Background and career
Arturo Sandoval (born November 6, 1949) is a Cuban-American jazz trumpeter, pianist, timbalero, and composer. While living in his native Cuba, Sandoval was influenced by jazz musicians Charlie Parker, Clifford Brown, and Dizzy Gillespie. In 1977 he met Gillespie, who became his friend and mentor and helped him defect from Cuba while on tour with the United Nations Orchestra. Sandoval became an American naturalized citizen in 1998. His life was the subject of the film For Love or Country: The Arturo Sandoval Story (2000) starring Andy García. Sandoval, a 2024 Kennedy Center Honors recipient, has won four Grammy Awards from 11 nominations, Billboard Awards and one Emmy Award. He has performed at the White House and at the Super Bowl (1995).
Sandoval was born into a poor family in Artemisa, a small village in the province of Havana, Cuba. He started playing music at age 13 in the village band, learning the basics of music theory and percussion. After playing many instruments, he finally settled on the trumpet, playing with street musicians. In 1964, Sandoval enrolled at the Cuban National School of Arts where he took classical trumpet lessons for three years, and earned a place in the country's all-star national band. He helped establish the Orquesta Cubana de Música Moderna, which became the band Irakere in 1973. He toured worldwide with his own group in 1981. During the following year he toured with Dizzy Gillespie, who became his friend and mentor. From 1982 to 1984, he was voted Cuba's Best Instrumentalist and was a guest artist at the BBC and Leningrad Symphony Orchestras. In 1989, Gillespie invited Sandoval to be part of the United Nations Orchestra. During a tour with this group, Sandoval visited the American Embassy in Athens, Greece, accompanied by Gillespie, who helped him with his plan to defect from Cuba. Sandoval became an American citizen on December 7, 1998. Sandoval has performed Latin jazz with Paquito D'Rivera, Tito Puente, and Chico O'Farrill, Cuban music in Miami, and classical music in England and Germany. In the 1990s, he was a member of the GRP All-Star Big Band. In 2014, Sandoval performed at Eastman Theatre with Zane Musa, Dave Siegel, Teymur Phel, Johnny Friday, and Armando Arce. He has taught at Florida International University and Whitworth University, where he is in charge of its jazz ensemble. He has performed with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Pittsburgh Symphony and National Symphony Orchestras. In 1996, Sandoval was commissioned by the Kennedy Center Ballet to score Pepito's Story, a ballet based on the book by Eugene Fern and choreographed by Debbie Allen. Sandoval also composed a classical trumpet concerto that he performed and recorded with the London Symphony Orchestra.
Sandoval's score for a film about his life won an Emmy Award. His compositions and performances can be heard on The Mambo Kings, which was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1992 for Best Instrumental Composition Written for a Motion Picture or for Television. His song "A Mis Abuelos" (To My Grandparents) received Grammy Award nominations for Best Instrumental Composition and Best Arrangement. This composition appeared on his Grammy-winning album Danzon. On November 20, 2013, President Barack Obama presented Sandoval with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Sandoval was a 2024 recipient of the Kennedy Center Honors.
In 2015, Arturo Sandoval joined the 14th annual Independent Music Awards judging panel to assist independent musicians' careers. He was also a judge for the 10th, 12th and 13th Independent Music Awards. Sandoval played the trumpet solo in a 2018 music video of the Leonid and Friends cover of Chicago's "Street Player".
Turi (Areito, 1981) Arturo Sandoval y Su Grupo (Areito, 1982) To a Finland Station with Dizzy Gillespie (Pablo, 1982) Breaking the Sound Barrier (Chicago Caribbean, 1983) Tumbaito (Messidor, 1986) No Problem (Jazz House, 1987) Straight Ahead (Jazz House, 1988) Plays for the Pandas (Cocoral, 1988) Just Music (Jazz House, 1989) Arturo Sandoval (Areito, 1991) Flight to Freedom (GRP, 1991) I Remember Clifford (GRP, 1992) Dream Come True (GRP, 1993) Danzón (GRP, 1994) The Classical Album (RCA Victor, 1994) Arturo Sandoval & the Latin Train (GRP, 1995) Swingin' (GRP, 1996) Hot House (N-Coded, 1998) Americana (N-Coded, 1999) Los Elefantes with Wynton Marsalis (In-akustik, 1999) For Love or Country: The Arturo Sandoval Story (Atlantic, 2000) Jam Miami (Concord, 2000) Ronnie Scott's Jazz House (DCC, 2000) L. A. Meetings (CuBop, 2001) My Passion for the Piano (Columbia, 2002) Trumpet Evolution (Columbia, 2003) Live at the Blue Note (Half Note, 2005) Rumba Palace (Telarc, 2007) Mambo Nights (2009) A Time for Love (Concord Jazz, 2010) Dear Diz (Every Day I Think of You) (Concord Jazz, 2012) At Middleton (Perseverance, 2014) Live at Yoshi's (Alfi, 2015) Ultimate Duets (Universal, 2018) Christmas at Notre Dame (2018) Rhythm & Soul (MetaJAX, 2022)
Oxigeno (Sony, 1991) South Beach (Sony, 1993) Cuba Libre (Sony, 1998) With Ed Calle
Sources
Net-worth figure: Celebrity Net Worth (October 2026), in USD. Biography and career facts: the person's Wikipedia article and linked reporting. Snapshot date for all StarWorth figures: 28 October 2026.
