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Jose Maria was a "compañero de músicos"; that is, he loved music and musicians
and befriended all the good musicians that came into town. He liked the
Hernández family very much - so much so that the marriage of Cenobio and Herlinda
was an arranged affair. Although she was sixteen and he was thirty-three,
arrangements such as this were not unheard of during these times. So, Herlinda
and Cenobio were married and had nine children during their life together.
Don Everardo Hernández Charles was a musician who played French horn in the
symphony and for the silent movies in San Antonio. Sometime between 1915 and 1917,
he crossed into Mexico to visit some friends. It was at this time that he heard
of the Hernández family and was eventually introduced to them. He immediately
became a big fan of theirs. He loved their music and respected their talent so
much that he was constantly encouraging them to go to the U.S. to live and
perform. Cenobio and Aniceto were reluctant at first, but when Don Everardo
assured them that he had the contacts and that he was certain that they would
do more than well, they reconsidered. The Mexican Revolution was also a major
factor. (There is a story that was passed on about a lieutenant of Pancho Villa's
army who had come to the Hernández house and asked Herlinda if he could walk
through her house to the back so that he could shoot a sniper that was shooting
at his men. He did so and politely said thank you and left.) So Don Everardo's
invitation to the Hernández family was a timely one.
Aniceto went first. He returned for Cenobio, and both families crossed over to the
United States sometime between 1919 and 1920. By this time Herlinda had given birth
to Dolores, Alfredo, Andres and Cenobio (the second). Ramiro was born on the way,
in Piedras Negras (on the border of Mexico and U.S.) . I can only imagine. They were
on an adventure to a new world and on the road to a new life.
From 1921 to 1926, Aniceto and Cenobio played and arranged music in the Palace, Realto, and
Majestic Theaters for the silent movies. They also played in the symphony, and
for other orchestral events, at the Municipal Auditorium. In 1927, they played and
arranged for the silent movies at the Liberty Theater, in
Beaumont, TX.
They had become what my aunt called, "Big Time Musicians"; for they were
prosperous and lived well during these times, playing mostly prestigious type jobs.
The job at the Liberty Theater in Beaumont, was the last place Aniceto and
Cenobio played together. Aniceto longed to live by the ocean, so he moved toward
the coast and eventually settled in Bay City, TX, while Cenobio returned to
San Antonio.
Though work was prosperous, the twenties were not entirely a gay time for the
family, as two of the children passed away leaving the family extremely
broken-hearted. Alfredo, an aspiring musician who played violin and trombone,
died in 1924 of meningitis. His older sister, Dolores, died of double pneumonia
shortly after.
In 1929, there were two things that would occur that would change the lives of the
Hernández family. The first was the Stock Market Crash of 1929. The second was the
arrival of the "Talkies". The talking pictures came with their own pre-recorded
soundtracks, which put musicians who worked in the theaters for the silent movies
out of business.
With the arrival of the Great Depression, the Hernández family, like so many others,
hit on hard times. With no work in the theaters, Cenobio had to find another way of
taking care of his family, and by this time, the family had grown bigger by four
children. Despite the loss of two of the children, there were still three girls and
four boys to feed. So, out of necessity, Cenobio and Herlinda decided to go to the
fields. They became migrant workers, picking everything that needed to be picked.
They picked beets, apples, cotton and strawberries. They went wherever there was
work. At times, Aniceto and his family would join them on the road. They worked
mostly in Texas, around Bryan, San Angelo, the Houston area, and as far away as
Michigan. They also took jobs serenading along the way. They were well received
wherever they went because of the music they brought along with them. In fact, a
Mr. Erlich, from Rosenburg, TX, was so impressed that he wanted them to stay to
work and live there with him and his family. There is another story of a nice
elderly couple who wanted to adopt Ramiro, because he was such a cute kid and very
talented on the violin. Herlinda laughed and told her friends, "es loca esta señora
o que?" (Is she crazy or what?) Everybody loved the family.
It took another death to bring the family back to San Antonio to stay. Maria Elena,
their youngest daughter, died in Bryan, which caused Herlinda to say,
"enough is enough". They buried her there, and returned home to San Antonio to
settle down.
For whatever reason, whether it was the toll of the role as migrant worker, or the
racial discrimination that was prevalent at that time, or the arrival of younger
musicians, Cenobio never returned to the success he had had before the "Crash" and
the "Talkies". Times were hard and everybody did what they could to help out.
Cenobio worked for a man who owned a furniture store and published sheet music in
San Antonio. He would write out the musical scores of the popular songs that were
recorded on record, and the furniture store owner would then send the sheet music
off to customers who requested them. Don Cenobio would sit at his desk, with pencil
in hand, and transcribe the music off a record, as his daughter, Chabela would play
the record, in a stop and start fashion, until he would get all the music down on
paper. Then he would copy the music, in pen, for a finished version. He would also
work copying music transcripts, arrangements, and serenades. His calligraphy was
perfect, and because of this, the owner did well in his sheet music department.
