Sete od cee Serial ees could match, By doh Ephland here may be no better model of what a percussionist can do than the one marked off by a certain 39-year-old triple threat. Cuban- born Pedro Pablo“ Pedrito” Martinez has tudiences worldwide, e nce on the U.S, scene by way of Canadia in the late 1990s And that “triple threat,” by the way, includes not only top-drawer drumming but writingand singingas well. One only las to listen to his debut recording, Rumba de la Isla, to get.a real sense of what The New Yo Martinez. from May of last year, points to ‘ker, inan article on Hirano Chirps! Caruba Sustains! From The Streets To The Stars as“the charisma ofa mainstream star” The model in question, of course, is Martinez’ knack for being in the right place at the right time, and with all man. ner of musicians. ‘The list of artists hes backed, performed alongside, and cre ated for includes not only players from the Latin music scene — such as Paquito D’Rivera, Eddie Palmieri (with whom, along with trumpeter Brian Lynch, Martinez grabbed his first Grammy with the album Simpatico), and master conguero Tata Guines — but yet another, seemingly longer list of musicians. Start ing with jazs artists such as Joe Lovano and Cassandra Wilson, Martine’ ever-growing CY. includes sharing the stage and recording studio with, among many others, Willie Nelson, Sting, Bruce Springsteen, and Elton John. And let's not forget his high-visibility stint with the rocket-charged Afro Cuban/Afro Beat band Yerba Bu It should come as no surprise, then. that for Rumba de la Isla, Martinez would branch out and feature novel, eclectic arrangements with a fair amount of singing, both individual as well asin harmony with others, And in focusing on Cuban and flamenco rum pRuMmagazinecom Moy 2012 DRUM! TTham%| drm! bas, Martinezis more than tipping his hhat to someone referred to as the great- cet flamenco artist ever, Camaron de Ta Ila. You could say these songs, formerly the grist for Isla’ interpretations, have now been taken over by Martinez in this soulful and lively tribute. Bat the story of Pedrito Martinez, like his musical background, is varied to the point of becoming a whitligig of events and surprises, Consider, for example, his contributions to the suecessful and popular documentary Calle 54, or his im- portant collaborations with reed player Jane Bunnett and her Spirits Of Havana band. Then there's his winning the first-ever Afro-Latin Hand Drumming award in 2000 at the Thelonious Monk Institute Competition. But we'e getting ahead of ourselves. Needless to say, with all this activity, it ‘was quite the challenge finding time to get ‘Martinez to stop long enough to talk about his new album and what’ taken place thus far in his ever-expanding musical universe. Setup 78 DRUM! Moy 2013 DRUMmagazine.com Havana Roots, Havana Dreams “1 grewup in a masical family” Martinez recalls. “My mom used to sing, and my un cle was a great conguero from Cuba back in the ’60s. And my other uncle taught us howto dance. But the influences went be- yond his family. “Tata Guines was a great ‘conguero player; Changuito, of course; Giovanni Hidalgo. In the neighborhood where I grew up, there was a lot of musie going on. In front of my house, the clas- sical band used to rehearse, and I would check them out.” And then he adds another interesting bit of personal history: “I never ‘appeared in any school of music in Cuba,” adding that his musical education came from the street, and not the classroom. “If you want to learn the Afro Cuban music youneed to learn that in the streets: And whilehestarted playing music as ‘early as age 1, discovering his newfound love of bata and congas, Martinez didnt really enter the world of masie asa paid inusician until he was well into ‘Among those he performed with included. RuMs LP Giovann Palladium Congas 1 1175" x30" Conga, 2.12.5" x30" Tumbadera 8 "530" Super Tumba Lp ata Drums 4 9° Omele '5 675° Oconeslo ox 7 \P Americara Sting- Style Cajon For drum set, Pedrito Wartnez plays # Yamaha kit, ian cym- bale, Grate hardwaee, Reme heads, and VieFirth sticks. his idol, Tata Guines, and the rumba and folkloric Afro Cuban group Munequitos de Matanzas. “When I was in Cuba, I was very curious tolearn different kinds of music,” he says, noting howhe had to really work at hearing new sounds, given Cuba restric- tions on imported music. ‘Twas learning from different parts of the country. It was, crazy; the way I learned isthe way I play. now. Because