It's a Latino Halloween, barrio style

Que Trick or Treat, Que Nada
A la brava, barrio style...

By Al Carlos Hernandez, (First Published on LatinoLA)

It is probably the sign of the times, but kids don't trick or treat at our house much anymore. Every year there are less and less visitors. This doesn't dissuade us from buying more and more candy. Maybe it is because we installed one of those motion detector lights that only go on when someone comes up the stairs. This year we may disable it so kids can come by and I don't have to eat fifteen pounds of chocolate candy. I only buy the kind of candy that I like, no doubt sublimatin, and over compensating for unfulfilled trick or treating experience in the past.

Back in the day in the Housing Projects, trick or treating was a major event. My brothers, sister and local apartment mate homies would go out as a group and quite methodically work the community. After an hour or two of warm up trick or treating around the projects, we would get an adult to drive us to the better neighborhoods to really rack up on name brand candy, because the treats back home were often weak. Project folk would try to pass out whacked stuff like homemade pan dulce, lumpias, cheese sandwiches, poker chips, and dice.

More savvy projects parents, ours included would sometimes send the kids out earlier to gather goodies, then when local kids came to the door would give them the lousy treats they gathered but didn?t want, like ABC gum, unwrapped candy with lint on them and throwing apples.

Every year I had the cheapest black cat costume imaginable, consisting of a mask with a rubber band and a black hospital gown thing. This "Fit" was one step above drawn on mascara stripped whiskers and hair spiked up with Dippity Do. No matter which house we would go to, I'd would get the same reaction, in several different languages "What is this kid a Beaver, a Muskrat, a Weasel?" Our knock on the door speech became rote and dispassionate. I would try to say "Trick or Treat, I'm a black cat," but since the mask muffled my speech, they often time mistook me for being "Challenged Kid" and gave me a little extra for trying so hard.

Fortuitously, pretending to be stupid has served me well throughout the years.

My family's trick or treating style was quite dichotomous. My older brother would say something like, "Good evening this is a non-threatening, non-invasive trick or treat, and he is apparently a Black Cat with some hygiene issues." My younger brother who was always the cutest of us all would say, "Trick or Treat, candy or money, and I'm dressed up like yo mama."

Our parents were very liberal when it came to our candy. Their philosophy was that if we earned it we can keep it, just as long as we broke them off a little something-something when we checked out our stash. Dad would always get first dibs on the caramels and Mom would take anything she wanted, and that was fine with us.

I maintain the philosophy of laisez faire when it comes to a child's sovereign acquisition of candy. If you can get it, you can keep it. Many seasoned trick or treaters went on to become mega vacuum cleaner salespeople, and or ranking religious zealots.

My wife and I however differ. Her attitude is to save the candy for the kids and give them one piece a day after a well balanced dinner. This socialistic type of thinking severely undermines the drive and the motivation of kids trying to "get paid."

Speaking for myself, remembering my demeanor as a raggedy shot to the curb, jackal-rat faced dork monkey looking challenged cat in prison pajamas. If Mom and Dad held our candy in trust, OK hostage, then piece mealed out the treats one day at a time, this would have killed our motivation to knock our knuckles raw, climb pyramids of stairs, while carrying a shopping bag full of dreams.

The tradition of kids going door to door trick or treating is passing away because of the times we live in. There are more freaks answering the door then going to the door asking for candy. The time of innocence is gone in America - kids now go with their parents to the mall or to school sponsored harvest festivals to celebrate the day.

Maybe it is better this way. More candy for us.

About Al Carlos Hernandez:
Al Carlos may wear his Emmy tuxedo.

Latino actor to star in "La Llorona" Grimm episode

Actor David Barrera co stars on a Grimm groundbreaking TV Event

By Dr. Al Carlos Hernandez, Herald De Paris

(Edited By Susan Aceves)

David Barrera is an American actor best known for his latest role as Gunnery Sgt. Ray ‘Casey Kasem’ Griego in Generation Kill. He has appeared in several television series including Heroes, CSI: Miami, Boston Legal,Medium, Nip/Tuck, Without a Trace, The West Wing and 24 for which he was nominated for an ALMA award as best actor.The most recent film in which Barrera can be seen is Universal’s family comedy Evan Almighty. He worked on films like Infinity, No Way Back and The United States of Leland. Barrera guest starred in the episode ‘Alex Gives Up’ in a Disney Channel Original Series live-action sitcom, Wizards of Waverly Place – a series in which his wife, Maria, is a star player.

David Barrera was born and raised in San Juan, Texas and was the seventh of eight children. He attended Pharr-San Juan-Alamo High School, where he was involved in Theater. He received his BFA from Southern Methodist University on a theater scholarship. He went on to receive his MFA from The University of California, San Diego, where he garnered a San Diego Fellowship and was awarded The Princess Grace Acting Scholarship in his third year. While at UCSD, he was trained in and worked on several classical works of theater. He also did an internship at the prestigious La Jolla Playhouse and at Luis Valdez’ El Teatro Campesino. David is married to actress Maria Canals Barrera with whom he has two daughters.

