Ivan Renta

Born in Ponce, Puerto Rico and raised in Coamo, Puerto Rico, Ivan Renta has become one of the premiere saxophonists in the Jazz, Latin Jazz and Latin Music Industry. His ability to adapt to any musical situation has landed him on stage at many of the world’s most prestigious venues and music festivals. His credentials include recordings and performances with artists such as Tito Puente, Wynton Marsalis, Eddie Palmieri, Willie Colon, Ron Carter, The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra, Marc Anthony, Jennifer Lopez, Jimmy Heath, Ray Barretto, The Vanguard Jazz Orchestra and Bebo Valdez, to name a few. Ivan Renta has collaborated on three Grammy Award winning and numerous Grammy nominated recordings. He is only 32 years of age and has already participated in close to 200 musical recordings.

Ivan Renta began playing Alto Sax at the age of 13 in his hometown of Coamo, Puerto Rico Soon after that he moved to NYC to attend the "New School Jazz and Contemporary Music Program". While at the New School, Ivan studied with Jazz legends such as Reggie Workman, Gary Dial, George Garzone, Buster Williams to name a few. In 2000 Ivan got a call to participate on the Tito Puente & Eddie Palmieri recording "Masterpiece", winner of multiple Grammys and what turned out to be Puente's last album.

Ivan Renta with Eddie Palmieri

After recording “Masterpiece”, Ivan Renta became a member of Eddie Palmieri’s Latin Jazz Ensemble and Salsa Band and accepted an invitation made to him by pianist/composer/arranger Arturo O’Farrill to join the Jazz at the Lincoln Center’s Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra. After working with Mr. Palmieri for approximately six years, he proceeded to become the saxophonist for Salsa legend Willie Colon’s Orchestra. He has also collaborated extensively with trombonist Luis Bonilla and percussionist Chembo Cornel. recently, Ivan Renta has been performed as part of Ron Carter's Big Band and with pop stars Hall & Oates and Tom Odell.

“Take off a Musical Odyssey” is Ivan’s first solo recording project. Laced with outstanding performances by some of Ivan’s friends (who happen to be some of the world’s finest musicians), this recording takes us through the musical journey that he has experienced, as he made his epic journey through the New York and world music scene. Five of the eight compositions on this recording were authored by Ivan Renta and he also did all the arrangements. This dynamic project highlights Ivan’s intense energy, creativity and passion for music.

Ivan Renta performing artist

Ivan Renta is well respected in all the genres that he has worked in. He has an All-Star Latin Jazz Ensemble (composed of Ivan with four of Latin Jazz’s biggest stars), a NYC based band (a high level professional band that is a Quintet for Latin Jazz engagements and a Quartet for Jazz engagements) and two other Latin Jazz Quintets for South American presentations. All the groups are made up of top notch musicians and are designed to handle different geographical areas, thus being more economically viable for potential clientele.
The All-Star Quintet is composed of five of the top artists in the Latin Jazz world (Ivan, Edsel Gomez, Richie Flores, Ruben Rodriguez and Ernesto Simpson) and is pricier due to their demand and geographic bases and would need sufficient notice to coordinate an engagement. This was the band that Ivan Renta used on his recording.