Pianist, composer and Grammy award winner Eddie Palmieri has died at the age of 88.

His youngest daughter confirmed her father’s death at home in New Jersey, saying that he died after “an extended illness,” The New York Times reported.

Palmieri was born in Spanish Harlem in New York in 1936, The Associated Press reported. He studied piano when he was young, following in his brother, Charlie Palmieri’s, footsteps, but switched to percussion, specifically timbales, in his uncle’s orchestra.

He went back to playing the piano, explaining, "I’m a frustrated percussionist, so I take it out on the piano."

Eddie Palmieri combined salsa with jazz, rock, funk and modern classical on albums such as “Vamonos Pa’l Monte” and “The Sun of Latin Music.” He also helmed the fusion band Harlem River Drive, The New York Times reported. The latter earned him his first Grammy in 1975, the AP reported. It was also the first Latin production to win the award.

He followed the win with “Eddie Palmieri & Friends in Concert, Live at the University of Puerto Rico.”

He said he did not like the word salsa to describe the music, instead calling it “Afro-Cuban” to connect with roots. The genre evolved into “Afro-Caribbean” and eventually Afro-world," he said in 2012.

Eddie Palmieri continued to contribute to music well into his 80s, even performing on livestreams during the COVID-19 pandemic, the AP said.

He leaves behind four daughters, his son and four grandchildren, the Times reported.

© 2025 Cox Media Group