On Friday October 26th a very special episode of NBC’s Grimm will be re-broadcast for the first time on Telemundo television. David will have a leading and ground breaking role. He said, “The episode will air on NBC, Telemundo and Mun2. The story deals with the legend of ‘La Llorona.’ I play a dad whose son is taken by her. We spend the episode searching for my son and La Llorona. It’s a really action packed episode and will have you on the edge of your seat. All my dialogue is completely in Spanish. One of the regulars on the series is fluent in Spanish and her character serves as my character’s translator.”

Here is the scenario:

Herald De Paris Deputy Managing Editor Dr. Al Carlos Hernandez had an inspiring conversation with David at the ALMA Awards:

Tell us about your family and growing up in Texas. What did your parents do and how was it growing up with seven siblings? How does your upbringing inform your work as an adult?

DB: I grew up in deep San Juan, Texas in an area of Southern Texas known as the Rio Grande Valley. I was born into a migrant farm working family of eight children. My family stopped traveling up north to work in the fields when I was around six or seven years old. This was a decision my mom made because it was hurting our education to be pulled out of school early in the summer and get back late for school in the fall. Although my family was of modest means, I remember a lot of laughter and good times. My dad later became a Jack-of-all-trades. He built houses and sold them for a while. He would buy and sell cars from time to time and had his own little lot for a bit. My mom was a lay-midwife (delivered babies) for most of her life. It was fantastic growing up in such a big family. We didn’t need anybody else. We had each other and friends were just icing on the cake. I think my upbringing informed my adult life in that I learned what hard work was from seeing my brothers and sisters working so hard from an early age. It also solidified the importance of family for me. Family comes first.

Who were your greatest supporters and who were the ‘nay sayers?’

DB: My greatest supporters were my parents and my family. They would support me in all my shows or the sports I participated in. They were my biggest fans. This gave me a lot of confidence in what I could do. I never saw failure as an option. I don’t think I ever had any ‘nay sayers’ - not any I could remember. I mean, you always run into people who are sometimes jealous of your accomplishment, that is natural, but I was always taught to ignore them and move forward.

What was it in your childhood that steered you towards the Arts? What was your first performance like?

DB: From my earliest years, growing up in a big family that loved to make each other laugh, I always enjoyed making other people laugh. It brought me great joy to tell jokes and be funny. That is where my want to perform was born. I remember when tryouts for the “creative dramatics” team came around in sixth grade, I jumped at the chance. I saw it as a chance to be funny in an environment where teachers did not tell you to stop talking. They encouraged it. I loved it! I then moved on into a high school that had a very strong theater department and was able to hone my passion into a more regular practice of my art. My first performance was exhilarating. It was at a “creative dramatics” competition in sixth grade against other elementary schools. Our team was very nervous, but we soon realized to just take the bull by the horns and perform. Very empowering. We placed sixth out of six schools, but it was a start. Ha! Ha!

When, and under what circumstances, did you know that you wanted to be an artist?

DB: I always knew I wanted to be and actor. I think a lot of kids have that dream, but it wasn’t until I was in college that I realized that it was actually possible. I realized that my belief that you are either really famous or a miserable failure was false. I realized you could be a working actor and make a decent living without the greater population knowing who you were. That seemed attainable to me. I went for it.

What was the reaction of your family when you decided to become involved in theater in high school? For Latino males, isn’t acting a nontraditional vocational choice? What kind of productions were you involved in?

DB: My family was very supportive. They loved it. We came from a family that had some singers in it. My mom sang at local shows when she was young and won competitions. For a while my parents had a singing ministry where they sang at various churches. Performing was kind of in our blood. It was never seen as a negative. Plus, the high school I went to was very successful across the state of Texas in drama competitions and because I grew up next to the Mexican border, most of us were Hispanic. Our community loved it. People would drive three or four hours to come see us compete at some of the One-Act Play competitions. It was always a plus.


What was the dream back then?

DB: The dream has always been to be a successful actor. To me that means working regularly and supporting yourself and your family from your art and enjoying the process of that. I have a very blue collar approach to it. I love to work. I work very hard and love getting chances to work. I love what I do.

Tell us how you earned your scholarship to Southern Methodist University in Dallas. What were some of the highs and lows during your college years at SMU?

