Ronstadt and Sons: Keeping Family's Music and Stories Alive for Generations Past, Present and Future

Throughout the American Southwest, the Ronstadt family has long been known for their contributions to the cultural and commercial history of the region. From wagon-making, commerce, to pharmacies and music, this pioneering ranching family’s influence and contributions to Arizona’s history are chronicled in the library of the University of Arizona. Linda, the most famous of them all, became an internationally known singer of popular music and sold over 100 million records worldwide over a four-decade career.



Ronstadt Generations L-R: Petie, Michael G., and father Michael J. Ronstadt.

Today, a band bearing the Ronstadt name represents five generations in North America. Ronstadt Generations continues the family’s musical traditions with Linda’s younger brother Michael J. Ronstadt on guitar and vocals, and his sons, Michael Gilbert Ronstadt on cello and vocals, and Petie Ronstadt on guitar and vocals.

Multi-instrumentalists and solo performers in their own right, they present an exciting repertoire that preserves the traditional Southwestern and Mexican songs of their heritage while offering innovative original material. New compositions place them on the cutting edge of multiple, blended genres, stretching the boundaries of folk, blues, jazz, and beyond. Rich harmonies sung in English and Spanish are accompanied by outstanding cello and guitars.

Born in 1953, Michael Ronstadt grew up in Tucson, Arizona learning traditional songs from his father, Gilbert, and singing with his musical family, which included his older sisters Suzy and Linda, and older brother Peter. But he came in at the tail end of his grandfather’s generation, and never really had the opportunity to know his grandfather, as he died when Michael was only two. But the memory of his grandfather was always fresh as he was growing up, as the family got together on evening occasions and weekends, playing music and sharing stories. Michael started playing guitar at age six, with his father and brother teaching him a few chords. For the Ronstadt family, music was just a part of their normal daily routine.

“We would all just play along, regardless of whether we knew the song or not,” Ronstadt said. “We just thought that was what you did. I never knew anything different.”

Old Mexican songs have been in the Ronstadt family for generations, and certainly for Michael’s generation, they are songs that carry a very deep meaning and a connection to the actual people that he and his siblings heard singing them when they were little.

“One of the things that I love about that time was that the elders and the kids all liked the same music,” he said. “Of course the kids had their rock and roll, but they still liked the music that the elders did. So that gave them common ground to have something they could communicate with. That’s how children learn who they are and where they came from.”

Now that many from the older generation are gone, it is now Michael and his sister who are the keepers of the history and stories of the family.

“Quite frankly, some of us didn’t really pay a lot of attention, we just took it for granted,” he said. “I’m so happy that Mike and Petie are interested in it and want to continue the tradition. Because of the fact that they have embraced the music of the older generations – when they mix that with their experiences and the music that they like – what comes out is really cool. That’s the way it should be – that’s the way music progresses.”   

Before forming Ronstadt Generations in 2009, Michael performed in a trio called the Santa Cruz River Band and toured the U.S. and Europe for seven years. When that came to an end, Michael wasn’t sure what to do next. Both of his sons were accomplished musicians, Michael G. had just earned his master’s degree, and Petie was out of school as well.

“We would always get together and play music, so one Thanksgiving we got together and we played for about seven hours,” Michael said. “We thought it was pretty good and thought maybe we should try and take it on the road. So we did, and it’s gone through a lot of variations and such.”

Individually and as a group, the trio’s worldwide touring and recording credits include such diverse artists as Linda Ronstadt, Los Lobos, Dixie Hummingbirds, David Bromberg, Nydia Rojas, Tish Hinojosa, Muriel Anderson, and Mariachi Vargas, to name a few.

More recently in 2012, the band had grown from a trio into a full six-piece band, adding three veteran musicians – saxophonist, Alex Flores, bassist Sam Eagon, and drummer/percussionist Aaron Emery. Their versatile talents have formed the six-piece ensemble Ronstadt Generations Y Los Tucsonenses (the Tucsonans). First performing with Ronstadt Generations at a local Tucson gig, the sextet cemented the relationship with the recording “Prelude.” Alex, Sam and Aaron bring to the table a variety of experience and influences and add a colorful dimension to an already powerful presentation that respects tradition while exploring innovation.


