Pedrito Martinez
Pedrito Martinez is a Cuban percussionist, singer, dancer and songwriter. He was born and raised in Havana, Cuba. He is a Cuban conguero performing classic Cuban rumbas, Afro-Cuban folkloric and religious music. He is a santería priest. He came to the United States of America from Havana in 1998. He plays the batá drum, conga, cajón, timbales, and bongo drums, among other percussion instruments. Pedrito learned his craft from the streets of Havana, Cuba. He has performed with Paquito D'Rivera, Arturo O'Farrill, Brian Lynch, and Bruce Springsteen. He settled in the New York City, New Jersey area, in 1998.
He is a founding member of the band Yerba Buena. They recorded two albums. In 2003, President Alien, and in 2005 their album Island Life was No. 62 on the Billboard Top Latin Albums Chart.
He is a member of the Nuevo Jazz Latino program which is a part of Jazz at Lincoln Center.
Martinez became leader of the Pedrito Martinez Group in 2005. Their first album The Pedrito Martinez Group was released in 2013, with guest artists Wynton Marsalis, John Scofield, and Steve Gadd.
On Martinez's 2016 album titled Habana Dreams, the guest artists were Wynton Marsalis, Ruben Blades, Angélique Kidjo, and Issac Delgado.
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