    [Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 36, Number 22 (Monday, June 5, 2000)]
    [Page 1261]
    [Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

    <R04>
    Statement on the Death of Tito Puente

    June 1, 2000

        Hillary and I were saddened to learn of the death of the Latin jazz
    band leader Tito Puente. For more than 50 years, Puente was more than a
    musician--he was a trailblazer. The five-time Grammy award winner's
    countless recordings are classics in the genre he helped define.
        In 1997 I was honored to welcome Tito Puente to the White House and
    present him with the National Medal of the Arts. At that ceremony, I
    said, ``Just hearing Tito Puente's name makes you want to get up and
    dance. With his finger on the pulse of the Latin American musical
    tradition and his hands on the timbales, he has probably gotten more
    people out of their seats and onto the dance floor than any other living
    artist.'' This is truly his legacy--music that brings joy to young and
    old, to people of any background and in many nations, all around the
    world. We will miss Tito Puente's vibrant presence both on stage and
    off, but we know his spirit will endure in the music he has given us.
        Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and many friends.