Have you ever seen a beluga whale serenaded by a Mariachi band? No, neither had we until this golden video came to our attention.
We generally see Mariachi bands in wild west films, playing their catchy tunes to the passers-by or the punters in a bar. This video, showing three mariachi players performing to a beluga whale alters our perceptions of the great performance stage.
The trio can be seen playing away behind the glass walled tank in an aquarium located in Connecticut called Mystic Aquarium. The beluga whale appears to be watching them intently as they start to play, the soft sounds drifting through the air as they play. The whale seems almost captivated by their performance as it watches on.
The whale watches the band play and even starts to bob its head along to the tune, clearly appreciating the music, or at least the vibrations, that are coming from the musicians and passing through the tank towards the whale.
The whale in question appears to be quite a popular attraction at the aquarium and regularly gets plenty of visitors playing musical instruments.
In a similar video, a full brass band comes to entertain the whale with a performance to which the whale seems to delight in watching. The whale stares on, curiously watching what must look like a strangle collaboration to the whale.
Similar to dolphins, beluga whales are highly intelligent and social, they communicate through sound and can imitate behaviours of people and other animals. Maybe one day we will see the beluga perform a show of its own, but until them, I’m sure it’s happy being performed too.