Poncho Sanchez is a Grammy Award winning, Mexican- American conga player. His career has spans over three decades, in which he has performed alongside many renowned artists. Apart of  being a solo performer, Sanchez is also the band leader of a Latin Jazz group. He proficiently plays timbales and percussions along with conga. His innovative rhythms have made him an extremely influential conga player in the Latin Jazz scene. Get Poncho Sanchez tickets and hear the musician work up a fiery slew of melodies, ranging from straight head jazz to gritty soul music. 

Born in 1951, Poncho Sanchez was the youngest of eleven children in a large Mexican – American family. Although his birthplace was Laredo, Texas, he was raised in the suburbs of L.A. While growing up, he was exposed to a wide variety of music genres that included jazz and soul music. Having an interest in music, he learnt how to play the flute, drums, guitar and the timbales. Eventually he settled on playing the congas. His musical preferences were shaped by artists like Cal Tjader, Mongo Santamaria and Wilson Picket.

He began his career playing music at local clubs. In 1975, Sanchez became a permanent member of Cal Tjader’s band, after Tjader saw him perform. Sanchez learnt a great deal from Tjader, who played the role of a mentor for the aspiring musician. Sanchez played with the band for seven years and left when Tjader, Sanchez’s role model, died in 1982.

Sanchez, who had learnt a lot and amassed a lot of experience since joining the band, had already cast the footholds for a solo career. In 1979 he recorded his solo album "Poncho" and a year later he went on to record "Straight Ahead." He also began performing with his own group. After leaving Tjader’s band, Sanchez singed with the company Concord Records, to release "Sonando." Sanchez still continues to release music with Concord Records, a partnership that has lasted for twenty five years. To date he has recorded a dozen albums with the record label.

In 2000, Sanchez and his Latin Jazz group, were rewarded for their efforts when they received a Grammy Award for ‘Best Latin Jazz Album.’ The album "Latin Soul" featured ten tracks, which were composed with the help of various artists. Herbie Hancock was the composer for the track "Watermelon Man." Throughout the decade, Sanchez continued to record music and release albums. In 2001, he came up with "Latin Spirits" which was followed by "Out of Sight!" the next year. In 2005 he released "Do It", which featured punk stars Tower of Power. A couple of more albums followed in 2007 and 2009.

In 2011, he teamed up with Terence Blanchard for the album "Chano y Dizzy!" The album was a tribute to the Latin jazz legends, Chano Pozo and Dizzy Gillespie. Terrence Blanchard is a multi-Grammy Award winning trumpeter. Blanchard’s prowess in the Jazz category made him a fitting match for Sanchez. Having provided background scores for over fifty films and numerous Broadway musicals, the experienced Blanchard had much to offer in the eleven track album.

The album has renditions of songs by Pozo and Gillespie, along with fresh original tracks. The lively tunes "Tin Tin Deo" and "Manteca" laced with Blacnhards trumpeting add a new twist to Pozo’s music. Further along in the album, "Jack's Dilemma" and "Groovin' High", the light hearted tracks add diversity to the music.

Sanchez continues to perform and tour at different venues, with an ensemble cast of musicians to back his music. His percussions have long been the crowd favorite and his interaction with the audience is adored by the fans. His work has further made popular the efforts of Chano Pozo and Dizzy Gillespie, who are regarded as the pioneers of Latin Jazz. Get Poncho Sanchez tickets and hear some of the best Latin Jazz music of our time.