We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Rodolfo Zuniga a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Rodolfo, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?

Yes I have and I never take it for granted. In such a competitive industry, and with the world in constant economical crisis, I have been lucky to have found great opportunities to be a part of. I moved to the U.S. in 1999 from my hometown of San José, Costa Rica. I moved with very few expectations and about 4 months of living expenses saved. However, it was liberating to think: “what is the worst that could happen?” . Somehow, with the help of mentors, family and friends I was able to stay in the U.S. earn degrees and eventually get paid for making music. In every step of the way I got to remind myself that this journey has exceeded my expectations. I don’t think you can speed up the process, we have to live and make up our own story. However, I do remind my students that it is important to get out of your comfort zone and do something to improve your craft every day. Being around the people that inspire you, participating in the scene that you want to be part of, and being proactive comes a long way. Right know, with the changes that COVID forced on society, we are more isolated from each other, and I do believe in the power of getting out of your house to create opportunities for yourself. One last idea here, the common denominator for all life endeavors to me, is to work hard while being kind to people along the way.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I am a drummer, composer and educator from Costa Rica, now residing in the Los Angeles area. I was lucky to be part of a tuition exemption program between Costa Rica and Florida that allowed me to go to school as an in-state resident. I studied jazz at Florida International University at the undergraduate and graduate level. As fate would have it, I started teaching at FIU very quickly after I graduated, and this allowed me to forge meaningful connections with my peers. I was influenced by mentors like saxophonist Gary Campbell and some of my colleagues in the Miami scene like bassist/producer Eric England , saxophonist Dave Fernandez and trumpeter Alex Norris. They showed me that preparation and having high standards for yourself created great opportunities. In addition, the diverse music scene in Miami helped me grow as I was constantly put in different musical challenges. Because of this, I was able to lead a weekly jazz series at a club called The Globe for about 16 years. I played with most of my heroes there and learned something new every week. I was fortunate enough to workshop my original music in this space, try different arrangements, and form connections that translated into teaching and performing opportunities abroad. My work ethic lead to more openings and I ended up working with people like, Gary Campbell, Ira Sullivan, Bill Mays, Silvano Monasterios, Tomasz Dabrowski, Errol Rackipov, Stephen Scott, Troy Roberts, Martin Bejerano, Dave Fernandez, Camila Meza, John Hart, Michael Dease, Alex Norris, Chris Dingman, Rotem Sivan, Andy Laverne, Jason Hainsworth, Othello Molineaux, Tom Lippincott, Adam Kolker, Randy Brecker, Lew Tabackin, Don Friedman, Robin Eubanks, Jonathan Kreisberg, Benny Golson, Fred Wesley, and Slide Hampton, to name a few.

As an educator, I am currently an Assistant Professor of Jazz Studies at Cal State University-Fullerton, teaching ensembles, jazz drums and music production. Previously, I held positions at Florida International University, Broward College and Miami Dade College teaching Jazz, Music Production and Music Business. I have performed and presented at the Jazz Education Network Convention and have been a Thelonious Monk Institute Clinician. I have taught masterclasses at The Royal Conservatory of Music in Denmark, The American Modern School of Music in Paris, The Universidad de las Americas in Ecuador, The New World School of the Arts in Miami, and The Universidad Nacional, Universidad de Costa Rica and The Symphonic Conservatory in San José,Costa Rica.

As a leader and composer, my quartet “Surfaces” has released two albums and maintains a busy schedule performing in the US and in Central and South America. In 2005 my group was awarded the Carnegie Hall Residency under the direction of Dave Douglas and In that same year I was chosen to be part of Betty Carter’s Jazz Ahead Residency, featured at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. More recently, I have put together an octet version of “Surfaces” which is comprised of a jazz trio, string trio, electric guitar and vocals.

As a sideman, I have been lucky to tour the world with highly creative jazz projects performing in festivals like Copenhagen Jazz Festival, The Cully Switzerland Jazz Festival, Jazz Fest Málaga, The Ecuador Jazz Festival, Jazz Sur Le Ville Marseille, The Guatemala Jazz Festival, Ground Up Music Festival, The Jacksonville Jazz Festival, and The St. Petersburg Jazz Festival.

In addition, I am the drummer for multi-Grammy award winner and best-selling Latin Pop artist Julio Iglesias. As part of this group he has performed at iconic venues like The Royal Albert Hall in London, The Kremlin Palace in Moscow, The Dubai Opera House, Rockefeller Center in Noew York, The Al Majaz Amphiteatre in Sharjah, UAE, The Forest Opera in Poland, The Yad Eliyahu Stadium in Israel, and The Auditorio Nacional in Mexico.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

That you are always a student of your craft. I strive to have an open mind and learn from every situation. It’s a constant battle with your own ego but it is a pursuit worth fighting for. I get information from my students, from every concert, tour and I approach all musical situations with the upmost respect. The journey is always interesting because there is no end to it, I never feel like I arrived at a point of complacency. I think it’s a great fortune to dedicate your life to something that is always inspiring you to grow.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

I remember that when I first started working with Julio Iglesias, the first show was going to be with no rehearsal in the middle of a European tour. The preparation process was extremely stressful, the repertoire needed to be memorized, the flow of the show was in my hands and Julio expects zero mistakes. I worked really hard with very little information provided by management. Finally, the day before flying out to Romania, that leg of the tour got cancelled. It was dissapointing, and not, Your initial thought is to just be negative and rebel against the situation, but this is part of life. The quicker you realize that things often don’t happen as you envision them, the more equipped you are to be resilient. It all eventually worked out and months after the tour with Julio Iglesias happened and I ended up travelling the world with him since 2015.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.rodolfozuniga.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RZSURFACES/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/francoDeVitton/feed
• Other: https://soundcloud.com/rodolfozuniga

Image Credits
Genesis Quesada