Cont. from front page,

According to Doug Robinson, the festival’s producer, after 13 years it is finally getting attention from the national and international music community and press.

This year it is presenting highly renowned artists, many of them Grammy Award winners. The festival will include five free concerts as well as three free workshops at Bellas Artes. 

Antonio Lozoya, the Festival’s director, said that although the event has always been supported by local restaurants, hotels and local and national institutions, the inclusion of new lead sponsors such as the real estate company Coates/Dolan “has made it possible to hire bigger names, as well as to generate additional excitement by funding nightly giveaways at all the Peralta concerts. We’ll never be as big as the Montreal Jazz Festival, but we can still present the same level of artists and have more fun while we do it.” 

A jazz bassist, Lozoya formed a band more than 10 years ago, the San Miguel Jazz Cats, along with guitarist Kenneth Basman and dummer Victor Monterrubio. The Jazz Cats have helped foster an interest in jazz in San Miguel. This year, they will offer a free concert at 6pm on Friday, November 28, at the Jardín.

Saturday night’s inaugural concert in the Teatro Ángela Peralta features an international trio led by Mexican drummer and multiple Grammy winner Antonio Sánchez along with British bassist Orlando leFleming and Puerto Rican saxophonist David Sánchez (also a Grammy winner).

Sánchez is considered to be one of the most prominent drummers of his generation. He has been a drummer for both the Pat Metheny Group and the Pat Metheny Trio. LeFleming is the swinging bassist for singer Jane Monheit, and David Sánchez played with Dizzy Gillespie’s United Union Orchestra.

Singer Daline Jones will open for the Antonio Sánchez Trio on Saturday night, backed by saxophonist Ivan Renta (described by Eddie Palmieri as “the new genius of the Caribbean”), Cuban jazz pianist Gabriel Hernández and drummer Francisco Mela.

Hernández, Renta and Mela will return to Teatro Ángela Peralta on Sunday night (joined by bassist Agustín Bernal and trumpeter Jason Palmer) to play Cuban jazz selections from Hernández’ new album. The Gabriel Hernández Project will be the opening act for Marcia Ball, a blues pianist and singer who has been nominated for three Grammy awards. Her latest album, Peace, Love and BBQ, debuted at number one on the Billboard charts. 

Grammy winners Don Gruisin and Brazilian legend Oscar Castro-Neves will share the Peralta stage on Monday, December 1, following the opening by Jimmy Dillon’s Blues Band.

Gruisin played with Quincy Jones in the seventies, and Oscar Castro-Neves has collaborated with Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder and Barbra Streisand. Jimmy Dillon will be backed up by the “A Team” of San Miguel’s local players, including guitarist Ken Basman, bassist and Festival director Antonio Lozoya, keyboardist and Festival producer Doug Robinson and drummer Rick Schlosser. Iraida Noriega, considered one of the best jazz singers in Mexico, will perform at the Ángela Peralta on Tuesday night. She is the daughter of legendary singer Freddy Noriega. Opening for Iraida is San Miguel’s own Grammy winner Ken Bichel, who will perform an all-new set of his patented solo piano “fantasias.”

Mexico’s renowned blues singer Betsy Pecanins takes the stage on Wednesday with her unusual combination of American blues and ranchero folk songs and bolero.

She has performed in Havana, New York, Paris, Madrid and San Miguel de Allende (see interview on page 15). 

The Randy Vincent and Peter Welker Jazz Group, from San Francisco, playing guitar and trumpet, will open for Pecanins on Wednesday night, accompanied by Hopalong on the bass and drummer Rodrigo Villanueva on percussion. Randy has played with musicians such as Joe Henderson, Dizzy Gillespie and the Turtle Island String Quartet, among others, and he is currently a guitar and jazz professor at the University of Sonoma. Welker has performed with personalities such as Ernie Watts and Bob Dylan. Villanueva is also the director of the award-winning Northern Illinois University Jazz Lab Band.