DB: In my senior year of high school, three of us seniors were selected to go to a theater conference in Austin and perform audition monologues for all the colleges in Texas. You had to do a comedy monologue and dramatic monologue. After everyone had performed, we found out what colleges had called us back for an interview to see if we wanted to attend their university. I got a callback from a bunch of schools. I remember the University of Texas called me back and offered me a $500 dollar scholarship and I was ecstatic! I was a poor kid, so $500 was a lot of money to me. Well, then SMU called me back and I had no idea what a respected program they had. All I knew was that Eric Dickerson had played football there. It’s the best program in the state and one of the best in the country. They offered me a full ride and I just about passed out. Needless to say, I passed on UT and attended SMU.

The highs were being a part of such a prestigious professional actor training program. I was performing in plays with really talented class mates; growing and maturing in my craft. It was a student actors dream. The lows were being away from my family. I’ve always been very strong, but that was hard for me. It’s clear across the state, and Texas is huge! Ha! Ha! But, I grew from that experience as well. With the backing of my family, I became very independent and able to adapt to any environment.

What circumstances led to attaining an MFA from UC San Diego? Did you want to teach?

DB: In my senior year at SMU, a few of us were going to move to Chicago and start a theater company. I had no intention of going to grad school. One of my professors persuaded me to audition for at least a few of the more respected schools: Yale, NYU, UCSD. I did and was accepted at UCSD where I was offered a full ride plus a stipend to live on. I figured there was no way I could turn down such a wonderful program that was very respected in the professional world. I decided to go. It was a great decision. I got more great training and, through the showcases my class did in NY and LA, I landed my LA agent before I even moved here. I’m so glad I went there. I never had the intention of teaching. I always wanted to act professionally.

How important is it for Latinos in the arts to have advanced degrees?

DB: The degree doesn’t matter to anyone in the business. They couldn’t care less, but the training you receive is invaluable. One of the things my training affords me is a consistent level of performance from audition to audition. I learned that through technique at these schools. Consistency of quality auditions is the key to booking jobs. You can’t have too many off days.

What is the Princess Grace Acting Scholarship and how did you win it? What kind of doors did it open for you?

DB: Princess Grace Awards are given out by the Princess Grace Foundation (Princess Grace of Monaco) to honor artists who show excellence and promise in the disciplines of theater, dance, choreography, and film. I was picked in 1993 as the student award recipient for that year. Prompted by a professor, we submitted an audition tape plus a lot of paperwork and I won. It paid for my third year of grad school. It was a wonderful blessing.

http://www.pgfusa.com/award-winners/browse/by-year/1993/

Tell us about your work with El Teatro Compesino.

DB: In my third year of grad school, I got the opportunity to audition for an Octavio Solis play called ‘Prospect’ that was being produced by El Teatro Campesino. I was selected to play the lead role of ‘Scout’ and the school allowed me to do it as my externship that year. It was a great experience.

What was your first big break? What kinds of other jobs did you have before you ‘made it?'

DB: When I moved to LA I worked as a waiter at the Red Lobster in Beverly Hills. Thank God I could act, because I was a lousy waiter. I worked there four months until I got my first film. It was called ‘Infinity’ and it was directed by and starred Matthew Broderick. After that movie, a friend of mine got me a job a UCLA as a research assistant. The job was basically to hang out in the waiting rooms of clinics in South Central LA, approach people and ask all kinds of personal question and determine if they would be good candidates for the research study. I worked there for about a year until the study ended. Since then I’ve supported myself solely from my craft.

What are some of the TV shows and films you have worked on and what are some of the ‘types’ they book you for?

DB: I have 53 television titles and 14 film titles on IMDB.

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0056876/

Some of those include NYPD: Blue, ER, The West Wing, The Mentalist, Heroes, Medium, CSI: NY and the HBO miniseries Generation Kill. I book a lot of roles for doctors, lawyers, cops and, lately, dads and detectives.

Which platform do you prefer the most: stage, screen, or TV?

DB: I prefer film. I think most actors do. There is generally a lot more time to shoot scenes in film. It takes time to develop a character, etc. Although lately, there are a lot more interesting scripts being done on TV than in film. Breaking Bad, Sons of Anarchy, shows like that. I think HBO started that trend with The Sopranos.Drama is, by far, my favorite. I still like being funny and making people laugh but I just find that in drama I feel very at home. It resonates with me a lot easier.

What was the first time you realized you were famous?

DB: The first time a stranger stopped me in the mall was pretty shocking. I usually get stopped for my arc on NYPD: Blue. People who stop me and loved that show feel like they know me as a member of their family. That was a very special show to a lot of people.

How did you meet your wife? How hard is it for two working actors to raise a family in Hollywood?

DB: I met Maria working on a staged reading at the Mark Taper Forum. It was called ‘The Seductions of Johnny Diego’ – I played Johnny Diego and she was one of my seductions. It was written by Guillermo Reyes and it was directed by Tony Plana. Within ten days, we were madly in love and still are!

