International jazz artist and Warwick resident Ray Barretto dies at 76

Warwick - After recent heart by-pass surgery and subsequent complications including pneumonia, Ray Barretto, 76, a resident of Warwick, died at the Hackensack University Medical Center in Hackensack, N.J., on Friday, Feb. 17. Barretto, a Grammy Award-winning band leader and percussionist who released nearly two dozen albums, was an internationally known jazz artist and a pioneer of the salsa movement. Approximately 10 years ago, Barretto and his wife, Annette Rivera, purchased a home in Warwick. Born in Brooklyn and raised in Spanish Harlem, Barretto was influenced by his Puerto Rican ancestry and knowledge of Afro-Caribbean rhythms. He became one of the most influential Latin percussionists in the world of jazz, performing with many of the great jazz artists of his day, including Tito Puente, Charlie Parker and Max Roach. Just before his recent hospitalization, Barretto was honored as one of the National Endowment for the Arts’ Jazz Masters of 2006. The award is considered to be the nation’s highest jazz honor. Ray Barretto is survived by his wife Annette Rivera, his four children: Chris, Raun, Ray and Kelly; and his four grandchildren: Aja, Arno, and Alex Peters and Jullian Barretto. “This is an emotional time in the Latino community,” said Judy Battista, owner of Warwick’s Jubilee Presents and host of WTBQ’s (1110 AM) ‘Latin Jubilee’ Saturday radio program. “Like Tito Puente and Celia Cruz, Ray signified an era. And we had him right here in our own backyard.”