The Festival will close on Thursday night with a tribute to the Beatles, including performances by Abe Zimmerman, Bobby Kaplan, Derek Burrows, Wendy Bichel and Glenda Robinson, along with the other artists from the Festival. Robinson commented that “each rehearsal has opened unexpected new directions for the amazing compositions of John Lennon, Paul McCartney and George Harrison.”

International Jazz and Blues Festival, 2008

Teatro Ángela Peralta,  8pm,  Mesones 82 Tickets: 350/300/200/100 pesos

Sat, Nov 29 Antonio Sánchez Trio/Daline Jones opens 

Sun, Nov 30 Marcia Ball/Gabriel Hernández Project opens

Mon, Dec 1 Don Grusin & Oscar Castro-Neves/Jimmy Dillon opens 

Tue, Dec 2 Iraida Noriega Quartet/Ken Bichel opens

Wed, Dec 3 Betsy Pecanins/Peter Welker & Randy Vincent open

Thu, Dec 4 Jazz Tribute to the Beatles; N. Illinois Univ. Jazz Lab Band opens

Free Concerts

Fri, Nov 28, 6pm San Miguel Jazz Cats (Plaza Principal) Sat, Nov 29, 4pm Gabriel Hernández and Francisco Mela (La Lucieérnaga) Sun, Nov 30, 4pm Ken Basman and Tyler Mitchell Trio (La Luciérnaga)

Tue. Dec 2, 5pm Jazz Flamenco, (Parque Clouthier)

Wed, Dec 3, 4pm N. Illinois Univ. Jazz Lab Band (La Luciérnaga)

Free Bilingual Clinics, noon

Auditorio Miguel Malo, Bellas Artes, Hernández Macías 75

Mon, Dec 1 Randy Vincent, “Jazz Guitar”

Tue, Dec 2 Jimmy Dillon, “Playing the Blues”

Wed, Dec 3 Iraida Noriega, “Jazz Vocals”



Special Events at Vista Antigua office, Independencia 21

Sun, Nov 30, 11:30am–2pm Meet the Artists Champagne Brunch (150 pesos)

Wed, Nov 3, 5–7pm Meet the Artists Cocktail Reception (100 pesos)

Tickets on sale at the Vista Antigua office and at all La Conexión locations (Aldama 3, Libramiento San Miguel a Dolores 11, Plaza Real del Conde) for these events only (not for concerts).

In defense of Mother Earth

Mexican Afternoon 
Sat, Dec, 6, 3-7pm
Benefits Xido/Cabras
Casa de los Angelitos
Faroles 3 
Col. Atascadero 
Donation 300 pesos

Xido/Cabras invites the general public to enjoy a Tarde Mexicana (Mexican Afternoon) with traditional food and salsas, including recipes. Live music is by children’s group Jonathan Abraham Trejo, Antonia Del Carmen and Alejandro Sánchez and singer Yaromen Jacobi and Magisterial Sanmiguelense Chorus. The arts and crafts raffle will benefit the preservation of the natural reserve in Xido/Cabras.

AIDS Awareness Week observed in San Miguel
By Krishna Villena and Jesús Ibarra

Health fair 
Sun, Nov 30, 9am–3:30pm
Jardín 

Silent march 
Mon, Dec 1, 7pm
From El Portón, Calle Hidalgo to Jardín 
Wear white, bring a candle & a flower 


Workshops & talks 
Dec 1–5, noon–6pm
Biblioteca Municipal 
Pepe Llanos 14

The end of November marks the beginning of worldwide AIDS Awareness Week, and December 1 is designated as World AIDS Day. According to Dr. Carlos Gutiérrez Aguilar, head of Sanitary Jurisdiction #2 (the sector of Guanajuato’s State Health Department that covers nine municipalities in the northeastern part of the state, including San Miguel de Allende), so far in 2008 six cases of HIV/AIDS have been diagnosed. Four of those infected are HIV-positive and the other two have developed AIDS. Gutiérrez said that of the four HIV-positive residents, one is from San Miguel de Allende and the other three from San Luis de la Paz. The two patients with AIDS, both male, live in San Miguel de Allende. Gutiérrez said that most of the infections occurred through sexual contact and that socio-economic status is not a significant factor. 

