Latin Jazz Pianist Hilton Ruiz Dies
Wednesday June 7, 2006
Jazz composer and pianist Hilton Ruiz died yesterday of injuries sustained after a fall in front of a bar in New Orleans' French Quarter on May 19th. He was 54.
There's been some debate about how he sustained his injuries; some of his friends believe he was beaten. The official police report stated that his injuries were the result of a fall. Ruiz was taken to the hospital and never regained consciousness. He was in New Orleans working on a project to benefit victims of Hurricane Katerina.
Ruiz was born in NYC, May 29, 1952. A child prodigy who performed at Carnegie Hall at the age of 8, he made his first recording with Ray Jay and the East Siders 6 years later. He also performed with such greats as Tito Puente, Dizzy Gillespie, Charles Mingus, Roland Kirk, Betty Carter, Archie Shepp and Chic Freeman, among others. Ruiz was both immensely talented and versatile, excelling at many different forms of Latin jazz as well as bebop and the blues.
Ruiz has performed on more than 500 recordings and will be sorely missed by both the musical community and his large fan base.
There's been some debate about how he sustained his injuries; some of his friends believe he was beaten. The official police report stated that his injuries were the result of a fall. Ruiz was taken to the hospital and never regained consciousness. He was in New Orleans working on a project to benefit victims of Hurricane Katerina.
Ruiz was born in NYC, May 29, 1952. A child prodigy who performed at Carnegie Hall at the age of 8, he made his first recording with Ray Jay and the East Siders 6 years later. He also performed with such greats as Tito Puente, Dizzy Gillespie, Charles Mingus, Roland Kirk, Betty Carter, Archie Shepp and Chic Freeman, among others. Ruiz was both immensely talented and versatile, excelling at many different forms of Latin jazz as well as bebop and the blues.
Ruiz has performed on more than 500 recordings and will be sorely missed by both the musical community and his large fan base.
Comments
This is a cover up, Hilton was beaten in that bar the NOPD is as corupt as the people who did this to Hilton.