Marco Aquino
In celebration of Carmens’ 20th anniversary, we caught up with Latin jazz trumpeter and percussionist Pete Rodriguez. The son of legendary salsero Pete “El Conde” Rodriguez, the younger Pete earned his stripes backing some of the greatest names in Latin music like Celia Cruz and Eddie Palmieri.
What brought you to Texas?
I was in the army. I came to grad school and then things didn’t go so well at this job … I was working at the university but I ended up going back to New York. When my daughter was born, my wife and I thought Texas would be a better place to raise our daughter so that’s the reason why I’m here. I also like the weather. Today is freaking amazing. I just rode my bike.
I think they are snowed-in in New York right now.
That’s why I don’t live there
Do you remember your first time at Carmen’s?
No, I suffer from CRS.What’s that?Can’t remember shit! All I remember is that Paula reminds me of people from New York. She’s honest, she wont bullshit you, you know? I feel like Texans are very delicate. I’ve gotten into trouble because of the way I am as a human being. I’m very honest and Texans are not like that. You kind of have to walk on tip-toes. They don’t understand New York humor. I’ve had to learn the hard way. I guess that’s the main thing I like about Paula, is that she’s really honest and she lets me play whatever I want. I wish I lived closer so I could play at Carmens more often.
You described your music as a sort of “cultural hotspot.” What does that mean?
The way I was brought up in the Bronx, you’re gonna hear a lot of salsa. Being the son of Pete “El Conde,” you’re gonna hear a lot of salsa music and especially music from Cuba. Then, I was in New York during the birth of hip-hop so I have that in my head and in my soul. When I moved to Puerto Rico I started taking trumpet lessons and it was all classical. And I love r&b—Earth Wind and Fire. So when I compose, it’s almost a mixture of all that—salsa, hip-hop and then I started listening to jazz at age 22. When I compose, I grab all those influences.
As a former educator, do you find that students are engaging with the different jazz styles of the past and present?
I think they are but I haven’t had any students that are that motivated. There are a lot of bad cats out there but they don’t wanna put in those 5 or 6 hours a day. I guess the two people I can think of that were really motivated, that I worked with in ensembles, were a young Mexican cat, Olton Sinclair that plays trombone and a tenor player—he practices all day and is really motivated—Jerry Espinoza. I worked with him at Texas State in San Marcos.How have you been handling the COVID-19 pandemic?At my age, the first thing I do is thank God that I’m alive. I’m solo here in Texas —I have no family besides my wife and daughter. My father-in-law has been with us since March. He was living in Mexico but we sent for him when this COVID shit broke out. So we are all very healthy here, and my family in the Bronx is healthy. As long as everyone is healthy, I’m good.I have one friend that lost like five siblings. That’s serious. In the big scheme of things, I’m handling it well. I might have tripped on it once when I went to HEB and they didn’t have any meat. I thought, “Am I gonna have to wake up at 6 in the morning to go get meat?” As far as wearing a mask though, I don’t trip on that. I have some neighbors that complain about that but I was in the Army so I always had to do things I didn’t want to do. So for me to put on a mask, it doesn’t bother me at all. I don’t have a 9 to 5 job where I have to have a mask on all day. I feel those people have it a lot harder. I work from home so the longest I have to put on a mask is for an hour at HEB. I feel bad for people that are stressed out. I’ve been in situations like this where there is no work. After 911 in New York, there wasn’t a lot of work so this is my second time around.
How do you stay in shape musically with no gigs?
I do a lot of listening. For example, today I rode my bike and I wore headphones. I do a lot of research … practice. I practice anywhere from 3 to 5 hours. I have to make sure I take care of my daily maintenance so my chops are strong. I try to simulate playing like I was at a gig although there really is no substitute for playing a real gig. My first gig during the pandemic was back in October and I got tired. Normally, I could do 2 or 3 sets and I was good. There are some days where I’m highly motivated and days when I’m not. Those days when I don’t wanna practice, I just listen more. My days are filled with waking up early, making sure my daughter gets her breakfast, getting her ready for school, working out, practicing and composing, making lunch … so my days go pretty fast. I’m actually enjoying this.
I saw your bike in the background in one of your YouTube videos. Are you an avid bike rider?
I’m pretty serious. I compete all over the state of Texas although it didn’t really happen in 2020. I’m also competing in Duathlon, a sport that is run, bike, run. I like challenging myself. I think the cool thing about cycling, biking, or running is that you train smart and hard, and then you sign up for a race and give it all you got. I love that pain physically. It’s great