It is difficult to juggle schedules with two working actors, especially with this current trend of leaving town for most jobs. We make it happen. We put our family first in every decision. That’s the only way to make it work. It comes with some sacrifice but at the end of the day we have each other and that’s all that counts.

Tell us about this very special episode of Grimm. I understand this is the first time Telemundo will re-broadcast.

DB: Yes. It will air on NBC, Telemundo and Mun2. The story deals with the legend of ‘La Llorona.’ I play a father whose son is taken by her. We spend the episode searching for my son and La Llorona. It’s a really action packed episode and will have you on the edge of your seat. All my dialogue is completely in Spanish. One of the regulars is fluent in Spanish and her character serves as my character’s translator.

How difficult was it doing the whole program speaking Spanish? What is your highest hope for this episode?

DB: It was not that difficult because the Spanish was written beautifully. So many times, if you get Spanish dialogue it’s written horribly and you end up having to translate on the fly. That can be difficult. But this was a joy to work on. My highest hope would be that the episode gets incredible numbers, NBC capitalizes on it to create more Latino characters and that there is more work for Latino actors. That would be amazing.

Do you think your career has been limited because of your ethnicity and/or moral posture?

DB: Early on in my career, I turned down a lot of stuff because it was stereotypical. Had I taken some of that stuff, my career would have moved further along at a much faster pace. However, I would not have been happy with my decisions. There are certainly not as many roles as I would like there to be for me to have the opportunity to work on – but I try not to ‘live’ in that. I try not to spend my energy getting upset about that. I focus on what is in front of me. I focus my energy on getting the work that IS available.

What are the kinds of parts you would like to play? What would be the perfect project?

DB: I would love to play a detective on a television series who investigates crimes. I would like it to shoot in town so I could be close to my family. That would be ideal for me.

What advice would you give to young actors who are just starting out?

DB: Get trained. Learn your craft. Learn what acting is and how to do it well at a consistent level and you will always work.

When it’s all said and done, 50 years from now how would you like to be remembered? What would you like your legacy to be?

DB: I would like to be remembered as a guy who worked really hard at what he loved and sometimes did it pretty well. A guy who always enjoyed what he did and treated people with respect and dignity as he did it. I would also like to be remembered as a good father and husband who was not defined by Hollywood, but tackled Hollywood on his own terms. That would be nice.

Latino Coach makes NFL Hall of Fame list

Legendary Twice Super Bowl Winning Coach, Tom Flores, finally has been added to the NFL Hall of Fame list! We Need Your Help!

The following article was posted by Joe Ortiz on Thursday, November 24, 2011 at 12:48 AM, after legendary Latino football player and twice "Super Bowl" winning coach was left off the ballot to be inducted into the NFL's Hall of Fame. Since then, Tom made the list of the "finalists" for the 2013 National Football League's Hall of Fame.

We are asking for your help to contact the voters (see email addresses after the article) to encourage them to vote for Tom. We are re-posting this article because its message still holds true today.

He has FOUR Super Bowl Championship rings; one as a player, one as an assistant coach (under John Madden) and twice as head coach for the World Super Bowl Champion Los Angeles and Oakland Raiders.

But, that's not enough to convince the voters to consider inducting the first Mexican American quarterback and head coach in pro football, as well as the first General Manager of a professional football team (with the Seattle Seahawks), among many other accomplishments to be so honored.

Tom Flores has distinguished himself in the pro-football community as few have (much less the fact he is a Latino) in the last 51 years, and still going strong as a color commentator for the Oakland Raiders Radio Network. He is already a member of the California Sports Hall of Fame and the old American Football (and holds several records as a quarterback in that fledgling) league that reached such profound football greatness it had to be considered legitimate enough in the course of its play that it caused having to merge with the established league. Had there been no merger football fans would not be enjoying the most significant sporting event in world history, the Super Bowl. How many current inductees in the NFL HOF can present a greater resume?

Flores was recently honored by the National Council of La Raza with the coveted "Roberto Clemente Award for Sports Excellence" in Washington, D.C. That gesture was not based on a public relations ploy by the Mexican American community. It is aware (and it recognized) one individual from within its community that has not only distinguished himself above and beyond the norm, but has surpassed many of the accomplishments from other members of the predominate community with a commitment to excellence rarely experienced.

If nothing else (and we all know there is a certain amount of politics that plays into the minds of the voters) the owners could have made note to the voters that based on the changing demographics, electing a Latino to the Hall of Fame would have been a stroke of public relations genius, which would obviously increase attendance. Obviously, it would have created a more appreciated atmosphere towards a consumer that will soon be the largest paying customer in the sports community.

Look out NFL, the game of soccer (which is favored by Latinos more than pro football) is rearing its ugly head.
Oh well!

