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Latin Jazz Network’s Danilo Navas wrote an article about the history of the Latin Percussion great Ralph Irizarry. Be low is an excerpt from that article with a link to read the full article.
The music world mourns the loss of one of it’s greatest artists. A true master of his craft, bandleader, percussionist, timbalero Ralph Irizarry Sr. (Bronx, New York), passed away on September 5, 2021 at the age of 67, of complications from a deteriorating health condition. Latin Jazz Network pays tribute to his musical legacy.
Ralph Irizarry, recognized worldwide as an excellent percussionist, first fell in love with the timbal at an early age when his father coincidentally brought home a set received as payment for a debt. A self-taught musician, Irizarry developed a highly efficient and personalized style of playing while leaving an enduring mark on the artists with whom he collaborated. His love for the instrument evolved into a full-fledged passion that fueled his career since 1970. Irizarry acknowledged, without reservation, that this passion had been all consuming since he was a youngster, and that it was the same passion that he always infused into his music.
Born in New York’s Spanish Harlem, Ralph Irizarry’s family first moved to Brooklyn and then briefly to Queens, before finally relocating in Puerto Rico in 1970. There, he spent three years immersed in music and gained the knowledge and experience that eventually granted him the opportunity to join Ponce’s La Terrífica, as well as sitting in with such prestigious aggregations as El Gran Combo and Sonora Ponceña.
Link to the full article: HERE
