Antonio Sánchez

Born in Mexico City, four-time Grammy Award winner Antonio Sánchez started playing the drums at age five and began performing professionally in his early teens in Mexico’s rock, jazz, and Latin scenes.

He pursued a degree in classical piano at the National Conservatory in Mexico and in 1993 enrolled at the Berklee College of Music and New England Conservatory, where he graduated magna cum laude in jazz studies.

Since moving to New York City in 1999, Sánchez has become one of the most sought-after drummers on the international jazz scene. Following 21 years and work on nine albums as one of the most revered collaborators of guitarist/composer Pat Metheny, Sánchez has also recorded and performed with artists including Chick Corea, Gary Burton, Michael Brecker, and Charlie Haden.

In 2014, Sánchez’s popularity soared when he scored Alejandro Iñárritu’s Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance), which went on to win four Academy Awards—including for Best Picture—and for which Sánchez was also a Golden Globe nominee.

Sánchez currently has nearly a dozen recordings as a leader and solo artist. Recent projects include Three Times Three with Brad Mehldau, John Scofield, Joe Lovano, Matt Brewer, John Patitucci and Christian McBride; Bad Hombre, a sociopolitical journey through electronica and percussion; Channels of Energy, featuring the WDR Big Band with arrangements of Sánchez’s compositions by Vince Mendoza; Lines in the Sand, Sánchez’s protest against social injustice and bigotry as well as a tribute to every immigrant’s journey; and most recently, SHIFT (Bad Hombre Vol. II), where Sánchez plays virtually every instrument on an epic album featuring artists including Trent Reznor, Dave Mathews, Kimbra, Ana Tijoux, and Meshell Ndegeocello.

The recipient of many awards, Sánchez has on three occasions been named Modern Drummer’s “Jazz Drummer of the Year.”