Travel Tip: Jazz in United States
Arturo Sandoval: Dear Diz

A protégé of the legendary jazz master Dizzy Gillespie, Arturo Sandoval was born in Artemisa, a small town in the outskirts of Havana, Cuba, on November 6, 1949, just two years after Gillespie became the first musician to bring Latin influences into American Jazz. Sandoval began studying classical trumpet at the age of twelve, but it didn’t take him long to catch the excitement of the jazz world. He has since evolved into one of the World’s most acknowledged guardians of jazz trumpet and flugelhorn, as well as a renowned classical artist. 

Sandoval was a founding member of the Grammy Award-winning group Irakere, whose explosive mixture of jazz, classical, rock and traditional Cuban music caused a sensation throughout the entertainment world. In 1981, he left Irakere to form his own band, which garnered enthusiastic praise from critics and audiences all over the world. Sandoval was voted Cuba’s Best Instrumentalist from 1982 to 1990.

Since his arrival to the United States, Arturo Sandoval has recorded seven albums as a soloist, six of which are jazz, Latin jazz, and one classical album. In 2000, HBO produced a movie about his life with Andy Garcia in the role of Mr. Sandoval entitled For Love or Country. Arturo won an Emmy for his music in the film.

The six-time Grammy winnier's latest Concord release, Dear Diz, Everyday I Think of You, pays tribute to his late mentor Dizzy Gillespie with a heartfelt showcase of the bebop legend’s greatest compositions.

Arturo Sandoval trumpet, percussion
Zane Musa, saxophone
Mahesh Balasooriya, piano
John Belzaguy, bass
Johnny Friday, drums
Samuel Torres. percussion