Flor De Toloache perform at the American Center. Picture: Arnab Mondal

What’s the first picture that comes to mind when one says mariachi band? The Three Amigos with Steve Martin, Chevy Chase and Martin Short dressed like members of a mariachi band. But all that has changed after the US consulate in Calcutta presented Flor De Toloache, New York’s first all-women mariachi band at American Center last week.

Led by Mireya Ramos, the eight-member team (although the original band has 10 members) made the crowd dance to traditional numbers that are usually played at Mexican weddings and parties. The girls went all out to offer one rollicking number after another over one-and-a-half hours, including the unforgettable Hindi number Khoya khoya chand from young Maya Shankar, the New Jersey-born violinist whose family has connections with Chennai.

Here’s what Mireya told t2 after the gig.

What do you think of India and our music?

I didn’t know there were so many cultures within one country. We want to be more familiar with Indian music. The little we have experienced is very beautiful, very percussive. There is beautiful singing and it’s in some ways similar to Mexican singing… we can connect with that.

How was Flor De Toloache formed?

I formed the band in 2008 because my father was a mariachi singer and I was already playing mariachi. I noticed there were not enough women mariachi players or singers in New York, so I thought it would be a great idea and experience to form my band, an all-women band. This is the first all-women mariachi band in New York. I found the other members while singing in different parts of New York. Now we have 10 members.

How has the sound evolved?

We started with only three people and we didn’t even have a bass player and I had to learn bass out of necessity. We started with traditional pieces because we had to be familiar with traditional music; it was about understanding the mariachi style. And when more people joined, our music expanded. The band you see now has been around for about two years. Now we experiment with jazz and other genres.

Is improvisation a key element to your music?

A lot of it is already arranged. But there is a lot of improvisation. We incorporate influences because everyone in the band has played so many kinds of music in New York. Since everybody has an ear for music, it makes it easy to experiment.

Neel Adhikari on recording Flor De Toloache for a 91.9 Friends FM show on November 18: “It was a huge challenge but they were so composed as a unit. They sounded great and were lovely. It was feminine energy at its best. I asked them if a male member would ruin the existing chemistry. One girl replied yes while the other said no!” Picture: Sayantan Ghosh

How do you decide on the set-list for any gig?

What I usually do with our set-list is start with the traditional to let people know our style and where our music comes from. And then comes the danceable pieces; fusion numbers. Depending on the event, the crowd, the set-list is prepared. If it’s a Mexican crowd we try to play more classics. For international crowds there is a little of everything.

Where in New York does the band play?

We play everywhere in New York, in subways, streets, big museums like the Metropolitan and jazz clubs… even in a limousine! Soon after the band started, we played at an Indian wedding.

Finally, have you inspired other women musicians?

There is this girl from London who wrote to me. She wrote a beautiful message on Facebook, saying she is inspired by our mariachi and will start a mariachi band in London!