State Pageantry and Sound Amplification in Postrevolutionary Mexico: Rafael Melgar’s Nationalist Campaign

This article reveals the importance of technologically mediated sound in promoting Mexican nationalism during the Maximato period, with a focus on Rafael Melgar’s Nationalist Campaign (1931–34). The study argues that the Nationalist Campaign marked the first large-scale, state-sponsored effort to systematically use radio broadcasting and sound amplification for disseminating nationalist pageantry to mass audiences. Through partnerships with commercial radio stations and telephone companies, Melgar and his team fostered a fruitful collaboration between state and media that contributed to creating a unified postrevolutionary Mexican identity. Drawing on unpublished materials from the Rafael Melgar collection, this study expands the concept of Mexican nationalism beyond repertoire and composers to examine how sound technologies shaped shared aural experiences and national identity formation.