[Click this link to see Tom Flores' acceptance speech. It will make you proud to be an American] 

Also click the following link to see videos of Tom's friends (Jim Plunkett, Carlos Santana, Greg Papa and others) who share why Tom should be inducted:

The Tom Flores Legacy Page on Facebook

Below are the email addresses of the sports writers and others who cast a vote for future inductees. Please send them all an email in support of Tom Flores, or at least to the voter nearest you.

Thank You!

Joe Ortiz, President
The Official Tom Flores Fan Club

Interview: Latino trumpet master for Santana, Bill Ortiz

"It's been an amazing ride, all the places we play and the musicians I've had a chance to play with."

By Dr. Al Carlos Hernandez, Contributing Editor, LatinoLA: October 4, 2012

Bill Ortiz is the lead trumpet player for Santana - a chair he has held for twelve years and in the one million years yet to come. In addition to his world travels, Las Vegas showcases and arena gigs with Carlos' crew, Ortiz's sweet, assertive trumpet attack has made him one of the most in-demand players on the San Francisco Bay Area music scene.

His performing and recording credits include work with such diverse artists and groups as Patti Austin, Cachao, Don Cherry, The Dramatics, Destiny's Child, En Vogue, Sheila E, James Ingram, Tito Puente, Flora Purim and Airto, Todd Rundgren, Arturo Sandoval, Boz Scaggs, TLC, Tony! Toni! Tone!, Cecil Taylor, Johnny "Guitar" Watson, and Steve Winwood. In addition, Bill has been very active as a studio musician in Hip-Hop, R&B and Jazz.

A proud San Francisco native, Bill took up the trumpet at age ten and played in R&B bands as a teenager. He feels that this experience was invaluable to his subsequent jazz work. "I consider myself a jazz player," he said, "but my musical upbringing contains a large amount of Latin playing - I'm part Cuban myself, and I started out playing R&B. What I'm trying to do with my music is reflect all those elements of who I am as a musician. It's basically all African music; it's all branches of the same tree. I'm not a purist at all. I try to bring it all together."

Ortiz is proud to present his new full-length release titled Highest Wish. A follow up to his Winter in America EP released earlier this year, this new album project features conscious emcees such as Casual, The Grouch, Zumbi (of Zion I) and K-Maxx, as well as fellow Santana member (and eleven time Grammy Award Winner) Tony Lindsey, and iconic poet/vocalist Linda Tillery, featured with a spoken word performance of Dr. Martin Luther King's Nobel Peace Prize speech.

Bill said, "Carlos has always used music to inspire and bring people together. I try to follow in that tradition. I've been really inspired by some of the Bay Area hip-hop artists like Casual, Zumbi and the Grouch who make music with enlightened lyrics." When it comes to choosing his guest artists, "We often celebrate ignorance in our society, so I wanted to celebrate consciousness."

On his EP, which charted in the top ten on CMJ's hip hop charts for over a month, Ortiz covers Gil Scott Heron and Brian Jackson's 1973 hit on the track Winter in America as an homage to the recently departed Heron. The concept video for this track has been featured on many mainstream hip-hop websites.

LatinoLA.com Contributing Editor Dr. AC had an opportunity to get to know and now tell an interesting story about another one of his friends from the Santana Family.

Dr. Al Carlos Hernandez (Dr. AC): Why did you decide on becoming a musician? Why the trumpet? What kind of music did you listen to while growing up?

Bill Ortiz (BO): Well, before I started playing the trumpet, music already played a big part of my life during my early years. My parents played music in the house a lot and had a pretty extensive record collection- everything from classical and pop music at the time to soundtracks for movies and plays - stuff that is referred to sometimes and the 'great American Songbook', songs that became jazz standards.

The one record that made the biggest impression was called "Satchmo The Great"- Louis Armstrong performing live with Louis Armstrong performing live with a full orchestra conducted by Leonard Bernstein. We also had a few records of Louis' Hot 5 and Hot 7 bands.

In addition to that, I was ALWAYS listening to the radio. Top 40 at that time was still an important model for radio, much more eclectic and less programmed than it is today. You would hear everything from Motown to Sly and The Family Stone to The Beatles to anything else you could think of. When the high school band came down the hill to my elementary school recruiting for our music program, I was all in. My folks said yes to the trumpet because when they got married, the song "Trumpeter's Serenade" was part of their ceremony. Fortunately they said 'Yes' before they found out they would have to buy me a horn!

Dr. AC: Do you think growing up in SF affected your musical sensibilities? Back in the day the music in the Bay Area was quite eclectic.