According to Gutiérrez, the number of women with the disease has increased to one per every six men. “A few years ago, women with HIV/AIDS were very rare,” he said. He also mentioned that in the last three or four years the number of annual HIV/AIDS diagnoses in the jurisdiction has decreased. “At one point, the number of cases was very high,” he said. 

Gutiérrez said that very few people request a free HIV test in health centers in the jurisdiction. “Currently, we ask pregnant women to have the test. If the result is positive, we can treat them and try to save the baby from being infected. Unfortunately, if they do not want to take the test we cannot force them.”

World AIDS Campaign

In San Miguel, a health fair will be held in the Jardín on Sunday, November 30, from 9am to 3:30pm. The participants include the Women’s Institute IMAM, the State Health Department, CASA, Hospice and representatives of the Sexual Diversity Festival, among other organizations that promote campaigns for HIV/AIDS prevention. Health services and information about contraceptive methods will be provided, and a play on the subject will be presented by CASA. According to Gutiérrez, his jurisdiction intends to offer 1,300 free HIV tests during the fair, in addition to those provided regularly by health centers. 

The campaign also includes a silent march on December 1 in memory of those who have died from AIDS-related illnesses. The march begins at El Portón on Calle Hidalgo and ends at the Jardín. Participants are asked to wear white and carry a candle and a flower.

From December 1 to 5 the Biblioteca Municipal will offer free workshops and talks regarding HIV/AIDS prevention for youth that are open to the public.


HIV/AIDS, tests and treatment

Manuel Espinoza Regalado, a chemist and owner of Bioslab Laboratory on Calle Hidalgo, explained that the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that infects cells of the immune system, destroying or impairing their function. In the early stages of infection, the person has no symptoms. However, as the infection progresses, the immune system weakens and the person becomes more susceptible to so-called opportunistic infections. “The most advanced stage of HIV infection is acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It can take 10–15 years for an HIV-infected person to develop AIDS; antiretroviral drugs can slow down the process even further,” he said.

Espinoza said that in his laboratory in the past eight years only 8 to 10 HIV-positive people have come regularly for blood tests. “If I have a patient who has tested positive for HIV I have to inform the Guanajuato State Health Department and Sanitary Jurisdiction No. 2. A counselor talks to the patient about treatment options, but it is up to the patient to accept treatment.” 

“ELISA [enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay] tests cost 200 pesos, and the Western Blot test, used to confirm a positive diagnosis, 2,200 pesos. Control tests (biometrical, white cells, viral load) cost 5,000 pesos,” said Espinoza.

Dr. Gutiérrez said that treatment for HIV would cost between US$10,000 and $25,000 per year, depending on the case. 


Living with AIDS

Benjamín García, a psychologist at IMAM (Instituto Muncipal de Allende para las Mujeres), said that “when a person first discovers he or she has HIV the response is usually surprise, denial and guilt. He or she is also likely to become depressed. The person feels guilty for not being careful and may see the infection as “divine punishment.” He or she is also often stigmatized by society and is more vulnerable to rejection by others, even by health center personnel.”

According to García, a person infected with HIV has the right to decide whether to tell other people about his or her HIV status; commonly, the first people to find out are family members and close friends. Relatives of the HIV-positive individual may also be discriminated against by neighbors and other family members. Unfortunately, discrimination is very common, and the person with HIV is often rejected by co-workers, family and friends. This is why it is not easy to share one’s positive HIV status with others, and the infected person tends to withdraw, become depressed and refuse help. In such cases, psychological counseling for the infected person and his or her family is in order. 

