John Benitez: Mr. Bassman - Artículo Breve

Latin Beat Magazine, April, 2002 by Rudy Mangual

Standing at about 6'4" and with a body frame resembling that of a football player, John Benítez is indeed a player, a bass player, and his game is called music. Once you get to know him, his bearish image transforms from that of a grizzly bear to that of a teddy bear. A native of Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico, Benítez's love and passion for music started in his Pentecostal congregation as he was exposed to gospel music at the early of age 13 when he was the bass player in the church band. The son of a troubadour specialized in the folkloric music of the hills of Puerto Rico, Benítez grew up surrounded by music. He rapidly learned to play and understand the functions of Afro-Caribbean percussion instruments within the genres of Latin and tropical music, while gaining command of the acoustic guitar and piano. But the deep resonating sounds of the bass (both acoustic and electric) and the size of said instrument finally won his heart.

He began his formal musical education at Hato Rey's performing arts high school, Escuela Libre de Música, where he befriended saxophonist David Sánchez. By age 16, after graduating, Benítez immediately began to work around the island, performing with most of the top bands and artists of the time. He played salsa with Roberto Roena's Apollo Sounds; he worked with salsa singers Lalo Rodríguez and Justo Betancourt; he was a member of Cuco Peña's popular orchestra and collaborated frequently with the experimental group Batacumbele (pioneering masters of the fusion of Afro-Caribbean rhythms with jazz, funk, and anything else that felt and sounded good). He continued his formal education at the University of Puerto Rico in Rio Piedras, and later at the Puerto Rico Conservatory of Music under the mentorship of master bassist Federico Silva (a member of the Puerto Rican Symphony). By his early twenties, Benítez toured with Batacumbele to Colombia, where he met his wife and remained for about a year thereafter, teaching Latin music and expanding his own artistic horizons by absorbing the immense folklore of Colombia.

In 1993, Benítez joined Willie Colón's orchestra, touring the U.S. from coast to coast and concluding the tour with a performance at a White House party for President Clinton. During that party, he met legendary bass master Ron Carter, who invited Benítez to New York City for private studies under his supervision. He immediately relocated to the Big Apple and enrolled at the City College of New York where he indeed studied with Carter and later with the contrabassist guitarist Anthony Jackson. Aside from the formal classroom studies, Benítez furthered his musical knowledge on the bandstand, performing with the cream of the crop from the jazz and Latin music scenes. He played with Wynton Marsalis, Tito Puente, Michel Camilo, Dave Valentín, Eddie Palmieri, Bobby Watson, David Sánchez, Jeff "Tain" Watts, Roy Hargrove, Antonio Hart, Danilo Pérez, Kenny Kirkland, Will Calhoun, Chucho Valdés, Dave Samuels, and Mongo Santamaría. Benítez has recorded with over 30 artists and bands in the past 10 years, including Roy Hargrove's Crisol Band's Grammy-winning recording Habana, David Sánchez's Grammy-nominated CD Obsesión, and various productions with Tito Puente, the Caribbean Jazz Project, the Mingus Big Band, Antonio Hart, the Tropijazz All Stars, Hilton Ruiz, Descarga Boricua, William Cepeda, Christo Rafalides' Manhattan Vibes, and Eddie Palmieri (who calls Benítez "the greatest bass player in the world").

Last year, Benítez released his debut CD as a leader titled Descarga in New York, for Khaeon World Music. Featuring mostly a trio format of Benítez on bass, Venezuelan pianist Luis Perdomo and the gifted Cuban drummer Dafnis Prieto, it mixed their unique individual influences to create a masterful musical experience. With the addition of two special guests (percussionist Richie Flores and tenor saxophonist Ravi Coltrane), they further explored musical possibilities into new uncharted Pan American galaxies and boundless, colorful jazz regions. When not on the road or teaching at Boys Harbor or in the studio, chances are that you can catch Benítez and friends jamming at the Zinc Bar on the border of Soho and Greenwich Village or at the Jazz Gallery (a second-floor lower Manhattan loft just north of the Holland Tunnel) in New York City. The group of friends that coexist in New York City includes John Benítez, Richie Flores, Edsel Gómez and Miguel Zenón from Puerto Rico; Yosvany Terry, "El Negro" Hernández, Pedro Martínez and Dafnis Prieto from Cuba; Luis Perdomo, Ed Simón, Marlon Simón and Pernell Saturnino from Venezuela; Adam Cruz from New York; Antonio Sánchez from Mexico; and singers Claudia Acuña from Chile and Luciana Souza from Brazil.

Although Benítez is extremely fluid in the jazz idiom, he is even better at interpreting the rhythms and styles of his native Afro-Caribbean regions and the entire Pan American music book. As he puts it himself, "For me it's all the same, one great dance music, all the Caribbean, South America and New Orleans are but an extension of African music, music with that special bounce. That's what I like the most." John Benítez, an excellent example of a true musician, an educator, artist, gentleman and a spiritual human being.