Mercedes Alejandra Payán Ramírez

Mercedes Alejandra Payán Ramírez is an ethnomusicologist and music educator whose research focuses on Indigenous wind bands in southeastern Mexico. Her work examines decoloniality, indigeneity, gender, labor, pedagogy, and the intersections of traditional, popular, and institutional musical practices. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Music Education from Universidad Veracruzana and a master’s degree in Ethnomusicology from Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México. She earned her PhD in Ethnomusicology from the University of Texas at Austin.

Mercedes collaborates with Indigenous women musicians from Oaxaca through the Red de Mujeres Músicas Transfronterizas, a transnational network connecting musicians across Mexico and the United States. She is also a member of Las Montoneras, a collective of Mexican women musicians, researchers, and educators dedicated to amplifying women’s contributions to music.

As a performer, Mercedes plays flute and piccolo with ¡POM! Orquesta Mexicana, an ensemble devoted to the research, performance, and revitalization of Mexican art music shaped by Indigenous and traditional repertoires. She contributed flute, piccolo, and turtle shell percussion to POM’s 2019 album MITOTE, a recording that reflects the ensemble’s commitment to preserving and reimagining this musical heritage.