Son of Mexican musician Blas Martínez Panduro, Fernando Martínez (born Fernando Martínez Barajas) started playing a traditional instrument called vihuela at a young age and later learned to play trumpet, supported by his brother, violinist Pepe Martínez Barajas. In 1965, they assembled a traditional Mexican music outfit called Mariachi Nuevo Tecalitlán, and Fernando Martínez Barajas began composing and arranging for his own group and prominent local artists. ~ Drago Bonacich