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May Peters
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May Peters born in 1964 in Echt, Netherlands and started to play the flute at the age of five.
Three years later she became a member of the local brass band. Growing up in the culture of
the southern area of Holland she found plenty of opportunity to play at the traditional feasts,
especially those of Limburg. She became a horn player for the band accompanying the Prince
of Carnival. Music was part of the party; the party was part of her life.
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At fifteen she switched to trombone. At the time it was considered to be an instrument ‘for
men only…’ It was a view that only made “bone” more attractive for a girl to study – though
she hedged her bets by learning electronic organ in tandem. In 1987 she graduated at The
Conservatory- Maastricht in Electronic Organ, Keyboard and Synthesizer.
Graduating at the Conservatory Hilversum, three years later, where she had studied Jazz
Trombone under Bart van Lier was a dream come true. Her finals concert was a delicious
menu of all kinds of musical styles. She presented herself as an all-round musician - with an
Original Old Style group, her bebop quintet Jazz It Up (with saxophone player Carolyn
Breuer) big band, Brazilian- and salsa music - on both tenor and bass trombone, as well as
being the arranger and copyist.
Her passion, big band music, has been nurtured since the age of sixteen, in several big
bands, (The Conservatory Big Band, Maastricht and Pall Mall Big Band, directed by Erik van
Lier, E.O.)
From 1990 on she played with The Glenn Miller Orchestra directed by Wil Salden and the
Glenn Miller Memorial Orchestra, France (trombone/bass trombone/ close-harmony choir).
With both orchestras she toured through Benelux, France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria,
Italy, Sweden and Tunisia.
Within pop music Peters has played with The Belushi Memorial Blues Brothers Band, as
well as playing and arranging for many other Dutch and German pop groups on keyboard and
trombone.
In 1994 May Peters’ life would change completely when she stayed in the Caribbean for a
year and a half. In Curacao she participated in the Tumba Festival 1994/95, playing First
Trombone and copying music. She even played in the Carnival Parade, after so many years
though this time it was the Tropical version.
In Puerto Rico, April 1994 she was asked to play in the orchestra of the well-known Eddie
Santiago and a new trombone formation, Plena Libre, playing a mix of Porto Rican plena and
Cuban guanguacó.
She played with the orchestras of :
* José Nogueras
* Edwin Mulenze
* Ismael Rivera híjo y Rafi Cortíz híjo
* singer and composer Pedro Arroyo
* Amuni Nacer
as well as many others, giving concerts and making TV shows.
In October 1994, Peters introduced her jazz quartet at the Chivas Regall Jazz Festival in San
Juan. (Composer and piano player Eric Figueroa (oa.Bata Cumbele), Jimmy Rivera (drums),
Hector Venero (saxes) y Freddie Gumbs (bass).) Her performance with Juan Pablo Torres was
seen as an inspiration for female musicians and she also gave concerts at the Conservatory of
San Juan, and different jazz clubs in San Juan and Ponce.
After her return to the Netherlands in 1995 she studied Spanish - mainly out of
homesickness for the Caribbean. She gained her teacher’s degree after two years. Musically,
she was giving regular concerts and took part in a five-week tour on a cruise ship in
Scandinavia with the Dutch/Cuban Perfume de Salsa (Leticia y su Rumba Dama.)
Shortly afterwards, she became the musical director of Big Band Beeg in Grevenbicht. She
would transcribe, arrange, and direct a Mambo-project, Fiesta Latina with guest musicians
from Venezuela - Javier Plaza (vocals and percussion) and Gerardo Rosales (percussion,)
Cuba - Jorge Martinez (piano,) Curacao - Randal Corsen (piano,) Cuba - Liber Torriente
(percussion,) and from Holland - La Tigresa (percussion.)
As a result of these collaborations, May Peters founded a mambo-base in Limburg by
workshops and concerts in Grevenbicht, Maastricht, Geleen and Echt.
May 1998, the Royal Dutch Embassy of the Netherlands asked her to represent the
Netherlands on the EURO DAY GALA, being the director of the Big Band from the Music
Academy Gauteng, South Africa. She gave workshops and concerts in Johannesburg and
Pretoria.
After her tour in September 1999 with Lucas van Merwijk & his Cubop City Big Band to the
Dutch Antilles, Peters returned to Puerto Rico to play with La Selecta from Rafy Leavitt and
the world famous Gran Combo de Puerto Rico.
From 2000 until 2003 she was the musical director from the Big Band Swinging Sounds
Hoevelaken.
Since 2001 she has played trombone in the Extended Band of Surinam flute player Ronald
Snijders, with whom she has recorded several CDs. They gave concerts on several small- and
large - national and international stages (oa. North Sea Jazz Festival ‘02, Moers Festival,
Cayenne Jazz Festival- French Guyana ‘04, Klaipeida Jazz-Litouwen ’05)
After six months of managing the Ronald Snijders Black Straight Music she started Coquí
Promotions , an agency for salsa groups which include from Venezuela: Javier Plaza and Son
Risa, Grupo Sabroso and Kimbiza featuring Yma América.
During the last fifteen years she has played all over Europe in Latin/ South American
orchestras like Fra Fra Sound, the New Cool Collective, and, from Venezuela, Orlando
Watusi, Javier Plaza, Connexión Latina, Kimbiza and bands from the Dutch Antilles and from
Cuba (Jorge Martinez )
Peters has shared Dutch stages with many famous international artists - saxophone player
Boots Randolph, for example, salsa singer/composer Trina Medina and guitarist Pat Matheny.
She also played accordion and trombone also in the musical The Pink Crocodiles written by
Haye van der Heyden & Martin van Dijk, and The New Swing Show of Mieke Stemerdink.
During the winter of 2004-2005 May Peters played several concerts and TV shows in San
Juan-Puerto Rico, with Los Pleneros del Quinto Olivo and William Cepeda, joining la India’s
concert in Ponce.
Since 1984 May Peters has been not only a teacher of keyboard- electronic organ and
trombone at several music schools, but has also taught jazz trombone at the Conservatory of
Alkmaar. Since 2002, she has also taught Spanish at the ‘Hoge School’ Utrecht, Holland.
Peters has made many recordings including The Glenn Miller Memorial (bass trombone),
Ronald Snijders (oa. Bijlmerjazz, ), Eddie Veldman (Opo Yéyé), Javier Plaza (Mi Música)
Lesley Joseph and others.
At this moment May Peters is part of the Jazz Department and Música Caribena of the
Conservatory of Music of Puerto Rico. She will be teaching trombone jazz and is
assistent director for the Jazz Big Band and the Latin Carribean Ensemble
More information :
Holland tel/fax: +31-475-481316
Puerto Rico:+1-787-759-6623
[email protected]