He worked in the bands of Tropical and Latin music ensembles such as Carlos Valero, Luis del Campo, Juan "El Boy" Torres, Luciano "Chano" Pozo, José Budet, Juanito Sanabria, Marcelino Guerra, José Curbelo, and Pupi Campo.
He worked freelance in New York before joining Eddie Palmieri's Conjunto La Perfecta in 1962, where he helped develop the New York–style of the Mozambique rhythm.
[4] Oquendo's timbales solos were famous for their sparse, straightforward típico phrasing, reminiscent of the Cuban timbaleros of the 1940s.
According to musician and producer Juan de Marcos González, Oquendo's tuning of the timbales was comparable to that of Silvano "Chori" Shueg.
[5] Oquendo's solos also incorporated the rhythmic language of the folkloric quinto, the lead drum of rumba.