Ernest Anthony “Tito” Puente, Jr.

Ernest Anthony “Tito” Puente, Jr. was a bandleader, composer, percussionist, and one of the most influential figures in Latin jazz. Known for his showmanship and high-energy performances, he became famous in the 1950s with a string of mambo dance hits, which earned him the nickname “The King of Mambo.” 

Born in Harlem, Puente was considered a musical prodigy from an early age, and became a professional musician in his teens. After serving in the U.S. Navy during World War II, where he learned about Asian music and culture, he studied conducting and orchestration at the Juilliard School under the G.I. Bill. His conducting teacher was Japanese, further enhancing the Asian influence on his music. 

A multi-instrumentalist, he was best known for his mastery of the timbales and his skill in blending Afro-Cuban rhythms with jazz. His band became fixtures at the Palladium Ballroom, where the Tito Puente Orchestra drew large crowds and helped popularize mambo. He collaborated with many performers, including Celia Cruz, and recorded over one hundred albums during his career. 

In the 1990s, he played himself in the movie Mambo Kings, which helped bring renewed attention to his music. He maintained an active performance schedule–between two hundred and three hundred engagements a year until shortly before his death–appearing with leading jazz musicians such as George Shearing and Woody Herman, as well as with many stars of Latin music and, in later years, with symphony orchestras. He received five Grammy Awards, the National Medal of Arts in 1997, and a posthumous Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Puente performed at the closing ceremonies at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia.