SOLD OUT - Quincy Jones presents ... The Alfredo Rodriguez Piano Trio , Support: The Ronnie Scotts All Stars Monday 19th July

Quincy Jones says when he first heard Alfredo Rodriguez play, "it knocked me on my booty, man."

From an early age, Alfredo Rodríguez's life revolved around music. Born in Havana, Cuba in 1985, and the son of a singer with the same name, music was in his blood. At first, Alfredo wanted to be a drummer. But when he arrived at Havana's Manuel Saumell Elementary Classical Music Conservatory at age seven, he was given the choice of the piano or violin. He chose piano, assuming that when he turned 10 (the age the conservatory allowed), he'd switch to the drums. His musical potential, however, was not obvious to his instructor. At the end of the first year of conservatory and in front of the entire classroom his instructor told his parents that they should remove Alfredo from the conservatory because he'd never be good enough to be a musician. Undaunted, Alfredo stuck with it. By the time he was 10, piano was his life. At 14, he was the school's prize pianist and the student chosen to play at graduation. He also wound up graduating first in his class, with the highest marks the conservatory had ever seen.

Alfredo quickly became a go-to producer and musical director for some of Havana's most famous musicians, including his father. He also scored a number of popular Cuban television shows.  Then in 2006, Alfredo was accepted at Montreux Jazz Festival. That same year, after hearing Alfredo play at Montreux, Quincy Jones asked his staff to figure out a way to work with this gifted, young, jazz pianist. After 2 and a half years of work, Alfredo has become an international sensation.