Rebeca Mauleón

An accomplished educator, producer, and performer, Rebeca Mauleón is one of the West Coast's leading Latin jazz talents. Mauleón began her performance career accompanying well-known jazzers like Steve Windwood and Carlos "Patato" Valdez. Mauleón earned a reputation as an up-and-coming arranger via her work on Tito Puente's Goza Mi Timbal, Windwood's Junction Seven, and Valdez's Ritmo y Candela. As her credits grew to include stints with artists at the very top of the Latin music industry, like Israel "Cachao" López, Sheila E., and Carlos Santana, Mauleón began to publish a series of educational books. 1993's Salsa Guidebook and 1997's The Latin Real Book became defining texts in the ever-growing Latin jazz world. 101 Montunos was released in 1999, at the height of her stint as musical director for Mickey Hart's landmark group Planet Drum. In her time with Hart, Mauleón performed before stadium-sized audiences and on internationally syndicated TV shows like Conan O'Brien and Live! with Regis and Kathy Lee. In addition to world-class exposure, the Planet Drum gig offered Mauleón the opportunity to know some of the world's finest percussionists, who would go on to become long-term collaborators. With the help of her A-list friends, Mauleón made her solo recording debut in 1999 with Round Trip. Followed by Latin Fire in 2004 and Descarga en California in 2006, her solo works consistently featured Latin jazz's finest sidemen like Giovanni Hidalgo, Orestes Vilató, Armando Peraza, and more. The critical acclaim garnered by her solo work made Mauleón an in-demand clinician worldwide, offering workshops and master classes on traditional and contemporary Latin music. ~ Evan C. Gutierrez, All Music Guide