Event Description

Known as one of the finest pianists of the past 60 years, Eddie Palmieri is a bandleader, arranger and composer of salsa and Latin jazz. His playing skillfully fuses the rhythm of his Puerto Rican heritage with the complexity of his jazz influences: Thelonious Monk, Herbie Hancock, McCoy Tyner and his older brother, Charlie. Palmieri’s professional career took off in the early 1950s with popular orchestras led by Eddie Forrester, Johnny Segui, Tito Rodriguez and others. 

In 1961, Palmieri formed his own band, La Perfecta, which featured an unconventional front line of trombones rather than the customary trumpets. This created an innovative sound that mixed American jazz into Afro-Caribbean rhythms, surprising critics and fans alike. More recently, Palmieri received the coveted Jazz Masters award from the National Endowment for the Arts — the highest honor bestowed upon American jazz artists.