A Life of Rhythm and Legalities: The Brief History of Pete Nater (Part 1)

By Wilfredo Burgos Matos

He said clearly: “Let me get the pork chops with rice and beans.” The food was there in a matter of minutes, and I sat down to listen carefully to what he had to share. Pete Nater, the renowned Puerto Rican trumpet player from the Bronx, sat down with Luis Mojica, his long-time friend, to reflect on his years of collaboration with the Multicultural Music Group (MMG). The meeting took place at Willy’s Steak House, one of our venues for this year’s programming.

Surrounded by the sound of Latin hits, an incessant clanking of plates and cups, and many memories about a place that is today one of the few spaces left for salsa jamming, he took his story back to the first time he collaborated with the MMG.

“We started working together when musician Pete Miranda invited me to be a part of it. We did a concert with Ray Santos in Loisaida. Since then, I’ve been doing concerts with the organization about many themes: the Caribbean, the Middle East, etc.”

The rest is history. With a life intermixed between music and the paralegal world in the City of New York, Nater never stopped living by the laws of rhythm, which define much of Puerto Rican identity. Director of iconic Larry Harlow’s orchestra and the band of the late Frankie Ruiz, he knows that he has had a full life.

“I have been very lucky because my work life has fit well with the music. I have not had to sacrifice one or the other, and not many people, especially musicians, get to say that,” he said.

A LONGER VERSION OF THIS STORY WILL BE PUBLISHED AFTER THE PERFORMANCE OF PETE NADER AND HIS CONJUNTO, STARTING AT 8 P.M. ON WEDNESDAY, MARCH 29TH AT WILLY’S STEAK HOUSE.