Pete Terrace born 6 February 1927

Pete Terrace (born February 6 , 1927 ) is a composer, arranger, vibraphonist, drummer and percussionist of Latin jazz and Afro-Cuban jazz who has made numerous Latin arrangements of titles by other composers and led several jazz groups as a leader. He was known as The King Of Latin Jazz and The King Of The Boogaloo. He is one of the oldest representatives of the New York Latin jazz movement and is considered one of the best composer-arrangers of Latin jazz. 

Born Pedro Guitierez to Puerto Rican parents in New York, he was immersed in music from an early age. His father was a disc jockey in New York and Miami, his brother Ray an accomplished drummer. At the age of 13 Pedro began his musical career as a drummer for El Sexeto Caney. He was also a drummer in the Commercial High School band before doing 18 months of military service in the US Army. On his return to civilian life, around 1947, he chose an American-sounding pseudonym Pete Terrace and became the regular drummer for Bartolo Hernandez. 

Following graduation from New York’s Julliard School Of Music in 1952, he switched to vibes and worked with Noro Morales, Tito Puente, Pupi Campo, Buddy Rich, and Josephine Baker prior to joining Joe Loco. His career as a band leader leader really started in 1956 with his signing with the record company Tico Records and the publication of his album A Night in Mambo Jazzland which contained the hit Shangri-La. George Goldner, (A&R head of Tico) who had spotted his great talent as a vibraphonist within Joe Loco's group (alias the Pete Terrace Quintet), saw in him great potential which would result into 9 consecutive albums released on this label.

In 1961, he was approached by Strand Records, distributed Decca Records to remake a cha-cha-cha album, and was listed among the first artists to sign with the label. But by 1962, the cha-cha-cha which had experienced a very big boom on the dance floor since 1954 ran out of steam and was above all a victim of the unbridled competition of the breaking wave of new musical styles. This bad experience and the very mixed success of the Strand albums  lead Terrace to change labels again and signed with Colpix Records.

                   

Taking a break from his musical career, from 1964, he decided to resume his studies with more training to develop his style and in 1966 he graduated from the prestigious Juilliard Conservatory of Music with honours and obtained his master’s degree the following year. He then signed with Sceptre Records where his musical style evolved towards what some call "Latin soul”.

1967 saw the release of the album King Of Booglaoo which was recorded live at the New York club Chez José. The international success of this disc is due to the explosion of a new dance craze at the end of 1966 in New York’s Spanish Harlem - the boogaloo, a mixture of spicy soul ingredients and the exaltation of Latin jazz.. With his new found success he founded, probably around 1969, along with Cal Tjader, his own Mio International label focused on the publication of Latin, jazz, Puerto Rican Afro-Cuban music records.

He thus attempted a comeback on the front of the musical scene by publishing a first series of very successful studio recordings, a selection made of Latin bolero, mambo and boogaloo then a compilation based very largely on (still ) the album King of the Boogaloo hoping for a vain success that could have saved his record company from bankruptcy. But this did not happen and Mio International folded during 1971.

Pete Terrace withdrew from the music scene and fell back into anonymity to become Pedro / Peter Gutierrez again and practice medicine in Puerto Rico. Although Terrace is one of the great forgotten within the salsa world,  his works are inspiration for many musicians of the nascent Salsa. I cannot find any more news about him, but if he is still alive, he will be 95 today. 

(Edited from Wikipedia translation)