NATCHITOCHES – The Northwestern State University Jazz Orchestra will present an evening of Latin Jazz on Wednesday, Feb. 19 at 7:30 p.m. in Magale Recital Hall. Admission is free and open the public. NSU Associate Professor of Trumpet Galindo Rodriguez will conduct the orchestra.
The featured guest artist and conductor is Latin jazz percussionist Victor Rendón.
The Jazz Orchestra will play “El Cuarto de Tula” by the Buena Vista Social Club, “Arsenio, An Homage to Arsenio Rodriguez” by Rick Faulkner, “Europa” by Carlos Santana and T. Coster and arranged by Joe Mannozzi and featuring Galindo Rodriguez on flugelhorn and Daniel Scott on tenor saxophone, “Generoso” by Faulkner with Jacob St. Pierre on trombone and Nestor Garcia on timbales and “Chow Mein” by Tito Puente and transcribed by Rendon featuring the saxophone and trumpet section.
The Jazz Orchestra will play two Rendón compositions, “Café Sin Leche” arranged by Mannozzi featuring St. Pierre, Jordan Davis on baritone saxophone and Mercado and “True Flight” arranged by Rendon and Mannozzi featuring Alex Guillory on alto saxophone, Sadoc Silva-Calderon on trumpet and Juan Santos Sierra on Timbales. They will also perform “110th Street and Fifth Avenue” by Noro Morales featuring Romulo Ossorio on piano, the saxophone and trumpet sections and Latin percussionists.
Rendón, a drummer/percussionist/educator/composer/arranger, is a sought after New York City musician who has worked with Mongo Santamaria, Chico O’Farrill, Carlos “Patato” Valdés, Ray Santos, Grupo Caribe, The Latin Jazz Coalition, The “New” Xavier Cugat Orchestra, Los Más Valientes, Grupo Latin Vibe, Rudy Calzado’s Cubarama, Henry Brun and the Latin Playerz, and many others. He currently performs with the acclaimed salsa group, Grupo Latin Vibe as well as his own group, Blue Mambo.
Rendón is also author of “The Art of Playing Timbales” published by Music in Motion Films and currently teaches at Lehman College in the Bronx, where he co-leads the Latin Jazz Ensemble with his long-time colleague, Armando Rodriguez. . As an author/transcriber, Rendon’s work has appeared in Modern Drummer, DRUM!, Percussive Notes, Drumfiles, DCI Music Video, RRR Education Newsletter (Reading-Writing-Rhythm) by LP, and Warner Bros. Publications. He is former publisher of his own semi-annual magazine called the Latin Percussionist.
As an educator, Rendón conducts the Latin Jazz Ensemble at Lehman College. He holds a Bachelor of Music from The University of North Texas and has taught instrumental music and Latin percussion classes in the New York Public School system and at the Boy’s Harbor Performing Arts Center. He has also conducted clinics/workshops for the Department of Education in New York City, PASIC 2000 (Percussive Arts Society International Convention), KOSA NYC, Global Praise at Princeton University and the Eddie Ming Drum School in Bermuda among other events. He is also on the LP’s Educational Team at LP Music.
