Texas State University student Abigail “Abby” Garcia is featured in Going Varsity in Mariachi, an award-winning Netflix documentary that highlights the culture of mariachi band competitions high schools in South Texas.
Released on Netflix in August 2024, the documentary provides an in-depth view of the personal lives of student musicians from various high schools in the Rio Grande Valley such as Abby, an Edinburg native who is currently a junior at Texas State University.
“People think mariachi bands are just small bands that play in local restaurant lobbies for money,” says Abby, who currently performs with TXST’s Mariachi Nueva Generación. “There’s so much heart, culture, and competition that goes into mariachi music and this documentary did a beautiful job of uncovering that.”
Abby was first introduced to musical performance when her mother encouraged her to join orchestra and learn violin in sixth grade. Abby soon fell in love with the sounds of mariachi music and joined her middle school mariachi band. At a competition during her freshman year of high school, she watched a special performance by Texas State University’s mariachi ensemble which Abby credits with being a key influence on her decision to attend TXST.
“One of the TXST mariachi bands performed at a competition I was at. I remember hearing them play for the first time and I was completely amazed,” she says.
“At the end of their performance, I just remember telling myself’ ‘I have to go to Texas State and join their mariachi ensembles.’”
Abby is pursuing a degree in social work and plans to also obtain a master’s degree in social work. Her career aspirations are to incorporate mariachi music into therapeutic treatment for individuals with special needs.