“As a psychologist, I’m in favor of disseminating information about the virus,” said García. “I think prevention of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases is the best way to face this problem. I encourage people to be tested if they have had sexual activity with a new partner or several partners. Some public and private health centers use the oral HIV test; others take a blood sample and run the ELISA and, if necessary, Western Blot.” 

Those who are found to be positive for HIV should begin taking antiretroviral (ARV) drugs to lessen the effects of the virus on the immune system. This is a very expensive medicine. Those who have medical insurance such as IMSS, ISSTE or Seguro Popular can receive help at the closest health center. For those without insurance, CAPASITS are free medical centers specializing in sexually transmitted diseases. In the state of Guanajuato the centers are located in León, Irapuato and Celaya. To be eligible for care at CAPASITS, one must first go to the local health center and the Sanitary Jurisdiction.

Changing demographics of AIDS

According to information provided by Benjamín García, statistics show that in the decades since the AIDS epidemic began, more gay men, among whom the incidence of HIV was initially highest in North America, have been having protected sex. An increasing problem now is the rise in the number of women and heterosexual men with HIV,” said García. “Women whose partners had emigrated to other countries are more vulnerable to becoming infected because men tend to have different sexual partners. When they return home, they do not use condoms when having sex with their wives or partners because that could imply they have not been faithful. Usually, when heterosexual men use condoms it is to prevent pregnancy, not the spread of disease. Married men who have occasional sex with other men or women often do not use protection when having sex with their wives. This situation has favored an increase in the number of women infected with HIV.” 

HIV/AIDS Statistics

According to www.censida.salud.gob.mx  , the following 10 states in Mexico have the highest number of people diagnosed with HIV:

HIV-positive population, 1995–2007 

Baja California 2,027 

Chiapas 1,403 

Chihuahua 1,569 

Distrito Federal 7,430 

Guerrero 1,582 

Mexico 2,344 

Nuevo León 1,573 

Oaxaca 1,375 

Puebla 1,569 

Veracruz 4,449 



Number diagnosed with HIV in 2007 

Baja California 64 

Chiapas 109 

Chihuahua 61 

Distrito Federal 214 

Guerrero 19 

Mexico 98 

Nuevo León 63 

Oaxaca 49 

Puebla 74

Veracruz 268 



State of Guanajuato

HIV-positive population, 1995–2007 821

Number diagnosed with HIV in 2007 38



For detailed information, see www.censida.salud.gob.mx, www.unaids.org , www.who.int  and www.aids.gov. 

Economic crisis not new in Mexico
By Jesús Ibarra

Atención asked some residents whether they are being affected by the world economic crisis. Some think the crisis is nothing new in Mexico. 

Javier Sainz, Spanish resident, three years in San Miguel

I think the crisis has not yet hit Mexico. As it is a developing country, it will not be hit so hard as countries in Europe. In Spain, some companies have already closed and thousands of employees have been fired. In Spain, there are higher salaries but everything is more expensive. My wife is Mexican and we have a higher standard of living in Mexico, with lower salaries, than if we lived in Spain with a better income.


Gerardo López, taxi driver

I feel the crisis in the gasoline price increase. I used to run from 6am to 4pm with 80 or 90 pesos. Now, I have to buy 130 pesos of gasoline to run that schedule. The gasoline has increased and we have less work, since the crisis in the US has directly affected San Miguel because we depend on tourism. There are, indeed, fewer tourists in San Miguel and less work for us. 


Yolanda Urcid, housewife

Almost all basic products at the markets have increased. We are paying 10 pesos for a kilo of tortillas. Butane increases each month.


José Antonio Rosales, employee

I think the economic crisis is not new. They have not increased salaries in my job for three years, but it is very hard to find another job these days, so that is why I am still there. 


