Name: FREE: The Eddie Palmieri Experience featuring Ray Vega, Conrad Herwig, and Arturo Ortiz
Start: 2026-06-06T18:30:00-04:00
Location: Waterfront Park

FREE: The Eddie Palmieri Experience featuring Ray Vega, Conrad Herwig, and Arturo Ortiz

The Eddie Palmieri Experience is a one-of-a-kind project celebrating the groundbreaking legacy of music legend Eddie Palmieri. Known as “The Sun of Latin Music,” Palmieri revolutionized salsa and Latin jazz – recording over 40 albums, winning 10 Grammy® Awards, and performing across the globe until he passed at 88 years young in August 2025.
In Palmieri’s signature fashion, this project blends the complex rhythms of Afro-Caribbean percussion with exciting arrangements and powerful improvisation, showcasing Palmieri’s revolutionary sound for lifelong fans and new listeners alike.
This Eddie Palmieri Experience has a deep connection to the source, featuring stellar musicians who have performed and recorded with Palmieri’s ensembles. Each band member brings an authentic understanding of Palmieri’s unique musical language, from his fearless arrangements to the electrifying interplay between the rhythm section, horns, and vocals.
The group’s musical directors, Louis Fouché (alto saxophone) and Luques Curtis (bass), are longtime Palmieri collaborators and worked closely with him until his passing. Under their direction, this all-star ensemble performs Palmieri’s music, spanning the different eras of his career in salsa and Latin jazz, including classics such as “Azúcar Pa’ Ti” and “Palmas,” along with deeper cuts from his extensive repertoire of musical masterpieces.
This stellar ensemble of Palmieri alumni includes special guests Ray Vega (trumpet) and Conrad Herwig (trombone), along with Camilo Molina (timbales), Vicente “Little Johnny” Rivero (congas), and José Claussell (bongos & cowbell). Arturo Ortiz will take the reins on Palmieri's instrument, the piano.
More than a tribute, this project is a celebration, honoring the global impact of one of music’s most influential architects while capturing the undeniable energy of the New York Latin music scene that he helped shape. Whether performing on festival stages, in clubs, or at dance halls, this group delivers an unforgettable experience – The Eddie Palmieri Experience – that keeps Palmieri’s legacy alive and well, and most certainly will make you dance!