Pancho Quinto

b. Francisco Hernández Mora, Cuba. Tellingly, percussionist extraordinaire Pancho Quinto's most widely available release is entitled Rumba Sin Fronteras (Rumba Without Frontiers). He offers an unconventional take on his home country's most exuberant music, fusing rumba with rhythmic and harmonic elements from other Afro-Cuban and African-American traditions including jazz and hip-hop. Quinto's music career was started with performances in traditional religious ceremonies, earning the rank of omo ana or master/consecrated drummer, which is one who has been initiated to play t...