Eddie Venegas

EDDIE VENEGAS (violinist, trombonist, composer)performs regularly on the violin and trombone with a wide variety of ensembles in the Latin, Jazz, Classical, and Popular music scenes. His primary project is the Sweet Plantain Quartet, whose  repertoire features many of his original compositions and arrangements.

EDUCATION Venegas was born in Caracas, Venezuela where he began learning to play violin as a child. He moved to New York City to study with Daniel Phillips of the Orion String Quartet at The Aaron Copland School of Music at Queens College, where he obtained his Bachelors and Masters degrees in Performance of Classical Violin. Venegas is a self-taught trombonist.

LATIN MUSIC Venegas is a regular member of Marc Anthony’s band as a violinist and trombonist. He has been touring with Anthony throughout Latin America and the United States since 2010. Venegas also plays regularly with legendary Latin bands La Orquesta Broadway and Grupo Folklorico Experimental Nuevayorquino. When home in New York City he gigs with local favorites Luisito Quintero, Danny Rojo, and Annette Aguilar & The String Beans. He has appeared with Pedrito Martinez at Central Park’s Summer Stage and with reggaeton star, Don Omar, at Madison Square Garden.

JAZZ Venegas has played with The Hudson Jazz Ensemble, The Carnegie Hall Jazz Band, Jon Faddis, Joe Zawinul, and Victor Jones, including performances at NYC’s famed Birdland jazz club with his own project, Sweet Plantain Quartet.

CLASSICAL MUSIC Venegas has performed alongside world famous opera star, Susan Graham, and with The Harrisburg Symphony, The Queens Philharmonic, The Sphinx Symphony, Saint Martins of Tours Symphony Orchestra, and The Carpentier String Quartet.

SWEET PLANTAIN Venegas is a founding member of Sweet Plantain Quartet, whose diverse repertoire features Venegas’ original compositions and arrangements, along with those of his fellow quartet members. Sweet Plantain has performed throughout the United States and internationally, recorded for film, and held teaching residencies nationwide at institutions ranging from elementary schools to college music conservatories. For more detail on Sweet Plantain’s past season highlights, click here.

TEACHER Venegas formerly directed a strings music program at the St. Ignatius middle school in The Bronx and now teaches private students. Each year he mentors teenage musicians from New York City public schools through a program run by Exploring the Arts, the nonprofit organization of legendary American singer, Tony Bennett.