In the huapango of the Sierra Gorda, a topada is a “duelo poético-musical entre dos huapangueros” (a poetic and musical duel between two huapango musicians), each with his own group. México Desconocido describes one in Xichú between Guillermo Velázquez and Tobías Hernández. It began at midnight on December 31 and lasted until ten the next morning.
A study published in 2012 in UNAM’s Revista de Literaturas Populares describes the topada as “a complex system of improvisation and memory.”