Arturo Sandoval holds a revered place in the pantheon of Latin jazz. Not only does the Cuban trumpeter stand alongside the greatest musicians in the genre, but also he is easily the most widely recognized. Throughout his career, Sandoval has earned four Grammys, six Billboard Awards, and an Emmy. The last he won for his score for the HBO film For Love or Country, starring Andy Garcia and based on the musician's own life. Sandoval has performed with some of the greatest musicians of our time, and in recent years has even showed his versatility by performing with pop artists Justin Timberlake at the Grammy Awards and Alicia Keys at the Latin Billboards.
But his most famed musical association is his friendship with jazz heavyweight Dizzy Gillespie. They met in Cuba in 1977, while Gillespie was doing a string of Caribbean gigs with another jazz great, saxophonist Stan Getz. From that day, Gillespie would become Sandoval's mentor. Sandoval defected from Cuba in 1990 while on tour with him, and has called Miami home ever since.
