Phoenix Benavidez stole the hearts of many during a recent production of Rocky Mountain Rhythm in the Buell Communications Center at Colorado State University Pueblo.

The 8-year-old girl is a member of her family’s mariachi band and has been playing instruments since she was 4 years old. They are called Mariachi Diamente. The group was the second performance of the night on Feb. 15, following another Pueblo band called The Ragetones.

“I like it is because I get to play my favorite instrument with my family and my friends and I also get to travel to every place,” Phoenix said.

Rocky Mountain Rhythm is a live recording session and concert featuring local bands. It is a continuation of last semester’s production. Originally led by recent graduate Nathan Martin, the project is now a part of senior Media and Entertainment student Dave Moody’s Capstone project.

Mariachi Diamente is directed by Phoenix ’s father, David Benavidez. He has been playing for almost 15 years in Pueblo studying mariachi music and trying many different projects. Mariachi Diamente has been a musical ensemble for the past three years and according to Benavidez, it has been consistent and successful.

“We play many private events, and we involve ourselves in the restaurant scene,” he said.

The group performs in Pueblo on Wednesdays at Mi Ranchito “The Original” Mexican Restaurant on Highway 50 and on Sundays at Los Girasoles Mexican Restaurant.

“On other days of the week we’ll just skip around and find where the people are and play for tips and really go out there and play for the people of Pueblo,” said David.

There were seven performers in the group that took the stage in the Buell Communications Center. The performance was audio- and video-recorded with the assistance of SOCO Student Media and faculty within the Department of Media and Entertainment.

If the performers wanted to re-do anything or start a song over, they were allowed to do so for their recording purposes. Benavidez and Phoenix were both excited about the recording of their performance as a band.

“I think this is a very nice segway into that style of playing for us which would probably help us to reach a larger audience,” said David.

According to her father, Phoenix has won several competitions. Recently, she won the category “Children’s Song of the Year” with her performance of “El Toro Relajo” at the 33rd Annual New Mexico Hispano Music Awards in January.

Albuquerque is Phoenix ’s favorite place to perform. According to Benavidez, the group will travel there to participate in mariachi workshops and competitions.

“What I would like for people to know is that this is something that we put a lot of time and effort into. We really do try to respect the music and the culture that is represented with Mariachi, and I think that if we can get people to feel the same way that we do about the music, even if it’s one, I think we’ll make steps one person at a time,” said David.

In between songs during the performance, Benavidez talked to the audience and shared stories about the music and about the group personally.

After the performance, Phoenix said, “It felt lively, and I loved it.”

Phoenix wasn’t the only one who enjoyed the performance. Alegría Ribadeneira is a distinguished professor and serves as chair of the English and World Languages Department at CSU Pueblo. She shared her reaction to Mariachi Diamante’s performance:

“There were two trains of thought going through my head. The first one was just absolute amazement at the ability of the group as a whole and of course specifically of that little girl who is just incredible. Not only is her voice incredibly strong, but you can tell that she trains it. Just like her dad was saying, the natural ability combined with the craft that she was exhibiting at only 8 years old, and then the beauty of the whole group behind her coming together to feature her, but then also taking turns to feature each one of the members. I found that beautiful.

“At a personal level, having grown up with this type of music in my house since I was little and recognizing so many of the songs that they were singing, and thinking about me when I was a little girl singing with my mom, and her not being with me anymore, it just really connected me to what they were singing and the way the whole family was interacting. Both at a professional and personal level, it was an incredibly touching performance,” said Ribadeneira.

The next Rocky Mountain Rhythm will take place this upcoming Saturday night. The event is open to the public and free to attend.