José Giovanni Hidalgo Journet<br /> Giovanni Hidalgo was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and raised in Santurce where he received his primary education. Giovanni come from a renowned lineage of musicians, particularly percussionists. His stepgrandfather Fernando “Nando”Hernández was a musician, his grandmother Luisa Maysonet Marrero was born in Cuba and his father, José Manuel Hidalgo Maysonet "Mañengue", was a renowned conga player. Hidalgo was raised in a household surrounded by drums, bongos, congas, and timbales. At age 3 he started trying out percussion on any surface he could get his hands on. As a kid he practiced and developed his skills on the conga and on other instruments in his house. For his eighth birthday, he received a conga, handmade by his father. Hidalgo would drum a tune with sticks and then play the same tune with his hands.