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Jorge Bermudez has played with the Gypsy Kings, Crowded House and the Temptations, among others.
Store hosts Bermudez, Santana's percussionist
Three drumming greats will put on a free clinic
By Kelly Wilkinson
Sunnyvale's Haight Ashbury Music store is about to become the epicenter of the percussion world when it hosts a drumming session with three preeminent drummers on July 17.
Raul Rekow, a drummer for Santana; Jorge Bermudez, who has played with musicians such as Dusty Springfield, Johnny Mathis, the Temptations, Crowded House and the Gypsy Kings; and John Santos, who has played with bands such as Machete Ensemble and Irakere West and musicians such as Danilo Perez, Dizzy Gillestie, Pito Puenta, and Max Roche, will host the free class.
"These guys are huge names in the percussion world," said Shawn Steen, manager of Haight Ashbury Music. "It's really rare that they are getting together, so this is a huge event."
Bermudez assembled all the drummers, who he said are also great friends.
"Raul Rickow and I went to middle school and high school together and were in each other's weddings, so we started drumming together 30 years ago," Bermudez said. "And John Santos also started drumming with us way back when."
Bermudez said the owner of the Haight Ashbury Music store is also a close friend. The store is an offshoot of the famous music store located on the corner of Haight and Ashbury in San Francisco. Bermudez said the Sunnyvale location is still relatively new and unknown, so the event will serve as a boost to the store's business.
"This will be a great reunion of friends and a chance to have a really special clinic and blow it all out," he said. "We had been wanting to do this for a long time and we finally got all the planets together."
Steen said that while he doesn't know how many people will come out for the free class, the store has already sent flyers to 5,000 people on its mailing list, "so it should be really big."
"These guys are all customers of ours and we've been talking about doing this for years now, but it takes a lot of work and there's a lot of red tape with the sponsors," Steen said.
Bermudez said the clinic will "not be too hands-on" because of the number of people expected, but will be more a demonstration. Afterwards, all three will play at Fuel in downtown San Jose with Bermudez's band, the Bermudez Triangle.
Clinic hours will be on Saturdays from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at Haight Ashbury Music in Sunnyvale, at 151 W.Washington Ave. For more information, call Haight Ashbury Music at (408) 732-8490.
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Sunnyvale, California Since 1994
