On South 23rd Street in McAllen, you will find a small charming music shop named RyN Music Store. Upon entering the music shop, you’ll see it packed with a varied selection of regional Spanish music. You’ll see the walls covered with photographs, posters and even some musical instruments. The first person who will probably greet you is the legendary Ramiro Cavazos.
Born Feb. 16, 1927, in Garza Ayala in the Mexican state of Nuevo León, Cavazos would eventually become a historical figure in regional Spanish music thanks to his success in South Texas. Before Tomas Ortiz and Eugenio Abrego were even named Los Alegres de Terán, he collaborated with them on various platforms in the 1940s and early 1950s in Mexico.
Cavazos eventually found his way to the United States, where he met accordionist Mario Montes in Donna. He still fondly recalls the first time he met Montes. Cavazos had moved from Raymondville to Donna in the late 1940′s and was riding his bicycle one day when he saw two men playing music. He went up to them and one of the men asked him if he was a musician. Cavazos told them he could play the guitar and sing. That man turned out to be Mario Montes thus forming a lifelong friendship and musical partnership.
Cavazos and Montes went on to do their first recordings for the McAllen based Discos Falcon in 1947. These early recordings featured Cavazos on the guitar as opposed to him using the bajo sexto, which he would be more famous for doing in later years. The two men will forever be associated with the name Los Donneños and Cavazos credits the name to one person. After completing their initial recordings, Discos Falcon owner Arnaldo Ramirez decided to give Cavazos and Montes the name Los Donneños based on the fact that they were now residing in Donna.
Both Cavazos and Montes were perplexed, they thought to themselves, “why would we be called this considering we’re from Mexico and had just recently moved to Donna?”
But the name stuck and he’s now proud of the legacy that he has
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Article Source: http://www.themonitor.com/articles/music-58318-shop-career.html