yon know we play bata and sing at the same time. That's part of our rules, to get in any Afro Cuban group in Cuba: to dance, play, and sing at the same time.” The “triple threat,” so to speak. Crossing Paths, Meeting The World By the time Martinez. met Canadian reed great Jane Bunnett in Havana in 1997 during the Havana Jazz Festival, he had already traveled to Europe and elsewhere, getting his frst taste of the larger musi- cal world, But itwas Bunaet’ accidental appearance in his life that forever changed the trajectory of Martinez’ musical arc. “When I met Jane Bunnett, Iwas 21” Martinez recalls. Someone who has worked in Havana many times (her longstanding Spirits Of Havana saysit all), Bunnett in’97 inchided a surprise. “You know, she found me accidentally,” Martinez remem- bers. “Tt was in the jazz plaza, in Havana, at thejazz festival. Lwas playing there with ‘one of my mentors, Francisco Mela I was playing there with him, and she saw me perform with him, and she said, 1 want to take you to Canada’ And she came back after that gig in Cuba and she made this bband, and L was part of the band. And she ‘brought the band to Canada for a tour, and then in the United States” That was in 1998, theyear he moved to New York City, a move he admits “was not easy, given his ‘Cuban roots. Add to that Martinez had to learn English — “a crazy language” — and ‘you get the picture of someone relying on ‘the kindness and generosity of friends and ‘musical colleagues. He started playingthe usaal gigs around town, exposing himself toall themusiethe Big Apple had to offer, ‘especially jazz. “And that's when I wanted to stay, he says. ‘As if Martinez needed another reason tostay in the U.S., heeventualy found hhimselfin the first-ever Afro-Latin Hand Drumming Showdown at the 2000 Thelo- nious Monk Competition. “Everything was happening accidentally,” he says. “I met this guy Felix Sanabria, and hesent me an email about an invitation from the Monk Competition that those people sent to him, not to me. You know, one of the requirements was you had to be no older than 30, and he was already 40 years old. So he was telling me, Tam too old” Long story short, Martinez lett be ‘known he was interested, and was eventu- ally selected from a list of upwards of 100 applicants that was reduced to five. Mar- tinez ended up performing a piece he se- lected, as required. The Monk audience saw him singing as well as playing. And what they witnessed were three congas, a bongo, ‘one cajon, aset of batas, and one shekere being dominated. Martinez played a solo and subsequently was joined by an orchestra. “And I won," he says, no doubt with a healthy dose of so many doors for me, man. Twas able toget a deal with Remo, Vie Firth... T was ableto sign with all the percussion ‘companies. And alot of interviews, and magazines can The Life Beyond Following the Monk Competition Martiner was even more engaged in working with name players, like another famous reed player, Paquito D'Rivera. “Since Tve been in the United State Tye been playing with so many peopl and Tve been recording many albums, different kinds of music, he adds. "Tse been playing with Paquito, and I learned how to play milongo, which is a folkloric music from Argentine, Paquitois very open-minded, very curious about a lot of different kinds of musi.” And from there, Martinez eventually went on to tour with and open shows for name play erssuch as Willie Nelson, Ray Charles, and Dave Matthews. And, truth be told, he became, essentially, a ‘gun for hire, ‘label that could be used today, i to deseribe someone with talent that anyone with a name could call to add that special something to their music Forexample, the day after our interview Martinez was heading to a recording studio to add his distinctive percussive touches to a new album by fellow Cuban expat phenom, pianist Alfredo Rodri- suer. Dut there are others, especially artists that come from the more Anglo side ofthe musie world. ‘When youcome from Cuba, alot of people get curious about what you do as amusician. There's alot of respect there, ifyoa are a musi- can. When you come bere, they want & very different kind of music. Because in Cuba the only kind of music you play is Cuban musi ‘That musical univer included Martinez orbiting TED2013, in February, the latest edition of iven, celebrity-laden conclave TED Talks. “Heis simply one of the best ns inthe country, TED music advisor Bill Bragin was quoted as saying. aves other