Tito Puente Festival
at LatinJazzClub Magazine
Remembering Tito Puente
Nina Olson (New York City)
Director of Development/Publicity,
Harbor Conservatory/Raices Latin Music Museum
In terms of the Harbor Conservatory,
we will always be greatful to the support we received from the
Tito Puente Scholarship Fund. He was one of the few musicians
who cared about the future of the music to actually develop a
mechanism to fund and support Latin music education.
He had great concern and respect
for our efforts to document the music through the development
of the Raices collection, donating materials from his own collection,
and agreeing to act as an intermediary to help facilitate loans
from others.
Tito never forgot where he
came from. He was a musician of the people. When we produced
the concert "OH...So Many Stars, A Celebration of the Sidemen
of the Palladium Era" at Aaron Davis Hall in l996, Tito
cancelled a gig to fly back to NY to be able to participate.
To us here at the Harbor, Tito was truly El Rey. He will live
on through his enormous musical legacy.
Andrea Brachfeld (New York City)
flutist, her most
recent CD "Andrea Frachfeld and Phoenix ising: Remembered
Dreams" on the Latin Cool Records
Ernest "Tito" Puente
was a household name in my universe from the time I embarked
upon my career in music when I was 15 years old. I was not one
of those fortunate people who heard Latin music in their homes
as they were growing up and naturally heard all the greats including
Tito. But I was fortunate enough to have heard Tito and his band
in the 70's when the Salsa music scene was hotter than a mother'
and I was playing with Charanga '76.
It was then that I sat in
with him and was able to just hang out and allow all that great
music to saturate my soul. Tito was a musical phenomenon who
was a role model for many young and old musicians alike. An accomplished
arranger, composer, percussionist, and vibraphonist...I'm sure
I've left some of his musical attributes out... is sorely missed.
But I'm sure with a spirit
as strong as his, his influence is still here and will continue
to be for many generations. He is, and will always be, a staple
in my musical diet as long as I play music on this planet!!
READ MORE:
Noted musicians, Jazz Journalists,
radio hosts reflect on the life and times of the "King of
Latin Music" Tito Puente: Larry
Harlow, Sonny Bravo, Jose Madera, John Santos, Arturo O'Farrill, Howard
Mandel, Victor Mendoza, JC Johnny Conga, Ruben
Rodriguez, Rudy Mangual, Ralph Irizarry, Mark Levine, Erik
Chico Manqueros, Vicki Sola', Cuban
Pete & Barbara Craddock, Chembo Corniel, Luis Moreno, Bob
DeSena, Ramiro Burr, Dr. Jazz, Kevin Espinosa, Nina Olson, Andrea Brachfeld, Mark
Weinstein, Richie Gajate, Michael Bongard, Jesse
"Chuy" Varela,
Memo
Acevedo, Norberto Rivera,
Richard
John Cadena, Trevor Salloum,
Rae Arroyo, Mark Holston, Thomas
Peña, Yosvany
Terry Cabrera, Tomas Algarin
BUY
TITO PUENTE MUSIC
This interview was edited
by
Bobby Ramirez
br@latinjazzclub.com
Photo by Jorge Garcia from
the album: Tito Puente Mambo Birdland
