Houston band leader and musician Pedro Olivares died early January 1.
Just after 2 a.m. on January 1, Pedro Olivares (27) and his wife Daniela Urbaez Olivares (22), were returning home from a New Year's Eve performance at Cafe Annie. The couple was headed West on the Westpark Tollway, near Eldrige Road, when the SUV Olivares was driving was hit head-on by a car going the wrong way. Olivares, his wife, and the driver of the other car were all pronounced dead at the scene. The Houston Police Department indicated they would be investigating the possibility that the driver of the other car was driving while under the influence of either drugs or alcohol as a cause for the accident.
Olivares was the head of the entertainment company Houston Music Services and leader of the band Son Sabor. He had studied music at the University of Houston; his wife was also a student there. Daniela Urbaez Olivares was a flamenco dancer and along with her sister, Maria Fernanda Urbaez, owned the DANMAR Dance Studio in Katy. The couple leaves no children.
Geraldo Arujo, a friend and member of Son Sabor, told the Houston Press that he is grateful that he was able to perform with Olivares on his last public appearance. "It comforts me. Because aside from being my boss, he was my friend. He was ... he is a great gentleman, and an excellent musician. I always remember and cherish his friendship. This is all very sad."
Arujo said no plans for the future of Olivares' band Son Sabor have been discussed. "His family will make that decision later. Really, right now we're not even thinking about that. That's just work and yes, we're all musicians, that's how we make our living, but we're more concerned about his family right now.
"My heart is with his family, and I know the same is true for lots of other musicians and friends."
Memorial Services are set for Thursday, January 4, at 10:00 a.m., in the chapel at Memorial Oaks Funeral Home. - Olivia Flores Alvarez