to Martinez’ management, there were more than & few activities that had everyone on the go for days on end. Even though the eventis called the TED ‘Talks, they havea select number of musi- Drummers aroun SABIAN wou Ey ar saw \NINNER d the world vote Id release in 201 14" &16" | Brilliant Finish EEN HS) CYMBALVOTE.COM Pedrito Martinez cal performers. Pedrito and the Pedrito Martinez Group had been brought in to play, not to speak. On that Tuesday, Marti- nez played a bata solo and sang an Orisha chant in the main theater at TED in Long Beach. Then the Pedro Martinez. Group was driven to the TED Active conference in Palm Springs, where the group played in Old Town Square. The next day they were shuttled back to Long Beach, where the group performed a songin the main theater. The next afternoon PMG did an .d on which new cymbals 3, The results are in! DRUMmagazine.com May 2013. DRUM! 79)hat! drt \ e wet - informal performance at the Citibank So- ‘message that he was connecting, and con- music. “I did a demo, in my own studio in my house, where I put together all the rhythm tracks, all the vocals together, and sent it to the cats,” he recalls.“And then when we got together to rehearse, a lot of ‘great music came out from each of them, with great ideas, and we got to playing.” In fact, the arrangements and room for play~ ing that allows guitarist and pirafia player Ni Josele and legendary Cuban violinist Alfredo de la Fé (along with the vocals throughout) to shine help make Rumbade Ta Isla an exceptional listen. Also on board isbassist John Benitez, percussionist and vocalist Roman Diaz, and, with harmoniz- ing vocals, Xiomara Laugart and Abraham, Rodriguez."Yeah, nobody did that before; it was a very unusual combination, it was very simple to work with them,” he says, mentioning how the blend of flamenco and South American musical influences from these different artists from different coun- PEDRITO MARTINEZ SELECTED DISCOGRAPHY ri ° ee) ge sre aa] 7 ec = Ones aii eal = oe Sa eu ne ~ an wit he a ee ee Se ee 80 Drum! oy 2013 oRUWmagazine.com tries helped to create a very satisfving mix. “They worked out all the kinks.” In a word from Martinez, it was “perfect.” “Its crazy; it's full of work,” Martinez says when asked what the rest of 2013 looks like. Referring to one very recent project with Gonzalo Rubaleaba, his ove for his work is almost palpable when he says, “He isone of the greatest piano players in Cuba.” As you read this, Martinez will have justbeen in New Orleans performing at the Congo Rhythms Festival, and, by invitation from Herbie Hancock and ‘The Monk Institute, part of “Jaz Day” in Istanbul during late April and early May. From there, Martinez’ schedule continues — ashe says — to be “erazy,” with appear- ances at the Brooklyn Bridge Park for Cel- ebrate Brooklyn, the Playboy Jazz Festival at the Hollywood Bow in June, followed by shows at the San Francisco Jazz Festi xal, Montreal Jazz Festival, and the River To River Jazz Festival. Beyond that, there's even talk of a possible Asian tour with new friend and colleague Steve Gadd, And, of course, there's the even newer album he just completed, to be released by Motema Records, date yet tobe de- termined. Produced by Steve Gadd and Martinez, it'll be simply titled The Pe Group and will mark the Grito Martinez Gr record debut of Martinez as bandleader. There'll be songs composed and ar- ranged by the group as well as songs composed by Martinez himself, with some of the material having been written and recorded by other Cuban musicians. Special guests will include guitarist John Scofield, chromatic harmonica player Gary Schriener, percussionist Mare Qui- nones and trumpeter Wynton Marsalis And who, exactly, is the PMG? Currently its comprised of Martinez on percussion and lead vocals, Ariacne Trujillo on key- boards and lead vocal, Alvaro D on electri bass and background vocals, and Shai ground vocals. Incidentally, producer Gadd will also lend his unique drumming sounds to the proceedings. just finished this new record with my ‘quartet,” Martinez says, almost beaming, He adds that this most likely will be the ‘group he tours the newer album with, a tourthat likely will include special (on guitar and violin, not unlike the Rumba de la Isia album. Referring to the band, he exclaims, “The rhythm section i killing” Ifit’s anything like the rhythm section (on Rumba de (a Isla, listeners better hold = navides Sala on percussion and back- ests conto their seats.