Bill Ortiz (BO): Growing up in the Bay Area during the '70's had a huge impact on my musical sensibilities, and that foundation is still strong today. I consider this era of music as a real golden age- it was paramount for many artists at that time to be innovative, progressive and conscious minded, at least the ones I gravitated to. In addition to all the great music coming out of the bay area such as Sly, Santana, and Graham Central Station- there was Curtis Mayfield, Weather Report, The Art Ensemble Of Chicago, the whole punk movement, Donny Hathaway, Stevie Wonder with "Inner visions", The Gil Scott-Heron/Brian Jackson Band, '70's Miles Davis and all the great vocal groups coming out of Philly.

When you can throw in such voices as Richard Pryor, George Carlin, Dick Gregory and Alex Haley with "Roots" -- it was a pretty heady time. Most musicians I hung out with at that time strived to find always something new and innovative to play, and to have their own sound and approach. There weren't that many young musicians in suits running around putting down anything that wasn't 50 years old.

Dr. AC: Was it when you landed first chair in the SF All City Band that you decided to make music a career? Who inspired you to pursuit your dreams?

Bill Ortiz (BO): Although I was first chair at All-City Band and started playing in bars with R&B bands at 16, I didn't really decide to be a full time musician/artist until my senior year. What inspired me to choose that path was a private music teacher I had named Ron Madden, a student at San Francisco State College at the time. Ron was a remarkable teacher who taught me a lot about the whole creative process of improvisation, and how different musicians approached it -- Miles, Wayne Shorter, and John Coltrane. He helped me to understand what was behind licks and scales. I also studied with trumpet guru John Coppola, who also not only helped me to get a clue with improvising but helped me with my embouchure and the mechanics of the horn. I owe them both everything.

Dr. AC: As a teenager you started playing local clubs. What was that first experience like? Did you do R&B and Top 40 cover tunes? What did you family think about you and the club scene? Any ridiculous memories of those days?

Bill Ortiz (BO): My first gig for a local radio station with a band called Charles Stanford and the Saints- I think I made a whole $15 or $20 bucks, and had the time of my life. We played mostly R&B and blues -- stuff like Tower Of Power, Sly, James Brown, Van Morrison, B.B. King, Donny Hathaway, Ohio Players, and Earth Wind and Fire. Off the gig, we'd play all kinds of stuff -- Sun Ra, early Crusaders, Freddie Hubbard, Coltrane. We didn't care; if we liked it we would try to play it.

In regards to ridiculous memories, I'm struggling to think of something I could actually share in public. I have one I was in a club playing a solo-maybe 20 years old. I thought it would be cool to start off with holding a high note for a real long time for dramatic effect. Being a young player pushing his high range, I hyperventilated and passed out for a few seconds. I ended up landing backwards into the drums and onto the floor. I look up and the bass player, still playing the song, is peering over me, saying "Damn!" I get up and finish my solo. The kicker is that on the break, some guy comes running up to me saying, "That was off the hook. How did you do that?" He thought it was part of the show!

Dr. AC: Who are your top five favorite trumpet players of all time? Whose style do you pay homage to? Who is your favorite horn band?

Bill Ortiz (BO): I can't pin it down to 5, but let's start with Louis Armstrong of course, Lee Morgan, Miles, Freddie Hubbard, Blue Mitchell, Kenny Dorham, Dizzy Gillespie, Lester Bowie, Armando "Chocolate" Armenteros, Tom Harrell, Luis "Perico" Ortiz, Don Cherry, Wilber Harden…

Horn bands? All the Motown stuff, New Birth, Sly, Tower, Earth Wind and Fire, Chicago (up to the mid 70's), Ohio Players, Cameo when they had horns, all the Parliament/Funkadelic stuff, early Kool and the Gang.

Dr. AC: Did your ethnicity inspire your pursuit of the genre? Do you view yourself "ethnic" at all?

Bill Ortiz (BO): Being part Cuban, I did have an interest of learning more about Cuban music, although outside of my grandfather, I didn't have that much influence of Cuban culture growing up. That came later as a musician. As I started working professionally, I became involved in the great Latin music scene that still exists today in the Bay Area.

In my early 20's I started working with such artists as John Santos, Pete Escovedo, Francisco Aguabella, and a lot of other great Bay Area bands. I also worked with artists like Tito Puente, "Chocolate" and Israel "Cachao" Lopez when they would venture out to the west coast. As to being "ethnic", I think that would be all of us.

Dr. AC: Tell us about your college years. Where did you go and how was music a part of that? How did you get exposed to Latin music?

Bill Ortiz (BO): Most of my time in college was spent in the library listening to Coltrane and Miles. I was also gigging 5 or 6 nights a week and going to school the next day, and jamming every other minute in the practice rooms with whoever was around - usually a piano and upright bass player, maybe a sax player, too. We would play standards and Coltrane, Coltrane and standards.

Dr. AC: What was your first major gig and how did you land it?