Business was not one of Don Cenobio's better traits. Thus, he was paid minimal
for his talent and hard work.
While Don Cenobio worked as a copyist and music instructor, the children went to
school and picked up whatever jobs they could to help out. Doña Herlinda, who was
fifteen years younger, was a strong woman. Despite the fact that she couldn't read
or write, she would manage the money and keep the household together. She was a
great organizer and took good care of her husband as he grew older.
Andres, the eldest, did not go into music. He did his part in helping and
contributing to the family all along, especially when he was young, picking up
odd jobs or whatever he could to help out. He eventually got married and started a
family. He had an interest in building things and working with machines, which came
in handy when he joined the army and served in WW II.
As mentioned earlier, Alfredo, who was the first musician in the family, died of
meningitis. His older sister, Dolores, died of double pneumonia, shortly after.
This happened in the mid twenties.
Cenobio (the second), learned the French horn in high school and soon after
picked up the bass. He excelled as an artist, and he had a passion for books,
which led him to work as a clerk in a bookstore. He got married, started a family,
and also enlisted in the army and was off to the war in Europe. Upon his return,
he played in dance bands, mostly as a sideline. He did the art work for the covers
(title pages) of his father's music.
Although Chabela studied piano, she mainly helped her mother take care of the
household, which was a chore in itself. She also assisted her father when he was
writing and arranging music.
Maria Elena, their youngest, died in Bryan, TX. while they were working the
migrant jobs on the road. Margarita, the second youngest, studied piano and
was very talented. In 1938, she died at the age of twelve of double pneumonia.
The deaths of Maria Elena and then Margarita dealt yet another blow to the Hernández
family, but their spirit helped them to continue on.
Ramiro and Rodolfo (Rudy) were the serious musicians in the family. Ramiro played
violin and all the reed instruments. He was trained in classical and jazz music.
Ramiro was said to have been the most accomplished because he could play whatever
was put in front of him, and he was blessed with the gift of improvisation. He
played at the Alameda Theater for the traveling vaudeville shows that would bring
in major "stars" from Mexico. He would play classical music at the prestigious
St. Anthony Hotel and then turn around and play taxi dances down the street. On
occasion, he would fill in with Emilio Caseres and his band, which would prompt
people to call him "Emilianito" because his style was much like the greater known
band leader. Ramiro would play music every waking hour of the day, and was not in
the best of health. He was married, and had been working in Florida for about a
year, when he became seriously ill. Upon returning to San Antonio, he contracted
tuberculosis and died at the age of twenty-seven on June 2, 1943.
Rudy played the trombone, cello, and bass. In his early years, he played in one
of the symphony orchestras in San Antonio. During the war, he played in the army
band overseas. After the war, like his brothers Andy and Cenobio, he held a civil
service job and raised a family. Aside from that he worked all facets of musical
employment: shows, big band, cocktail and classical music, whatever the union would
get him. One thing people will always remember about him was the way he played the
cello. He had a sensitivity with which he played the music and the instrument. He
died in 1970, at the age of forty-seven.
Don Cenobio composed the majority of his music during the last ten years of his life.
Although he composed mostly in San Antonio, there are several pieces dated and
written in Bay City, TX. Since his brother had settled there, he would travel
there often to visit. He was so fascinated with the little town and so very fond
of his brother's family, that he wrote songs for almost everybody he met: the
nephews, their wives, their children, their friends. He even wrote a song for the
restaurant they operated and owned called "El Zarape."
Based upon the dates on the sheet music, he wrote steadily
from 1942 to 1948. During this time he composed forty-two waltzes,
thirty-two polkas, three on-step pieces, one schottische, one
march, one danzon, two danzas, and two concertos for cello and
piano, with one of these arranged and orchestrated for symphony.
The original ideas were written on paper bags and such. Using
a pencil, he would draw the lines for treble and bass clefs
on paper bags or blank pieces of paper, and then proceed to
scribble out the melody and accompaniment. Then, he would copy
the songs perfectly onto manuscript paper in pen. His daughter,
Chabelita, recalls him going through this process countless
times, by candlelight, in the early mornings. The oldest piece
found was written in Mexico, and is dated 1896. Maestro Hernández
died in his home in San Antonio in 1950, at the age of 87.
And there you have it. The essential story of Don Cenobio Hernández,
"truly one of San Antonio's great unsung composers." His music is a
reminiscence of his years with the silent movies. The pieces are reflections
of the drama that unfolded in his life, and they tell stories all their own.
So close your eyes and listen to the heart and soul of this humble musician,
composer and teacher, and watch the movies that unfold in the theater of your
imagination.
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