Christian Valdés

Christian Valdés grew up in Cali, Colombia, immersed in salsa through his father and uncles, who performed with Grupo Niche and Guayacán. He was touring with artists like Andy Montañez by sixteen, and with Grupo Niche itself by nineteen. In 2011, on a whim, he auditioned for the University of North Texas’s jazz program — and won a scholarship that took him to Dallas and, in his words, made him “essentially a beginner again,” rebuilding his musicianship in jazz from the ground up under Stefan Karlsson, Michael Palma, and Sergio Pamies.

Over the following decade he built a career as a pianist, arranger, and bandleader — earning nine DownBeat awards, joining the jazz faculty at UT Arlington, and arranging Diego “El Cigala’s” Obras Maestras, which received a Latin Grammy nomination. He leads Fusión Latina, performing Latin music across Dallas–Fort Worth.

He’s now a Doctor of Musical Arts candidate at NYU, where his research and composition work extend the same question his debut album Impulsos asks on record: what happens when these languages are written as one, rather than translated between. Impulsos collects mostly original dedications to family — its title track is his very first composition, written in 2013 and revisited years later.

• Best Pianist — Dallas Observer, Best of Dallas 2024
• DMA candidate, jazz piano performance — New York University
• Nine DownBeat awards · Jazz faculty, UT Arlington
• Latin Grammy–nominated arranger — Diego “El Cigala,” Obras Maestras
• Bandleader, Fusión Latina (Dallas–Fort Worth)

Christian teaches private lessons in jazz piano, Latin jazz, and salsa — from harmony and improvisation to montuno technique and repertoire. In person in New York City, or online from anywhere.

Students of all levels are welcome, from curious beginners to conservatory pianists working on the salsa–jazz connection.