Ronstadt Generations Y Los Tucsonenses L-R: Michael G., Alex Flores, Aaron Emery, Michael J., Sam Eagon, and Petie.    

Ronstadt Generations performs the old songs of Mexico – songs that are genetically implanted in their roots. However, they don’t necessarily do them in the old traditional way, as each member has different instrumentation and experiences. The band also gets into some of the old blues and folk music as well. It’s an eclectic mix, a style that Petie Ronstadt calls “post-modern American West.”

“People always ask me what my favorite kind of music is – but I can’t really answer that,” Michael said. “It depends on whether the music does something to me – does it create emotions?”

“The music that we play is all music that affects us personally, and I feel that way you can take a song, even if you didn’t write it yourself, and put your brand on it and then you re-communicate it,” he said. “You’re communicating the essence of the song but you’re also flavoring that with your own life experiences. So you’re able to color that. The song would be like the outlines in a coloring book, and what you do is you add the color in.”

Included in their repertoire are old cowboy songs, Irish tunes, and even songs in Welsh. Music is universal, and for Ronstadt it doesn’t make any difference where you are.

“What music really starts communicating is when you have put yourself into it and then play it for somebody,” he said. “Maybe they don’t understand the language, but they get a feeling or get some comfort just based on the music. A lot of the Mexican tunes we sing in Wales or Holland or Ireland or Scotland – they don’t understand the words, but they get the meaning of the song.”

In addition to the music, the Ronstadts tell the stories behind the songs, and give a little bit of chronology in the show about Michael’s great-grandfather, Friedrich August Ronstadt, who emigrated from Hanover, Germany to Mexico in 1841, and his grandfather, Federico Jose Maria Ronstadt, who was born in Mexico and started Tucson’s first professional orchestra, the Club Filarmonico Tucsonense, in 1896.

For Ronstadt Generations, the music and stories go way back, and provide a legacy that Michael has passed on to his sons, with hopes that they will continue that tradition for each generation yet to come. That tradition is not only present in the Ronstadt family, but it also transcends to the families of audience members as well.

“Our audience many times will have people that are 90, and their great-grandchildren will be running around in the front,” he said. “When that happens it makes me really happy, because that means we have succeeded at communicating to a broad range and given these people some common ground that they can then build on.”   

After six years the band continues to evolve, and plays everything from house concerts to large theaters. For many of their performances, the group often comes out at the intermission and after the show and takes the time to speak with audience members.

“Our audiences have been building and building, and this summer I think we’re actually going to have a nice little tour,” Michael said. “We’re playing at the Bitter End in New York, which is exciting for me because Linda started out there, and the Kingston Trio started there. It’s one of those iconic venues that everyone should play.”


Ronstadt Generations performing at the Farmers Market in Hummelstown, Pennsylvania - June 25, 2015.

One thing that music has done for Ronstadt, is that it has kept his mind open to many different possibilities, not just musical possibilities but those that extend throughout life.

“A lot of people don’t really like what they do, but music is a passion of theirs and something they want to do,” he said. “But for reasons that most people can understand, financially they can’t do that. Most people choose not to do that because it’s not the most financially secure profession in the world. Most people like me are out there because we have to be – it’s what we do. And now my kids have come into that realm and they’re carrying that on. Everybody wants to have something they can pass on that leaves a positive imprint, and my goal is to be able to pass that legacy on down. I wanted to have something I could leave my kids.”

When Ronstadt Generations goes out on the road and speaks to audiences about family, history, the importance of the elders, and learning the stories, people discover who they actually are and where they came from.

“People come up to me and say, by listening to our stories and the music and such, it sparked an interest in them to go back and start looking at their past and their ancestors and who they actually were,” Ronstadt said. “That’s an exciting thing for me. That means we did our job.”

In addition to their regular touring, Ronstadt Generations also performs frequently in homes for people with Alzheimer’s disease. A foundation for Alzheimer’s called Alive Inside, takes donations of old iPods and headphones so they can provide them for Alzheimer’s patients.

“Music is very magical for Alzheimer’s patients, but it’s not just magical, it’s physical – it opens up a channel to their memory,” Ronstadt said. “So many times you will find people that can’t communicate, but if they are hearing music that is familiar to them, all of a sudden it opens something up and they’re able to communicate better. It’s one of the most amazing things you’ve ever seen. So we do that whenever we can.”