This article is part of a series that supports the Heritage & Handicrafts: OAXACA project, a community-based project that aims to deepen connections between cultural heritage handicraft entrepreneurs in Mexico and markets for their goods.
In the heart of Mexico beats a tradition that fuses movement and melody in a unique expression of cultural identity: the Feather Dance (Danza de la Pluma), a vibrant, centuries-old tradition from the Central Valleys of Oaxaca. To understand the Feather Dance in its entirety, we must go back to its pre-Hispanic roots.
Before the arrival of the Spanish, dance and music were fundamental elements in the spiritual life of Mesoamerican peoples. Although we do not have written records of the music from that time, the instruments that have survived and traditions that have been passed down give us clues about how it sounded.
In the city of Monte Alban, an important archaeological site in Oaxaca, archeologists have found depictions of dancers and several instruments carved into stone slabs. One can see pictures of the marine conch (atecocoli in the Nahuatl language), the bone scraper (tzicahuaztli), drums (huehuetl), and whistles (tlapitzalli). These artifacts, along with others like the teponaztli (horizontal wooden drum), the ocarina, and the rattle (ayacachtli), are part of the rich pre-Columbian musical heritage of the region.
The lone tzicahuaztli or another huehuetl drum discovered in a Zapotec ceremonial site can set the scene. Imagine the beginning of a song with the rasping rattle of a chicahuaztli (rattle staff), echoing like the first drops of rain on dry earth. Picture a group of dancers in elaborate quetzal-feathered headdresses and embroidered cotton tunics, as carved onto a local stela, leaping and then twirling. Here comes the rising of the teponaztli’s wooden beat, or possibly the conch shell’s haunting call. We may not have recordings, but the beginning of the Dance of the Feather is not all lost.
The Meeting of Two Worlds
With the arrival of the Spanish in the sixteenth century, a cultural clash occurred that would forever transform Indigenous traditions in Mesoamerica. Dominican friars, observing the expressions of music and dance during pre-Hispanic festivities, saw in them an opportunity for evangelization. Around 1700, they created the Dominican Gracida codex, a historical manuscript depicting an epic narrative of the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire. This resource is about the ancient dance of the Mexica people, but it was written by colonists from a colonial and missionary perspective.
Unlike other now well-established codices, such as the Florentine Codex and Codex Mendoza, the Dominican Gracida codex includes guidance on dance and music and seems to be a localized Dominican effort to reinterpret Indigenous traditions. Where the dancers once represented spiritual beings, the codex places them in the role of human warriors, and figures like Hernán Cortés play a central role. The reinterpretation may have been a method to make Indigenous dance a tool for religious instruction.
Although it is an invaluable testimony of how the Spanish tried to use Indigenous traditions for their evangelizing purposes, the codex also plays an important part of the modern tradition. It functions as a script for Dance of the Feather dance masters, detailing decorations, dance timing, choir interventions, and suggestions for sound effects. Within its text several important elements are mentioned, such as quetzal-feathered headdresses, cotton tunics embroidered with sacred symbols, and sandals.
In its current form, the dance is much more than a simple show. It is a complex theatrical representation that symbolizes the encounter between Spaniards and Aztecs.
The dancers are divided into two groups of nine characters each. One group represents the Spanish, and the other represents the Aztecs. The Spanish group includes figures such as Hernán Cortés, Pedro de Alvarado, pages, and soldiers. The Aztec group is led by Emperor Moctezuma, accompanied by teotiles (priests), captains, and kings.
“The dance begins with the presentation of the dancers,” composer Alberto Zapata Salazar explains. “Moctezuma’s movements are particularly significant. His turns represent the rotation of the Earth, while the feather headdress alludes to the universe and the sun, evoking pre-Hispanic deities.”
This symbolism is reflected in the music. The piece “Registro,” which starts the dance, presents an ascending musical motif that seems to propel the dancers upward, as if they were reaching for the sky. In contrast, “Marcha de Cortés” is slower and heavier, suggesting the belligerence of the Spanish conquistadors.
In addition to a reimagining of the Dance of the Feather, or what could be considered as the creation of the Dance of the Conquest, other aspects of Oaxacan arts changed during this period. The musical chapels of the cathedrals became centers of musical production and dissemination, both sacred and secular, becoming the space of production for large community celebrations. The Oaxaca Cathedral was central to this.
“In Oaxaca, the cathedral chapel had a prominent presence,” Zapata comments. “It had notable musicians such as Juan Matías, a Zapotec musician, who was appointed chapel director in 1665. It was unusual for the time for an Indigenous person to achieve this role.”
