Latin Music Studies presents 'A Tribute to Tito Puente'

By Kristina Kenney
University News Service
November 29, 2012

The Latin Music Studies area at Texas State University, along with San Marcos High School, will host “A Tribute to ‘El Rey del Timbal’ Tito Puente,” featuring Tito Puente Jr., Texas State’s Salsa del Rio, Orquesta Cascabel from San Marcos High School and Go2Danz.

The event will be held Dec. 5 at 7 p.m. in the San Marcos High School Auditorium, located at 2601 Rattler Road in San Marcos. The event is free and open to the public. The first 20 attendees to arrive early will enjoy a free meet-and-greet with Tito Puente, Jr., at 6 p.m.

The concert, funded by the San Marcos Arts Commission, will honor the life and work of the late Grammy Award-winning Latin jazz and mambo composer Tito Puente (1923-2000). Puente gave rise to the timbal, a shallow single-headed Cuban drum in the 1950s, making him become known as “El Rey del Timbal,” or “The King of the Timbal.”

The son of Puerto Rican immigrants, Puente grew up in New York City’s Spanish Harlem and became a pioneering force of Latin music in America, fusing styles and putting a big-band spin on traditional Latin music. During a career that spanned more than five decades, Puente became a musical legend in Latin and jazz music circles, producing more than 100 albums and creating more than 200 compositions. Some of his more notable works include “Babarabatiri,” “Ran Kan Kan” and “Oye Como Va.”

The night will feature performances by Puente, Jr., son of Tito Puente, Texas State’s Salsa del Rio, San Marcos High School’s Orquesta Cascabel and a dance demonstration by Go2Danz.

For more information on the concert, please contact Latin Music Studies at (512) 245-2651 or by email at latin.music@txstate.edu.