Carlos Alberto Santana's bio

Carlos Alberto Santana is an accomplished pianist and composer in Canada's National Capital Region. Originally from Mexico City, he started at the age of five with classical music lessons with maestro Angel Esteva. In 1992, he studied Jazz improvisation with maestro Juan Jose Calatayud. In 1994, he moved temporarily to Montreal to improve his Jazz skills by taking lessons from maestro Jan Jarczyk, professor of Jazz piano from McGill University. In 1998, he migrated permanently to Canada. Since then, he has been member and founder of different musical projects. In 2016, Carlos Alberto released his first Album “Oye Latino”, which had a great success after its presentation at the National Arts Centre. In late 2020, in the middle of the Pandemic, he released his second album “La Azotea” . Carlos Alberto’s most solid project is his Latin Jazz quartet integrated by Alvaro de Minaya, Daniel Chavolla and Jasmin Lalande. The quarter's repertoire includes a majority of original works composed by Carlos Alberto. In late 2024, Carlos Alberto released his first Piano Solo album with a selection of works composed in the last decade.  As a member of the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers  of Canada (SOCAN), Carlos Alberto has registered dozens of works composed for his jazz quartet and piano solo. Carlos Alberto plays on a regular basis in one of the most popular Jazz venues in the National Capital region. Carlos Alberto most important influences are  North American and Latin American composers such as Scott Joplin, Chick Corea, George Gershwin, Oscar Peterson, Ernesto Lecuona, Astor Piazzolla, Cesar Camargo Mariano, Michelle Camilo and Mario Ruiz Armengol. 

Carlos Alberto is also an electrical engineer working for the IT private sector in Ottawa, Canada.