Bill Ortiz (BO): I guess that would be my recording and doing a few gigs with Robert Winters and Fall. Robert was an amazing singer that had a big hit called "Magic Man" on the R&B charts- that was in my early 20's. I would consider my time with Pete Escovedo, John Santos and Peter Aphelbaum and The Hieroglyphics Ensemble as major gigs. With Peter, we played jazz festivals in the US and Europe- both by ourselves and backing up iconic jazz trumpeter Don Cherry. My first touring gig was Tony Toni Tone'.

Dr. AC: Tell us about Tony Toni Tone. What was that whole experience like?

Bill Ortiz (BO): All in all, that was a terrific experience, musically and otherwise. The band was just killin'- the core of the group all came from gospel music backgrounds, and they all just flat out played their asses off. Playing live, we'd add lots of elements that weren't on the original recordings- great arrangements, solos sections and musical interludes. All three of the principals of the group, Raphael Saadiq, Timothy Christian-Reilly and D'Wayne Wiggins are great writers and producers, and all the other musicians were as well. There were long hours on the tour bus with that band, 24-7 of watching Scarface, playing Madden football, brutal cap sessions, listening to gospel quartet music- lots of laughs and good times. We were having more fun then we realized at the time.

Dr. AC: Elaborate, if you will, on working with En Vogue, Janet, Destiny's Child and TLC.

Bill Ortiz (BO): My time with En Vogue, TLC and Destiny's Child mostly involved studio work, although when Santana played at The Super Bowl a few years back, Beyonce performed some songs with us as well. I worked with En Vogue along with a number of artists while working for the producing team Foster and McElroy, who also produced Tony Toni Tone's first 2 CDs.

I used to work the same club circuit when during my late teens and early twenties with Cindy Herron's sister- Cindy was just a kid at the time but already had a reputation as a young talent with big promise. What I mostly remember with working with Cindy and the rest of En Vogue was they all were just basically very nice and down to earth. Recording with TLC took place in Dallas Austin's studio in Atlanta.

I had the pleasure of playing on Janet Jackson's tour with Tony Toni Tone', who was the opening act. Her show had lots of high production- it's really something to see such an elaborate presentation every night, and to see how it all works behind the scenes technically with the video, special effects and sets ... pretty cool! She had a great band and dancers, and she performs her tail off too-it's a total show.

Dr. AC: Did you get type-cast as strictly an R&B player?

Bill Ortiz (BO): I guess it's pretty natural for people to define you by the work you are doing. Hopefully they like or appreciate what you do. I've been the "Latin guy", the R&B guy, the jazz guy, the Latin guy again, the R&B guy again, the guy who's never home…. I am very fortunate to have played lots of different stuff genre wise- it's all good.

Dr. AC: How is it to work with Boz Scaggs? And tell me about your long time association with Lavay Smith.

Bill Ortiz (BO): Working with Boz was great- he always has an outstanding band with top musicians and graciously gives his musicians room to play themselves. He's like Carlos Santana in the regard that they both never got away from being the inspired musician who's driven to play and listen to music. It's important for any musician not to get jaded and lose that total love for music, and the drive to play it.

Lavay Smith and her band are always a blast to play with. Her group is influenced by the tradition of such artists as Duke Ellington, Count Basie and Ray Charles. Lot's of world class players in that group as well- a great mix of older and younger musicians. Besides Lavay being a wonderfully soulful singer, her and Chris Siebert (co-band leader) are about the best people I've ever worked for.

Dr. AC: You have been with Carlos for twelve years. How did you book the gig and how is it living the dream? Is there a downside to fame and fortune?

Bill Ortiz (BO): I became full time band member of Santana in 2000, but had recorded with Carlos on his "Milagro" CD in '92, and gigged with him once or twice previous to my joining the band. He had also seen me play locally with various Bay Area groups. I also knew and played with several members that were in the band. After recording on the song "Smooth", I got the call to join the band.

It's been an amazing ride, all the places we play and the musicians I've had a chance to play with. The group itself is a band of assassins- Dennis Chambers on down. When we hit, it's like wild animals going after raw meat- it's the way of playing with total abandonment to the moment, like it means something to you. It ain't cute and clever. As for Carlos, long before playing with him, I always loved the way he phrased a melody- how he held notes out, milking every drop out of it, especially with the way he uses feedback. I've always been drawn to musicians and singers who had a special gift of lyricism.

In regards to any downside to fame and fortune, I'll have to wait to let you know if it ever applies to me!

Dr. AC: You did your first solo album "From Where I Stand" in 2009 and it was a huge critical success. Tell us about that.

Bill Ortiz (BO): That was my debut release as a solo artist. I feel good about that CD as being my first release, but it was also a huge learning experience. I believe that I've grown as a producer and musician since, and hopefully that growth is reflected on my newest release "Highest Wish". I guess growth means not making the same mistakes, but making new ones.

