**This episode is in Spanish - please hit the 'CC' button the subtitles and make sure you've selected English in the settings button.**

I recently sat down for a chat with an amazing bajo sexto player in Ensenada, Mexico. Marco Polo is a well known bajo sexto player in Mexico and indeed the USA, and I wanted to learn all about his musical life, his instrument, his history and how the most populous music from Mexico, Norteño, was born and how it is played.

We also talk about his beautiful signature MP edition bajo sexto made by MPM in La Paz, his musical influences and all of his bands and recordings that he has been a part of.

I must admit I never expected to learn about the influence that Chick Corea's guitarist Frank Gambale has had on bajo sexto players, nor hear Ballade For Adeline played on a bajo sexto!

00:00 Performance ‘La Cantaleta’
00:38 Intro
01:08 History
02:10 How did you discover this instrument?
02:39 Requinto
03:25 Influences
04:34 First Bajo Sexto
05:57 Jesus Chuy Scott
07:19 Setting up ‘Picame Tarantula’
08:09 Performance ‘Picame Tarantula’
09:25 Learning the technique
11:19 Frank Gambale
13:10 Do you practice a lot?
15:19 Your first bands?
16:34 ‘Explosión Norteña’
18:46 ‘Jaguar Norteño’
19:46 ‘El Cholo’
19:59 Performance ‘El Cholo’
20:55 ‘Nueva Generación’
22:56 How long with these groups?
24:00 What is Norteño?
24:49 Oud
25:16 Tres Cubano
26:55 More than just Polkas
27:16 Corridos
29:27 Bajo Sexto is very easy to play
30:11 Common chords
32:00 Minor chords
32:55 The seventh or dominant chord
33:44 Performance
33:59 Norteño simple vs complicated.
34:14 Norteño of the past.
34:44 What Bajo Sexto players do you admire?
36:08 Performance: ‘Rinconcito En El Cielo’
36:59 What are your favorite songs/styles to play?
40:43 Are there women playing this instrument?
42:10 A bajo sexto with your own name?
44:41 This has one more fret.
46:35 Performance
48:30 Do you use this more for live or recording?
50:04 Who are you playing with now?
51:52 Performance ‘Ballade Pour Adeline’
53:40 Performance ‘La Cantaleta’
55:38 Wrap up.
56:15 Performance outro