Gerardo Ibarra, architect

I’m a tourist here in San Miguel. The crisis is serious. In the construction company, we have fired more than 40 employees, even professionals, because we do not have enough work to keep all those employees. 


Héctor González Cano, self-employed

I feel the crisis in the gasoline price increase. I used to run my car a whole week with only 100 pesos. Now, I need to buy more gasoline in the middle of the week. I think the crisis will affect the whole country because we depend for many things on the US economy. 


Juan Ortiz, café owner

Although most of my clients are Americans, the economic crisis has not yet reached my business. Most of the Americans are retired and as they are not working, they have their money safe. The high season is just beginning, but I think this year we will have fewer Americans. I think the crisis has not yet hit San Miguel, but in about six months, it will be very hard. Mexican workers who have been fired in the US will come back and this will increase unemployment and criminality. 


Silvia Cañas, secretary

I have always been in an economic crisis. Money is never enough. While salaries remain the same, everything increases. Even public transport increases. Buses now charge 5 pesos and taxis are no longer charging 20 pesos; they charge minimum 25 wherever they take you. 


Gonzalo Martínez, unemployed

I have been unemployed for almost a year and it has been very difficult to find another job. For this reason I could not pay my car tax. I have not paid in two years and now the government is forcing us to change plates and in this way they are forcing us to pay the tax. I cannot afford it. I will have to sell my car. 


Paul Colaneri, American resident

I don’t live on credit. I’m not in debt to anyone, so I’m not really affected. The only way I was affected was that I exchanged American dollars for pesos about six months ago at 10, and now it is 12.80. Now I cannot switch anything back into dollars if I need dollars, because now I will lose 30 percent. I think people living on credit are the ones who are really affected: Mexico will be affected because it is a part of the American economy. I heard about two months ago that the General Motors plant in Silao fired 500 workers. Americans are reluctant to spend money now. Some friends of mine who have a gallery here are not buying art. Maybe it will take about a year for things to start recovering. 

6,000 scholarships awarded

Authorities from five nearby municipalities and from the state government, headed by governor Juan Manuel Oliva Ramírez, met in San Miguel de Allende to award 6,000 scholarships from the state program Contigo vamos a la escuela (With you, we go to school). San Miguel’s mayor, Jesús Correa, said that education is a determinant factor that brings development and liberty, and he notes the importance to work for a safe and educated Mexico. 

After awarding 20 scholarships to students from San Miguel, Dolores Hidalgo, San Felipe, San Diego de la Unión and Ocampo, Governor Oliva announced that the program Contigo vamos a la escuela has granted more than 200 million pesos in scholarships during 2008. 

Prizes for artisans in the Wool and Brass Fair



The winner of the First Local Contest of Metal, Brass and Wool of San Miguel de Allende, a part of the Wool and Brass fair, received 10,000 pesos. Héctor Bustamante won first prize with a work made of tin and bronze called Viva la Música. Cecilio Hernández won second place and 5,000 pesos with Pirámide de Rosas (Rose Pyramid). Raúl Reyna claimed third place and 3,000 pesos for Charro y Caballo (Charro and Horse). 

For the selection, the judges considered originality, difficulty of design and detail of works. Eleven artisans participated with pieces which had never appeared before in a contest. The jury was Luz María López Andrade, head of the promotion office of COFOCE in San Miguel; Luis Gerónimo Gómez, head of the marketing office of COFOCE in León; artisan Paulo Cortés and Lorena Vega from LANART. 

Va Por San Miguel meeting



The board of directors of Va por San Miguel de Allende, invite you to the December public meeting to share with you its Annual Report and the challenges regarding the protection of San Miguel’s natural and cultural heritage and its surrounding region.

The meeting is Friday, November 28, 7pm at Teatro Santa Ana in the Biblioteca Publica.

You can also follow this meeting on your local radio station XESQ, 1280AM at 7:30pm. 

Your participation is important! We would like to join your voice with ours.