Rolando Morales Matos
The Lion King / Curtis Institute - United States
Overview
Rolando Morales-Matos is a percussionist and assistant conductor with Disney's production of The Lion King, Broadway New York - recipient of six 1998 Tony Awards including Best Musical, as well as the 1999 Grammy for Best Musical Show Album. Mr. Morales-Matos is a member of Ron Carter Foursight Jazz Quartet, an Extra- Percussionist with The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, and The Philadelphia Orchestra. Rolando is a well sought after Latin and Classical Percussionist, he performs and records regularly in New York City with various Latin jazz groups and Chamber Orchestras.He has recorded movie sound tracks including Failure To Launch, The Pink Panther and appears playing on screen in the Disney movie Enchanted. In 2006 Rolando was the recipient of Drum Magazine's World Beat Percussionist of the Year award. Rolando Morales-Matos is a professor at both The Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia and The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music, NYC. He also maintains a busy schedule giving clinics and master classes at many universities.
Born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Percussionist Rolando Morales-Matos began his musical studies at the prestigious high school for the performing arts, Escuela Libre de Música. He received his BFA in music from Carnegie Mellon University, his MA from Duquesne University, and went on to complete his Certificate of Professional Studies at Temple University.
Rolando returned to Puerto Rico to perform with the Puerto Rico Symphony Orchestra and teach at his high school alma mater. While in Puerto Rico, Rolando also toured the Caribbean, United States and Europe with many salsa and popular bands. Rolando’s professional career has taken him all over the world, from Spain to New Zealand, where he has held principal timpani and percussion positions with their state orchestras. Rolando has given clinics at PASIC in 1999, 2001 and 2003, sharing the stage with Nexus Percussion Group as soloist. Rolando is an active artist and clinician for Pearl Drum and Adams Musical Instruments.
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