Percussionist composer writer and educator John Santos was raised in the Puerto Rican and Cape Verdean traditions of his family surrounded by music. The fertile musical environment of the San Francisco Bay Area shaped his career in a unique way. His studies of Afro-Latin music have included several trips to New York, Puerto Rico, Cuba and Colombia.
Widely respected as one of the top writers educators and historians in the field, Santos is a member of the Latin Jazz Advisory Committee of the Smithsonian Institution and has contributed to the international magazines Percussive Notes Modern Drummer Modern Percussionist and Latin Percussionist.
Santos is also a distinguished and creative multi-percussionist and recording artist. He has collaborated with a large and diverse number of artists including Grupo Mezcla (Havana, Cuba), Irakere, West, Santana, Cal Tjader, Charlie Hunter, Danilo Perez, Linda Tillery, Ignacio Berroa, Omar Sosa, Bobby Hutcherso,n McCoy Tyner, Lalo Schifrin, Jon Jang, Yma Sumac, Pete and Sheila Escovedo, Mark Murphy, John Faddis, Batacumbele and Batucaje.
Santos was the director of the Orquesta Tipica Cienfuegos (l976-1980) and the Orquesta Batachanga (1981-1985). Since 1986 Santos has been directing the Machete Ensemble a world-class Latin Jazz band of international renown which includes such distinguished musicians as Orestes Vilato, Saul Sierra, Marco Diaz and John Calloway. Santos also records and tours with the Cuban piano phenomenon Omar Sosa.
Discography:
Machete (Green Linnet)
Machetazo!: 10 Years on the Edge (Bembe Records)
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.