to a Plaza Girbaldi event in Mexico City. There will be food booths, strolling musicians, and dancing. Most of the music will be Mexican, Hispanic, and Texas. The MECA Ballet Folkloric de Colores will be also performing in the Noche de Mariachi.

The public is invited free to the jam session and the Noche de Mariachi event.

For more information: dfkott@aol.com