Hugo Alexander Cruz Machado is a Cuban-born, award winning international drummer, composer, band leader, and music educator who has performed in South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Mexico, Chile, Venezuela, and the United States. 

Hugo is the leader of the group Caminos, who have made appearances at The Smithsonian Museum, Fábrica de Artes in Havana, Pittsburgh International Jazz Festival, Carnegie Museum, and the Erie Blues and Jazz Festival, among others.  Caminos fuse rhythms and melodies of Afro-Cuban, Cuban, and American music, in an original contemporary expression that honors traditional Cuban form. 

Hugo Cruz and Caminos have released two albums: Figure It Out (2026) and Punto de Partida (2022), both of which feature notable musicians from Cuba and the United States, bridging genres of Afro Cuban, traditional Cuban, American jazz, funk, rock, R&B, big band, drum and bass, danzón, cha cha chá, timba, and fusion. 

Punto de Partida was recognized by columnist Raul de Gama in Latin Jazz Net:

“You may be expecting to be bombarded by clave and montuno…what you get is completely novel creativity in melody, harmony and – especially – rhythmic invention…. In fact, nothing is predictable about this music, all of which has been composed by Mr Cruz. If you respect tradition, you will renew it – and in a personal way. You will not be disappointed for you will hear performances that, while traditional in their rhythmic cues, are also luxuriously appointed with the forces that spell change in dogma.”  (Raul Da Gama, Latin Jazz Net)

Figure It Out presents a collection of 8 original songs written by Hugo over the past 10 years. The production combines the musical genius of legendary and upcoming musicians, bridging musical styles from Cuba, Pittsburgh, and the United States more broadly. On this record, Hugo was fortunate to record with Mario “Mayito” Rivera, Dave Weckl, Orlando Maraca Valle, Enrique Lazaga, Roger Humphries, Dwayne Dolphin, Max Leake, Lou Stellute, Roberto Garcia, Maikel Dinza, The Pittsburgh Jazz Orchestra, and his father: violinist Hugo Cruz Olmo.

A total of sixty-four musicians collaborated and recorded on the album, which took three years to fully produce.  The 8 tracks were recorded in studios across Pittsburgh and Cuba, including MCG Jazz, Duquesne University, Audible Images, La Egrem, and dBega Studios. Each audio track is paired with a music video of the track’s live session. Jay Dudt, a four-time Grammy winner, and Carlos de la Bega served as sound engineers.

While a resident of Cuba, Hugo toured regularly with Síntesis, a leading Afro Cuban rock-fusion group. Hugo has performed in Havana’s largest jazz festival, Jazz Plaza, with acclaimed artists Dave Weckl and Victor Goines. He is a graduate of the Instituto Superior de Artes, the leading arts university of Cuba, and in 2014, won the award as the “best drummer” at the international Festival del Tambor Guillermo Barreto in Memoriam in Havana, Cuba. 

In 2022, Cruz performed at Heinz Hall as a special guest of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. 

Cruz has served as a teaching artist with several universities and arts and youth organizations throughout the region, including University of Pittsburgh, Duquesne University, Indiana University of PA, Pittsburgh Creative and Performing Arts, Rural Arts Collaborative, Hope Academy Orchestra, and Hill Dance Academy. He taught drumset and percussion at the Afro American Music Institute. 

In 2023, the Duquesne University Jazz Orchestra studied and performed a suite of Hugo’s original compositions from Punto de Partida, with musical arrangements and conducting done by the former director of Duquesne’s Jazz program, Mike Tomaro.

Hugo has shared the stage and studio with many of Cuba’s leading musicians, such as La Trovuntivitis, Tony Guzmán y Su Poder Latino, Síntesis, Janio Abreu y Aire de Concierto, Adrian Berazain, Interactivo, Zule Guerra, Alberto Lescay y Formas, La Academia de Ruy López Nussa, Silvio Rodriguez, Amaury Perez, Banda de Concierto Municipal de La Habana, Grupo Interactivo, Julito Padron, William Vivanco and Mayco de Alma. Hugo performs and records with notable Pittsburgh artists, including Afro Yaqui Music Collective, Dr. James Johnson, Roger Humphries, Ernest McCarty Jr, Tubby Daniels, Dwayne Dolphin, Mark Strickland, Poogie Bell, Lou Stellute, Marty Ashby, Kenny Blake, and Max Leake. 

Photo by Elisa Cevallos. Image design by Nitya Ramlogan.

Photo by Elisa Cevallos