Ariel Alejandro De La Portilla
bassist
Ariel was born in the city of Matanzas, Cuba where he lived until immigrating with his parents to the United States in 1980. He was raised in the southwest area of Miami, Florida, the neighborhood better known as “Little Havana”. Growing up surrounded by the sounds of Cuban, Dominican, and Brazilian music as well as simultaneously experiencing American music and culture gave his childhood a distinctly unique dichotomy that later proved to have become a crucial aspect of his life education, and musical identity.
During his junior year of high school, Ariel was awarded a scholarship to participate in the local community college music program headed under J.B. Dias, which included jazz improvisation courses and college level ensembles. He also began private instructions with renowned bassist Nicky Orta. This began his formal musical training. It was also during this time that Ariel began to perform in groups from the local Miami and Ft. Lauderdale areas. The music scene in Miami covered the spectrum, from traditional Cuban Son to funk, to Salsa to Cuban and Brazilian jazz. The experience of performing within such a diverse musical environment proved to be a significant aspect to Ariel’s formal musical education.
After graduating from high school in 1994, Ariel left his home town of Miami Fl. to pursue his interests in the double bass. He was awarded a music scholarship to the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati where he dedicated most of his time to studying classical bass and jazz. He remained at CCM until recruited by the University of Miami in Miami Fl. in 1996 to study under the instruction of Don Coffman, Matt Bonnelli and Lucas Drew. Since arriving in New York City, Ariel has had the privilege of performing with an eclectic list of artists from the jazz and Latin jazz genres including Ray Vega, Dave Valentin, Bill O’Connel, Patato Valdez, Candido Camero, Edy Martinez, Willie Martinez, Peter Erskine, Eddie Daniels, and Sonny Bravo.
