Henry Martínez

Life and career Largely self-taught, Martínez learned to play acoustic guitar at an early age and received basic music training in his hometown between 1963 and 1968. Martínez also took private lessons with Aldemaro Romero and Luis Laguna, who incorporated him to his group Venezuela 4 in 1976. Particularly, he showed special interest for the characteristic chord progressions used by Brazilian guitarists such as Laurindo Almeida, Luiz Bonfá, Baden Powell and Bola Sete. Moreover, Martínez was impressed by the work of lyricists and songwriters like Antonio Carlos Jobim, Vinicius de Moraes, Silvio Rodríguez and Joan Manuel Serrat, in order to become a significant figure in avant-garde popular music of Venezuela.

In the early 1990s, Martínez moved to Miami, Florida, where he worked exclusively for Warner/Chappell Music, the global music publishing company of Warner Music Group. While at Warner, Martínez composed songs for Latino artists as Marc Anthony, Frankie Negrón, Jerry Rivera and Vélas, a female vocal group produced by musician Sergio George.

Then in 2003, Martínez released his first studio album as singer-songwriter, Ya eres Abril, featuring the singer Martirio and the aforementioned Mederos as guest artists.

Besides his musical achievements, Martínez was a physician with a graduate degree in family medicine, a medical specialty devoted to comprehensive health care for people of all ages.

Martínez died on October 2, 2025, at the age of 75.