Southwest Wedding Traditions
Posted on September 9, 2008
None of the photographers in Screaming Light are native to Las Cruces or El Paso. We’ve been living in the borderland for a few years, and it’s already become our home, but all 3 of us grew up (and started photographing weddings) in the Midwest. We’ve noticed a few distinctive traditions since we started Screaming Light. Here are some of the ones we’ve seen already – how many more do you know?
The Lasso (El Lazo)
As part of the wedding ceremony, a large loop of rosary beads, a jeweled rope, or (occasionally) a literal lasso, is placed in a figure eight shape around the necks of the couple after they have exchanged their vows, to symbolize unity. The binding cord may also be made of entwined orange blossoms, which symbolize fertility and happiness. If a double rosary lasso is used, it is traditionally given by one set of parents, and it may be blessed with holy water three times in honor of the trinity.
A specially designated attendant, the madrina or padrino de laso, carries the lasso to the alter and places it around the shoulders of the bride and groom, groom’s shoulder’s first. (Sometimes, a happily-married couple perform this service together, thereby transferring some portion of their martial bliss to the newlyweds.) The lasso may also be tied around the wrists of the newlyweds. Either way, the couple wears the lasso throughout the remainder of the service. The loop is symbolic of their love which should bind the couple together every day, as they equally share the responsibility of marriage for the rest of their lives.
At the end of the ceremony, the lasso may be removed by either the person or couple who placed the lasso on the newlyweds, or by the priest. The lasso is given to the bride as a symbol of her new status as the mistress of the groom’s heart and home.
La Marcha
La Marcha is a traditional wedding dance. In form, it is similar to follow the leader. The dance starts with the wedding party, friends and family lined up as couples. The bride and groom may be second in line or at the the end of the line, but the leaders are traditionally the matriarch of the family and her husband. (At one wedding we photographed, the aunt and uncle who led the dance had been performing that service at every family wedding for 30+ years.) The music, in this area at least, is La Marcha de Zacatecas; there are as many variation in this song as there are groups playing it; but here’s one sample: La Marcha de Zacatecas [MP3]
La Marcha starts as a long chain of couples of two. To start the dance, everyone dances around the room in a circle, which signifies life. Soon, the couples split apart; the men go to one side of the room and the women to the other. This represents the first fight between the bride and groom. Each couple soon comes back together, representing the bride and groom making up. The dancers next join together in groups of four or more, signifying the growth of the family. Then, a single line forms and snakes around the room, showing the twists and turns of life. At some time during the dance (the timing varies from family to family), the couples join hands over their heads in a bridge, representing the bridges that must be built in life; this may also signify the Tunnel of Love (since the newlyweds pass under, and then become part of, the bridge of joined hands). At the end, everyone makes a circle around the bride and groom, showing their love and support of the newlywed couple.
Biscochos
These anise-and-cinnamon-flavored shortbread cookies are a staple at every wedding, quinceañera, baptism, holiday and celebration throughout the southwest, and are enjoyed throughout the country and the world. For weddings, they are usually cut into diamonds to signify purity, and dusted with powdered sugar to turn them white.
Spanish explorers brought the biscocho with them to Mexico in the 16th century. As the recipes took hold in the new land, the cookies became associated with special occasions, weddings, quinceañeras, baptisms and religious holidays because certain spices used in the recipe were rare and had to be imported from Spain. Ships carrying these spices arrived on the coast of Mexico just prior to Christmas.
These cookies have many regional names. In northern New Mexico they are known as Biscochitos; in Southern New Mexico, Biscochos. In Spain they are called Mantecosos. In other parts of the United States, they may be found as Polvorones or Mexican Wedding Cookies. In 1989 The New Mexico State Legislature, after much debate about the spelling, adopted them as the Official State Cookie under the name “Bizcochito”.
[[All information in this section is taken from Ositos Biscochitos Bakery in Las Cruces, with the kind permission of Diane Porras, Owner.]]
Mariachis
It seems no wedding is complete without one of these groups of colorfully-dressed musicians. According to Wikipedia, usually a mariachi consists of at least three violins, two trumpets, one Mexican guitar, one vihuela (a high-pitched, five-string guitar) and one guitarrón (a small-scaled acoustic bass). (We’ve seen other types of groups, from a string trio to a brass band, referred to as mariachi – locally, it seems to be more about their music than the band’s members.) The more traditional groups often dress in matching, silver-studded charro outfits, sometimes with matching sombrero or other wide-brimmed hats.
Mariachi may make an appearance while the guests are being seated before the wedding, during the wedding ceremony, or at the reception. (If they are at the reception, they may play for La Marcha.) Whenever they appear, they are often expected at a traditional Mexican wedding celebration, and may be commented on if absent.
Can you please tell me how to find a resource to learn how to do the La Marcha? We live in Phoenix, Arizona and I am not sure who to ask. I have not had much luck with family and friends that I thought would be able to assist.
Thank you,
Patty
@Patty, Here’s a link to an eHow guide on the pattern: http://www.ehow.com/how_2076259_lead-grand-march-wedding.html I can’t seem to find a good video of the dance; you’d almost have to shoot from above the dance floor to show the whole thing. It’s always a challenge to shoot stills of this dance from ground level, and the videographers seem to have the same problems. I just edited the article to include the music most often used around here, which I just tracked down while looking for the answer to your question.