Garza ready for the stage tonight

SAN BENITO — Ruben Garza was born in Harlingen on July 8, 1948. As a teenager he began playing with Conjunto Hermanos Ramos and would also jam with other conjunto artists like Chuy Villegas, Martin Zapata and Issac Villegas.

As many other conjunto musicians, Ruben would also follow the migrant stream and traveled to Lubbock to pick cotton and Traverse City, Michigan, to pick cherries. It was in Traverse City that he met Cali Carranza and would play on weekends with the Carranzas.

It was at the age of 19 years old that a dream he had was fulfilled when the great conjunto artist Ruben Vela asked him to join his conjunto as the bajo sexto player.

Ruben Vela was at the peak of a great career and Ruben at a young age was going to play and tour the U.S. alongside Ruben Vela.

It was during these formative years that Ruben was to meet and learn from other master bajo sexto players like Eloy Bernal, Adan de la Rosa and Amadeo Flores.

From them Ruben would learn “pizaditas” musical riffs that would improve his musical talent. Ruben played with Ruben Vela until 1978.

He became friends with the late Gilberto Garcia of Los Dos Gilbertos, because “everywhere we played, he would greet us.”

Garza told Garcia if he ever needed a bajo sexto player and vocalist to give him a call. There came a time when Garcia needed a bajo sexto player, and Garcia invited him to be a part of Los Dos Gilbertos. Despite not having the “Gilberto” name, he became an honorary “Gilberto.”

In 1978 Garza joined Los Dos Gilbertos and it was Garza who would become the other major face of “Los Dos Gilbertos” as the bajo sexto player and first voice. Garcia and Garza were now known as Los Dos Gilbertos, as a new duo their first hit was “El Rosalito.”

The style of music the duo produced has been referred to as “Conjunto Fino” for its refined sound, not only for dancing, but for listening. Together the duo won two Tejano Music Awards and garnered a Grammy nomination.

Ruben continued to play with Los Dos Gilbertos until September 2015, when his longtime musical partner Gilberto Garcia suddenly passed away.

Ruben has his own conjunto, Ruben Garza y La Nueva Era Musical and continues with success he had with Ruben Vela and Gilberto Garcia.

His motto is simple and sincere and passionately lives by it, “Cuando le metes el corazon y el alma a la melodia todo va a salir bien” (when you put your heart and soul into the melody it will always come out good).

Ruben Garza has played the bajo sexto professionally for over 50 years, has recorded over 30 albums, and has been inducted into the Tejano Roots Hall of Fame in Alice, Texas and the Texas Conjunto Hall of Fame in San Benito.