Biography

Eddie was born to a Cuban father and a Puerto Rican mother in the late 50´s in Puerto Rico. The beating of drums was running through his blood from his first breath. Eddie's experience and knowledge encompass the musical traditions of the Caribbean as well as the Caribbean´s African heritage. He is a master percussionist, vocalist, composer, arranger, and instructor in the Cuban, Haitian and Puerto Rican folklore traditions. He specializes in Cuban rumba and bata drumming, Haitian voodum, and Puerto Rican bomba, plena and jíbaro music.
Eddie's father was a percussionist and singer in Puerto Rico, and Eddie began singing very early with his father. Later he came across the sound of Mongo Santamaria, a percussion style that impressed him so much, he said to himself: "That's what I want to do!" At the moment he teaches Master Classes at Julliard, the New School for Social Research and other schools. He also plays in several groups and made a cameo appearance in the film "The Thomas Crown Affair", where he can be seen playing bongos (he also plays on the soundtrack to the film).
Bobé has been an essential part of the Central Park Rumba for 25 years, a place where Nuyoricans, Afro-Cubans and African-Americans have gathered in the park for more than 30 years. He was asked to create a CD which represented and captured the New York Rumba sound and spirit, and so he handpicked master percussionists for the studio recording of "Central Park Rumba".
Bobé describes himself and his music as eclectic, in the same way the Rumba played in Central Park is eclectic. The drumming of Rumba is precise and accurate, despite the many different influences from Puerto Rico, Cuba, Africa, and America.
As a percussionist his expertise includes the drum set, bata and conga drums (tumbadoras), timbales and bongos. He has made a unique contribution by playing multiple congas in creative and contemporary music settings. He also specializes in transposing hand drum concepts to the drum set.
He has performed and recorded with Eddie Palmieri, Paquito D'Rivera, Peter Erskin, Michele Rosewoman, Afro-Cuba Drum Ensemble, Art Pepper, Chico O'Farrill, and Steve Coleman, as well as many others.