GRAMMY®-Winning Artist Francisco Torres Shares Mastery of Latin Music at Soundhouse

Francisco Torres, the acclaimed trombonist, arranger, composer, educator, and musical director for the legendary Poncho Sanchez, was the most recent artist to visit Caleb Chapman’s Soundhouse. He has been a part of several GRAMMY®-winning records, including "Latin Soul" (Poncho Sanchez), "¡Ritmo!" (Clare Fischer), "That's How We Roll" and "Life in the Bubble” (Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band).

Francisco has produced several Poncho Sanchez albums for the past several years, earning five GRAMMY and Latin GRAMMY nominations for "Best Latin Jazz Album”. And his performance and recording credits include a wide array of music’s biggest names such as Pitbull, Frank Ocean, Michael Bublé, Ray Charles, The All-American Rejects, Jennifer Lopez, David Bowie, Robbie Williams, Brian Setzer, Ricky Martin, Los Lobos, Spoon, Dr. Dre, Busta Rhymes, 50 Cent, Eminem, Bob Dylan, Santana, Roy Hargrove, Nathan East, Alex Acuña, Natalie Cole, The Manhattan Transfer, Arturo Sandoval, Sheila E., Harry Connick Jr., and many, many more!

One of the world’s leading experts on Latin music, Francisco shared his vast knowledge with Soundhouse musicians this past Friday and Saturday, working with multiple bands, including the DownBeat Award-winning Crescent Super Band and La Onda Caribena. Topics covered by Torres included everything from specific brass techniques to understanding the “clave”, the unique rhythmic pattern tied to Latin music. He also shared his knowledge on writing and arranging with many musicians, including Tega Hamlin, a member of the Soundhouse Artist Development program who is currently recording his debut full-length album.