Mistresses of mariachi

Music in a man¿s world: Isabel Aguilar, with her hair tied back and large hoop earrings, performs confidently alongside her fellow mariachi musicians, all men, to a mostly male crowd at Plaza Garibaldi in Mexico City. -- AFP

Some women are defying the machismo of mariachi music in Mexico.

WITH her hair tied back, large hoop earrings and high heels, Isabel Aguilar stood confidently in front of her five fellow mariachi musicians, all men, and sang to a mostly male crowd in a Mexico City square.