BIOGRAPHY

Educator, percussionist and conguero extraordinaire, Giovanni Hidalgo (a.k.a. "Mañenguito") was born on November 22, 1963 in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Giovanni has worked with a diverse group of artists including Bola Abimbola, Sikiru Adepoju, Art Blakey, Muruga Booker, Jack Bruce, Don Byron, Michel Camilo, Dizzy Gillespie, Sammy Hagar, Kip Hanrahan, Mickey Hart, Zakir Hussain, Cassius Khan, Charlie Palmieri, Phish, Tito Puente, Hilton Ruiz, Paul Simon, and D'angelo.
As an educator, Hidalgo accepted an adjunct professor position at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, where he taught numerous types of Puerto Rican, Cuban, Dominican and African rhythms. He held his position at Berklee from 1992 to 1996.
Hidalgo received a Grammy Award (1991) in the category of World Music (the first year the category existed) for his role on Mickey Hart's Planet Drum. He also performed on the 1993 Arturo Sandoval album Danzon (Dance On) which won the 1995 Grammy Award for Best Latin Jazz Performance, and received Grammy nominations in the same category for the albums Hands of Rhythm in 1997 and The Body Acoustic in 2005. In 2009 he collaborated with Hart again as part of the Global Drum Project, whose title album won the world music Grammy that year.
Hidalgo endorses LP Percussion products and continues to perform with various artists/groups around the globe.
CONGA CLINIC
Subscribe to the Drummer Cafe ~ Premium Resources to watch Giovanni Hidalgo's complete one-hour percussion clinic & performance, recorded in Nashville on October 17, 2011.
PHOTOS
VIDEOS
INTERVIEW
On January 12, 1998 Giovanni Hidalgo met up with Martin Cohen at Robby Ameen's apartment on West 52nd Street in NYC to discuss Giovanni's music career and make some serious noise with Paoli Mejies, Javier Oquendo and Sammy Figuerroa.