Eric Richardson [Flickr]

Workers assemble seating and a stage outside the Spring Street entrance to City Hall.

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES — The City's official commemoration of Mexican Independence Day takes place Tuesday evening, offering top Mexican musical talent and a new urban focus. The free event starts at 7:00pm and is expected to draw thousands to the Spring Street steps of City Hall.

Consul General Juan Marcos Gutiérrez González, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, sponsoring Councilmembers Eric Garcetti and Jan Perry and other elected officials are expected to attend.

The event features traditional music from Mariachi Reina de Los Angeles and K-Paz de la Sierra, but this year, organizers update the musical portion of the program with East Los Angeles-based Latin/Alternative band Quetzal. They first formed in a Little Tokyo club back in the early 1990s and dedicated themselves to the school of Chicano Music.

Also slated for the concert is Nortec Collective, who offer electronic techno house music mixed with the tradition of norteño music. As a group, they were first inspired by the German euro-poptech group, Kraftwerk.

Quetzal recently played the Conga Room, and Nortec Collective performed at the 2nd and Main Street stage during the 2006 LA Detour Festival.

The City contributed $120,000 to the event. Garcetti and Perry each contributed $10,000 from their Cultural Affairs fund. Councilmen Reyes, Cardenas, Alarcon and Huizar each committed $5,000, as did the office of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. An additional $75,000 in funding was included in the City budget.

The event is produced by All Access Entertainment, who also produce the annual Fiesta Broadway. While the website has no information about the event itself, the company does say that "L.A.'s ulitmate [sic] 'Latino Power' B2B VIP Gala is available for corporate sponsorship and exhibiting."