Today, the number of songs that accompany the Dance of the Feather differs from community to community, but it usually includes fourteen to sixteen. Although it is unknown who composed the original music, the archives of the Oaxaca Cathedral reveal the work of composers like Manuel de Zumaya, Gaspar Fernández, and Juan Mathias de los Reyes, offering a fascinating view of colonial musical life in Oaxaca. The work that is left is filled with the rich fusion of Indigenous sensibility and European technique.
“It’s interesting to note that most of the scores we perform don’t have a known author,” says Cruz Merlín, music teacher and director of the Initial Music Training Center in Villa de Zaachila. “They are pieces that have been passed down from generation to generation. However, we know of three dances composed by Cipriano Pérez Serna, a musician from Zaachila.”
As the centuries passed, the Feather Dance evolved, incorporating new musical and choreographic elements. Merlín offers a perspective on the current music that accompanies the dance: “The music we hear today in the Feather Dance is a fascinating mix of popular European genres from the nineteenth century. We have sones, waltzes, schottisches, mazurkas, polkas, rolls, and marches, reflecting French and Spanish influences.”
Today, the bands accompanying the dance include saxophones, clarinets, trumpets, euphoniums, trombones, tubas, flutes, drums, and cymbals, reminiscent of the French military bands that were in Mexico during the nineteenth century.
Preservation of the Feather Symphony
Today, the Feather Dance is a central element in the celebrations of the Guelaguetza, the most important cultural festival in Oaxaca. However, as Merlín points out, what is seen in the Guelaguetza is a simplified version.
“In Zaachila, during our patron saint festival, the dance is performed for three full days,” he says. “It’s a much more immersive and profound experience than what can be seen in the Guelaguetza.”
The preservation of this tradition is not without challenges. Arturo Hernández, a dancer from the community of Teotitlán del Valle, shares his perspective: “Being a feather dancer is a lifelong commitment. It requires years of physical and spiritual preparation. Every time we put on the headdress, we’re not just dancing—we’re connecting with our ancestors and our history.”
But Hernández expresses concern for the future of the dance: “Fewer and fewer young people are interested in learning. They fear it will interfere with their studies or jobs. But for us, it’s fundamental to keep this legacy alive.”
Merlín argues that its preservation and rescue is possible through community education. Thanks to the vision and dedication of teachers and community members like Merlín, and with the support of the local Catholic parish in Zaachila, the Initial Music Training Center (CFIM) launched in 2020. The nonprofit focuses on intergenerational education and promotes the transmission of musical knowledge and traditional practices of Zaachila, including the music and story of the Feather Dance.
CFIM uses music as the foundation for personal and community growth. The curriculum also incorporates the Zapotec language as it aims to strengthen traditional cultural practices and identity in Zaachila and its surrounding communities. Students attend classes, host workshops, participate in local performances and events, and collaborate with other musical and cultural organizations. Through CFIM’s work, students learn valuable skills beyond reading and playing music and remain connected to their heritage.
The symphony of feathers that resonates in Oaxaca is much more than a simple melody; it is the voice of a people that has resisted and flourished through the centuries. From the ancestral echoes of the teponaztlis and huehuetls to the vibrant contemporary bands, the music of the Feather Dance has evolved but has never lost its essence. In every note that accompany the dancers today, we can hear the heartbeat of Oaxacan history. It is a testimony of cultural resistance, a harmonious fusion of Indigenous and European elements that defies the passage of time.
The Feather Dance and its music remind us that culture is a living organism, constantly evolving. Each performance, each note played, is an act of preservation and renewal. It is a call to new generations to keep this tradition alive, to continue writing new chapters in this centuries-old symphony.
Fernando Gumeta-Gómez is a researcher with the Secretary of Science, Humanities, Technology, and Innovation of Mexico, working at the Interdisciplinary Research Center for Regional Integral Development Oaxaca Unit of the National Polytechnic Institute.
Mario Vázquez-Morillas is a cultural manager, educator, and performing artist with experience in interdisciplinary projects connecting arts, education, and community. He holds a doctorate of musical arts from Arizona State University.
Alberto Zapata is a Colombian Mexican composer. He holds a degree in musical composition from the National Autonomous University of Mexico.
Cruz Merlin Robles is the academic director and professor at the Initial Music Training Center (CFIM) in Zaachila. He holds a bachelor’s degree in music performance from UABJO.