Dr. AC: Tell us about your latest release 'Winter in America.' Why Gil Scott Heron? Are you trying to make a socio-politcal statement and if so, what is it?

Bill Ortiz (BO): Gil Scott-Heron and Brian Jackson produced some of the most important work of their time, and their music and words are as valid and timely as ever. It seems like we've come full circle and are back ... still dealing with the same issues and problems in society. The words of the song "Winter In America" are as meaningful now as they were when the song was recorded. The lyrics themselves pretty much speaks for itself as to what the message is. Gil was always quite eloquent and clear.

Dr. AC: You've said, "We often celebrate ignorance in our society, so I want to celebrate consciousness." What does that mean to you?

Bill Ortiz (BO): That's a question that could take up a whole interview. In short, all you have to do is look at the tone of reality TV, how our political and religious leaders talk to each other, how we resolve our conflicts with others, the general dumbing down of our society. Music doesn't always need to be about changing the world or bringing a profound message- sometimes it's about getting people from Monday to Tuesday, but it's important to have both.

Art has always had a place in changing social consciousness, and music definitely is one of the things that bridges the gap between people and cultures. I'd say that's a good thing, since we live in a time which we as humans are quite divided and often fail to recognize the humanity of others.

Dr. AC: You seem to have a serious understanding of Hip Hop as an art form and incorporate MC's into your work. Do you think Hip Hop is as legitimate an art form as jazz, R&B, or the rock you play with Santana?

Bill Ortiz (BO): The music of Hip Hop is as valid as any other genre that you mention. On a lyrical level, artists like Chuck D, Mos Def, The Hieroglyphics, KRS-1, Talib Kweli, Zion I and The Grouch are true artists of the word, as are Gil Scott-Heron, Bob Dylan, John Lennon, Curtis Mayfield and Patti Smith. Musically, Hip Hop can be extremely innovative with harmonic tonalities and textures with the uses of samples and live playing. As a next step in the development of R&B, it's a blend of the great tradition of the music's past, and new elements introduced into the mix by the new blood and creativity of younger artists.

Mind you as in all genres, there are examples which don't fit that description. As Miles Davis once said, "music is like food, take what you like and leave the rest."

Dr. AC: Tell us about your work with young people regarding music education.

Bill Ortiz (BO): I'm a product of music in public schools, something that is being whittled away as time goes on-I see it first hand, not only by my involvement with music programs in high schools and middle schools, but also from my wife being a public school music teacher. I jump at the chance to work with young musicians because I know what music education in public schools meant to me.

Dr. AC: How is the Santana ride going for you so far? How long do you plan on staying on the road and how have other band members inspired you?

Bill Ortiz (BO): After 12 years, it's still a dream gig. I've become a much better musician from the experience. I've not only learned a huge amount from Carlos, but also from the experience of playing in front of such large audiences and different situations. Carlos enlists his band members to be present in the moment, to be focused on the note you are playing right now, not what you just played, how the audience might react, or what you are going to have for breakfast tomorrow.

He's looking for you to play with a total abandonment of everything but the creative act you are engaged in at that moment. It's about bringing it 100%, no matter what gig it is, how tired you may be- not phoning it in, EVER. When you see Albert King playing his ass off, making faces and in a crouch while playing, it's because he's in the moment, bringing all he has, not because he's mugging or cultivating an image or persona.

Dr. AC: Any cats you haven't worked with that someday you would like to?

Bill Ortiz (BO): Well, for starters- Erykah Badu, Mos Def/Yasiin Bey, Bjork, Pharaoh Sanders, Neil Young, Rance Allen….

Dr. AC: What kinds of plans do you have for the future and what would be the ultimate project for you? Would you like to produce? Start your own label? Teach?

Bill Ortiz (BO): I have a few projects on the drawing board that I hope to get to soon- hopefully a few surprises coming up. I also would like to do a project involving gospel music. In addition to the many jazz and R&B artists that straddle the lines between these genres and gospel music such as Hank Crawford and David "Fathead" Newman, I've also been musically inspired by people like "The Rance Allen Group", Daryl Coley, The Mighty Clouds of Joy with Joe Ligon, Vanessa Bell-Armstrong, Lashaun Pace, and Paul Porter. I would like also to get more involved producing other artists- I love the craft/process of making a record. It's an art in itself.

In regards to starting a label, my wife Anna Karney and I run our own label together. She is a gifted artist/singer-songwriter who performs as "Karney"-you can check her work out at karney.org and facebook.com/thekarneyband. She has some great releases available on iTunes, including here latest CD entitled "Love & Respect"-check her out! I also hope to continue to teach and pass along whatever I know. I learned by making every mistake you can, so perhaps I can spare someone else that journey.

Please check out Bill Ortiz at http://billortiz.com/music

Edited by Susan Aceves