Gabe Baltazar was one of the last great graduates from the Stan Kenton Orchestra but was greatly underrated, in part because he spent most of his life in Hawaii. Baltazar moved to the mainland from Hawaii in the mid-'50s, recording with Paul Togawa in 1957 and spending a brief unrecorded period in 1960 with the Lighthouse All-Stars. He gained recognition for his years with Kenton (1960 to 1965) during which he recorded quite a few rewarding solos. Baltazar worked with Terry Gibbs (1965) and recorded with Gil Fuller and Oliver Nelson before returning to Hawaii in 1969. In the '90s, he visited California fairly often and recorded as a leader for the Fresh Sound and V.S.O.P. labels, showing the jazz world just how strong a soloist he was. Gabe Baltazar died on June 12, 2022 at his home in Hawaii at the age of 92. ~ Scott Yanow, Rovi