Giovanni Hidalgo: A Life in Rhythm

How did music shape your life?

Music is part of my life, and my life is music. God is rhythm. That’s how I have seen it all my life. It is a great gift to play for the masses. Through music and rhythm, we bring healing, harmony, and happiness.

I started reading music at eight years old. I was ready to play with the orchestra and big bands by nine years old. When I say ready, I mean I thought, “Wow, someday the great ones are going to call us, and we need to be ready for them.” And that’s what
happened.

My uncle, Tito Garcia, brought me to California in 1974 to play with the orchestra. At nine years old, I was playing with Pete Escovedo (Sheila’s father), Benny Velarde, Francisco Aguabella, and Armando Peraza. My uncle said, “My nephew’s going to play the congas.” They asked, “Where is he?” My uncle pointed to me and said, “This is my nephew, the little kid!”

I grew up listening to every conguero, drummer, and style on television and radio in Puerto Rico. I listened to everything, an amalgam of different styles: Chinese, Japanese, European, South American, Central American, Mexican, Cuban, you name it, rock and roll, England, the United States, the whole nation—everything.

What has your learning journey been like?

I practiced 325 – 330 days out of the year, from 8 a.m. until 5 or 6 p.m. I would start by playing along with vinyl records at 33 RPM for three, four, or five hours. Then I’d take a break, maybe have a little sandwich, and jump back in to play with vinyls at 45 RPM, really fast. Playing like that was completely healing for me.

At ten years old, I was watching cartoons, practicing, and reading my books. Some of my favorite books are Progressive Steps to Syncopation for the Modern Drummer by Ted Reed, Elementary Training for Musicians by Paul Hindemith, Modern Reading Text in 4/4 by Louis Bellson, Stick Control for the Snare Drummer by George Lawrence Stone, and Podemski’s Standard Snare Drum Method by Benjamin Podemski. And even though I love these books, the real university is the street. But please learn how to read music because the academic part is so important. When you learn to read music, you can also learn how to transcribe what you played. It’s a language. Reading music will save your life.

And, of course, I’m still learning like a child because on the congas, bongos, timbales, or batá, I still feel like I don’t know anything. Learning is never-ending. Sometimes, when I sleep, I sleep with my conga in my bed. I’ve done that since I was a little kid, and I do it now when I can. That’s the instrument that gives me happiness, health, knowledge, and the visualization of my life. I also always have a little piano and music paper to write down rudiments, tunes, or songs. How you learn the approach that gives you the pattern and structure on the instrument is endless.

We are not only musicians or percussionists. We are architects. We belong to the architectural level. We are scientists. I’ve been a drummer all my life. The way that I play congas is the same way I play the drums. I’ve played my whole life out of love for the instrument, including when I put the rudiments to the congas. When I play with others, I say, “You guys play,” and I let them play and record. Then, I go in between and fill in the colors. We are painters.

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