Eva Ybarra

Eva Ybarra (born March 2, 1945) known as the "Queen of the Accordion", is a professional conjunto musician. Early life Ybarra was born on the west side of San Antonio, Texas, one of nine children. Her father was a truck driver. As a child, she played piano and accordion, later recounting: "I started by listening to the radio, and I learnt by ear, copying what I heard. But I didn't want to copy anyone, I wanted my own style." She performed locally and on the radio from a young age, and won her first record deal at age 14 with Rosina Records. Musical career Ybarra writes original music as the leader of the band Eva Ybarra y Su Conjunto. She is known for using non-standard chord progressions in her compositions. She has said about her style: "I use a lot of inversions and scales. Pentatonic scales. Major 9th chords...I go to dances and can play traditional for people to dance, but I prefer concerts where I can play progressive music." She performs on the accordion as well as the bajo sexto, guitarrón, electric bass, and keyboards. Her albums include A Mi San Antonio (1994), and Romance Inolvidable (Unforgettable Romance) (1996). They encompass several styles of music including rancheras, country songs, bolero tangos, huapangos, and ballads. Some of her well-known songs include "A mi San Antonio", "El gallito madrugador" (The Early Rising Rooster), "El perico loco" (The Crazy Parrot), and "A bailar con Eva" (Dance with Eva).