The Pedrito Martinez Group, led by Grammy-nominated percussionist Pedrito Martinez, will perform at 7 p.m., Feb. 18, in the University of Tennessee at Martin’s Harriet Fulton Theatre. This performance is free and open to the public, but tickets should be reserved in advance at utm.edu/musicevents.

Martinez was born in Havana, Cuba, and by the age of 27 had won the Thelonius Monk Award for Afro-Latin Hand Percussion and appeared in the documentary “Calle 54.” He is widely regarded as the leading percussionist in Latin jazz music and has recorded or performed with Eric Clapton, Wynton Marsalis, Paul Simon, Bruce Springsteen, Sting and others as both percussionist and vocalist.

The group’s appearance is the second spring 2020 installment in UT Martin’s Ed Sargent Guest Artist Series and is specifically sponsored by the UT Martin Civil Rights Conference, Office of Student Life and Multicultural Affairs, Department of Music, and Department of History and Philosophy, as well as the Coleman Foundation, Dr. Lynn Alexander, Ed Sargent and Joan Jett.

A percussion masterclass is open to the campus community at 2 p.m., Feb. 18, following a noon  question-and-answer session about Cuban culture in room 136 of the Fine Arts Building. A free Afro-Cuban buffet will be provided for attendees. More information about the group’s performance experience, including video and sound clips, is available at <a href="http://www.pedritomartinezmusic.com">pedritomartinezmusic.com</a>.

For more information about the UT Martin performance, contact the UT Martin Department of Music at 731-881-7402.

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