Our Purpose

• To promote and develop a cultural interest in music; focusing on popular, semi-classical, and folkloric Latin music.

• To provide training in the performing arts.

• To provide year-round activity for youth.

• To preserve the Heritage of the Mexican Culture.

• To produce and present, publicly and privately, programs that focus on the purposes of the corporation.

• To raise funds as to be able to carry the purposes of the corporation.

Our Work

To achieve our goal, we coordinate the talent of volunteers interested in representing our traditions in our community and preserving cultural values that are passed down through generations. 

The founder of Cuerdas Clasicas is Rodolfo Hernandez, who in the year 1976, gathered together a group of students whose only medium was their instruments and their desire to elevate the arts. Those youngsters propelled themselves with their mandolins, guitars, lutes, bandurrias, and stand bass, and demonstrated their capacity and professionalism.

To this day, Mr. Hernandez leads the education efforts at local organizations and churches, such as Casa Guanajuato in Chicago and St. Odilo Church in Berwyn. Mr. Hernandez is also an active member of the artistic community in Chicago, as he has performed with Cuerdas Clasicas at prestigious locations including The Art Institute of Chicago, The Field Museum, National Museum of Mexican Art and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, just to name a few.

Cuerdas Clasicas performs a variety of musical works, both instrumental and vocal. Some are traditional Latin music, while others are classical works by composers such as Mozart, Vivaldi, Strauss, Johan Sebastian Bach, and Edward Grieg, all of which are characterized by pick instruments such as the mandolin, the bandurria, the lute, the bass, and of course, the classical guitar.

The expansion of the group on a cultural level has been achieved with various television appearances, two first prize awards in artistic competitions, two reviews as the best cultural instrumental group, five records, special invitations to perform in Spain and Mexico, and best of all, the continuos support of our audience over the past 40 years.