Mariachi both countries, however, the learning of traditional pieces and repertory is still stressed to form a base. The International Mariachi Festival in Guadalajara is an annual ten-day event that attracts more than 500 mariachis, who perform in concert halls and city streets. Past players include Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán, Mariachi los Camperos (led by Nati Cano) and Mariachi América. In Mexico City, the center of mariachi music remains Garibaldi Plaza. The plaza fills with mariachi musicians to solicit gigs from individual songs for passers-by to being hired for events such as weddings and baptisms. They even stand on Eje Central
Mariachi of Mexican society in the early 20th century. This would change in the latter half of the 20th century, but the music remains strongly associated with tequila. Mariachi music and musician became more professional with more formal training starting in the late 1940s and early 1950s, principally due to the success of a major Mariachi by the name of Mariachi Vargas. Their appearance in many films, backing many singing stars and their hiring of a formal musician prompted other mariachis to do the same. The group also expanded adding trumpets, violins and even a classical guitar to become a kind