Raymond Santos (December 28, 1928 – October 17, 2019) was an American

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...

-winning Latin musician, composer, and educator. Santos has played and arranged for such artists as

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, and

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among many others. He was nicknamed El Maestro.

Early life and education

Ray Santos was born in East Harlem in New York on December 28, 1928. His mother was a doll maker and his father was a doorman. They were born in Puerto Rico. When Santos was thirteen, the family moved to

The Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

. As a child, Santos heard Machito and his Afro-Cuban boys and Charlie Parker's music, which inspired him to pursue a career in music. He played tenor sax while in high school at Haaren High School. Santos attended Juilliard School and graduated in 1952.

Career

Santos started his career in music playing Latin-inspired big band music in the 1950s. He played with bands in the Catskills and at the Palladium (New York City), Palladium in New York City. Santos served as music consultant and arranger for the soundtrack of the motion picture ''The Mambo Kings''. He arranged the Oscar-nominated song ''Beautiful Maria of My Soul''. He arranged and directed the orchestra for Linda Ronstadt's ''Frenesí (album), Frenesí'' album, for which he won a Grammy. He was inducted into the International Latin Music Hall of Fame in 2003 and received the Latin Grammy Trustees Award in 2011. Santos taught at the City College of New York for over 20 years, directing the Latin Band. He retired from City College in December 2013 at the age of 84. In 2016, Santos received an honorary doctorate of music from Berklee College of Music. Santos arranged Jon Secada's album ''To Beny Moré With Love''. In 2018, Santos contributed arrangements to

's ''Mi Luz Mayor'' album. He died on October 17, 2019 at age 90.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Santos, Ray 1928 births 2019 deaths 20th-century American male musicians 20th-century American saxophonists 21st-century American male musicians 21st-century American saxophonists American jazz music arrangers American musicians of Puerto Rican descent American male saxophonists City College of New York faculty Haaren High School alumni Juilliard School alumni Latin jazz saxophonists Latin music composers Musicians from New York City People from East Harlem