May 31st marked the death of famed Puerto Rican musician Tito Puente (1923-2000). Born Ernest Anthony Puente Jr. in Spanish Harlem (in New York City), Tito Puente is internationally recognized for his seminal contributions to Latin music as a bandleader, composer, arranger, percussionist, and mentor. Popularly known as the "El Rey del Timbal" and the "King of Mambo," he recorded more than 100 albums, published more than 400 compositions, and won five Grammy awards. Although he played and recorded jazz and salsa, Puente is one of only a handful of musicians considered "legendary" for his mastery of the mambo.
Puente's first big break came when the United States entered World War II; after the regular drummer of the famous Machito Afro-Cubans was drafted into military service, Puente was given the opportunity to demonstrate his talents. After being himself drafted and serving on a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier in the South Pacific, Puente returned to New York and enrolled in New York's Juilliard School of Music, where he studied composition, orchestration, and conducting. Credited with introducing the timbal (a double tom-tom played with sticks) and the vibraphone to Afro-Cuban music, Puente also played the trap drums, the conga drums, the claves, the piano, and occasionally, the saxophone and the clarinet.
Throughout his many years as "King of Mambo," Puente continued "to find a marriage between Latin music and jazz" and not to lose a "Latin-American authenticity." He became more visible to a mainstream audience in the United States in1992 when he performed at the White House, where former President Jimmy Carter, introduced him as "The Goodwill Ambassador of Latin American Music." Puente also played some of his own music in the movie The Mambo Kings, an adaptation of Oscar Hijuelos' Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, and was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He was awarded an honorary degree at Columbia University in 1999, and the Latin Grammy for Best Traditional Tropical Performance for "Mambo Birdland" in 2000.
Tito Puente died after undergoing heart surgery on May 31, 2000, at age 77, but his music has continued to transcend cultural and generational boundaries"...