Omar Torrez

Who is Omar Torrez?

Omar Torrez is a Mexican-American guitarist from Los Angeles, California. Born and raised in Seattle, Washington, Torrez first received national attention as finalist in the National Jimi Hendrix Guitar Competition at Seattle’s historic Bumbershoot Festival. He studied classical guitar at Western Washington University. He has also studied Flamenco guitar under Juan Serrano and Cuban music with Carlos Del Puerto, Jr.

Tom Waits chose Torrez as his guitarist for the 2008 Glitter and Doom Tour. He is featured on Tom Waits' Glitter and Doom Live record on ANTI- label and on the Glitter and Doom Atlanta live recording broadcast on NPR. Torrez has also toured extensively around the world and played with the likes of Kinky, the Buena Vista Social Club, Jethro Tull, Mumiy Troll, and Ximena Sariñana and has played at the Festival Internacional Cervantino. His endorsements include: Fender; Carlos Amplification; TC Electronics; Godin Guitars; and L.R. Baggs. As a Fulbright Scholarship recipient the artist performed to the benefit of children displaced by the 2008 conflict between the Republic of Georgia and the Russian Federation. In 2012, Torrez's song "Marina" from A Night Of Serious Drinking won third place in the International Songwriting Competition in the Latin category. "Burn It Down" won "Honorable Mention" in the Rock category of the International Songwriting Competition.