Emmanuel Mendoza can’t remember a time when he wasn’t passionate about music.
“I started teaching myself to play electric bass when I was five,” he says. “Later, I’d run home from school and listen to records over and over—rock, reggae, jazz, funk, Latin,” he recalls. “I’d play air guitar—or my brother’s bass guitar when he wasn’t home.”
By time he was 18, Mendoza was playing gigs in local bands. After high school, he worked as a bank teller and when he enrolled in BMCC in 2006, he opted to major in business and confine his musical activities to evenings and weekends.
“People told me I’d be better off that way—that it was important to have something solid to fall back on,” he says. “But working all day, then rehearsing or playing gigs at night was just too hard—and too frustrating. What I wanted to do was really immerse myself in the community of art.”
Refocusing on his goal
So Mendoza left BMCC to devote his time and energies more fully to music. Now he’s back—this time as a liberal arts major with a much clearer sense of who he is and where he’s going.
“Right now, I’m taking courses in theory and global music,” he says. “Once I graduate, I’d like to audition for a jazz program, like the ones at the New School or Julliard. I could continue to teach myself from books and DVDs, but I really want to get a degree in music and make music my career.”
He’s already well on his way. Two years ago, a fellow musician put him in touch with Judah Tribe, a well-regarded Reggae band. “They were looking for a bass player, so I asked for an audition,” he says. “They gave me two days to learn 20 of their songs—all of them great.” Mendoza nailed the try-out and has been playing bass with the group ever since.
Paying homage to a music icon
In February, Judah Tribe performed at Rutgers University as part of the school’s Black History Month observances and also in honor of Reggae icon Bob Marley’s 65th birthday. “I’ve studied Marley’s music, life and teachings through books and recordings, and it’s wonderful to have the opportunity to pay homage to him by playing his music,” Mendoza says.
The group has also done shows at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, the Brooklyn Academy of Music, Jazz at Lincoln Center and other major venues and recently performed a benefit concert for Haitian earthquake relief. Judah Tribe is also a regular presence at New York’s top clubs, such as SOB’s (the acronym stands for Sounds of Brazil).
“I’m thrilled to be back at BMCC and working toward my dream,” says Mendoza. “Music has enriched my life. It’s really the only thing I want to do.”
Editor’s Note: Click here to see and hear the Judah Tribe
