Salvador Santana

Salvador Santana was born in 1983 in the San Francisco Bay Area. He is an instrumentalist whose main instrument is the electric keyboard. He sings and is a spoken word artist, songwriter and composer. He is the son of ten-time Grammy winning guitarist Carlos Santana and poet/author/activist Deborah Santana. His maternal grandfather, Saunders King, is an icon of American blues and his paternal grandfather, Jose Santana, is a legendary violinist and mariachi bandleader.

Santana began playing piano at the age of five. He was instructed by Marcia Miget. He later went on to study music at Ruth Asawa San Francisco School of the Arts High School. He took up playing percussion and found a niche with the tympani drum. He also played piano in the school's award-winning jazz band.

In 1999, Salvador collaborated with his father on composing the Grammy winning track "El Farol" on the album Supernatural.

For higher education, Santana attended California Institute of the Arts in Valencia, California.

Salvador Santana Band (2004 - 2008)

In 2004 Salvador established the Salvador Santana Band. Members of the group were Emerson Cardenas (bass), Quincy McQuary (vocals, keyboards), Woody Aplanalp (guitar), Tony Austin (drums) and José Espinoza (sax, percussion, vocals). With them Salvador played a fresh musical style incorporating elements of hip hop and jazz. His musical roots stem from a firsthand education from his grandfathers, Saunders King and Jose Santana, his father, Carlos, as well as the music of jazz artists John Coltrane, Herbie Hancock, Thelonious Monk, and Oscar Peterson and a healthy implementation of contemporary hip-hop acts like Atmosphere, Ozomatli.

Keyboard City (2008 - 2010)

In 2009 Salvador entered the studio to record his second major studio album / first solo album Keyboard City. He enlisted underground legends Del The Funky Homosapien, Money Mark (Beastie Boys), and GZA to help him with the album's production.

Keyboard City was built on what Salvador called "a mix of my favorite music, the best of what’s impacted my life, all coming together in a new way." Salvador first masterminded the direction for the album after a 2008 Remixes project where Del The Funky Homosapien was commissioned to remix the SSB song "Hella Tight". The synergy between Salvador and Del, along with the eclectic and fresh sound of the Remixes project was the inspiration for the new musical direction in the studio for his sophomore release.

In late fall 2009 a series of remix MP3s of the album's title track "Keyboard City" were released on the internet. These remixes were performed by internet DJs, The Hood Internet as well as indie electronic musician Dan Deacon, both remixes featured vocals by GZA. These remix MP3s were wildly popular, appearing on tastemaker music sites such as Brooklyn Vegan, Pitchfork Media, and My Old Kentucky Blog.

Keyboard City was released on February 2, 2010 via Quannum Projects. Keyboard Magazine ^[1] declared that "Funkadelic and the Meters had a love child who was then raised by Esquivel in a space age bachelor pad full of analog synths." The magazine also stated, "On December 31, 2019, Keyboard City may well be remembered as one of the standout neo-funk records of the decade." Allmusic.com ^[2] gave the album 4.5 out of 5 stars and Spin Magazine ^[3] gave the album 3 out of 5 stars.

2011 - Present

Salvador and his bands have graced stages from the Montreux Jazz Festival, the Bonaroo Music and Arts Festival, the High Sierra Festival, South by Southwest and the acclaimed New Orleans Jazz Festival. Salvador has participated in projects outside of his own solo aspirations, such as the Hymns for Peace DVD released in 2004 as well as his father Carlos Santana’s 2013 Corazón Live in Guadalajara DVD.

In 2013 Salvador released Rise Up, a six song EP. Songs "Mi Tesoro," "Into The Light," and "Rise Up" have a power and breadth of sound. "Ain’t Enough" It’s On" and "Gimme Your Best" round out the EP with upbeat tempos. "Rise Up" is featured on the award-winning film, School of My Dreams, a documentary film about the Daraja Academy in Kenya, a free all-girls secondary school. In fact, it was a trip to South Africa in 2006 with Artists for a New South Africa (ANSA), and meeting President Nelson Mandela, that triggered Salvador to write the positive message and music of "Rise Up."

For the keyboardist, making music is never about personal glory, but about lifting people up with humility, love, and positivity on a daily basis. "The main ingredient to my inspiration and creative drive is joy. I want to use music in a positive way and give back to people in need. There can never be enough people who do that."

External links

• Official Site

References

1. ↑ Keyboard Magazine, February 2010
2. ↑ AllMusic.com, February 2010
3. ↑ Spin Magazine, January 2010