born in Camagüey, Cuba, this internationally acclaimed double bass virtuoso began to study music at an early age, always encouraged by his father, the outstanding bassist Rafael Ángel del Pino, co-founder of the Orquesta Sinfónica de Camagüey. He began his formal musical studies at the Escuela Nacional de Arte, later attended the Escuela Superior de Arte at the University of Havana, and then pursued graduate studies under the Czech maestro Karol Kopriva.
Mr. del Pino made his debut as a professional musician with the ensemble Opus 13, astounding audiences at the North Sea Jazz Festival in Holland. In 1985 he received the "Johann Sebastian Bach Medallion" in Germany, and in 1990 he was invited by Prince Albert to perform in Monaco, soon after traveling to Italy to perform with the Jazz Orchestra of Palermo. In Cuba he played with the Orquesta de la Radio y Televisión and the Orquesta de Ópera y Ballet, touring extensively throughout Europe and Latin America. His 2005 tour with pianist Manuel Larrea in Ecuador, playing music based on Ecuadorian folklore, received the highest critical praise.
Last year, Mr. del Pino made his long-awaited New York City debut with the first of his Jubileo Concert Series, attended by luminaries from the world of jazz, such as Ron Carter, Bob Cunningham and Paquito D’Rivera, who paid due homage with their presence, joining the crowd in several standing ovations. Mr. del Pino’s virtuosity would stir critic Playthell Benjamin to remark: “The physical dexterity and lyricism with which Carlos played was of such grandeur that none who heard it could ever think of the bass again as simply an instrument designed to keep the bottom beat.”
Two months later, Mr. del Pino brought the audience to their feet with his 2006 Christmas performance at Carnegie’s Weill Recital Hall, where he was invited to play in honor of composer Tania León, who marveled admiringly at Carlos’s astonishing rendition of her classic piece Cuatro piezas para cello. Many who heard him for the first time that evening would join his increasing legion of fans in the spring of 2007, when he headlined a sold-out concert at
the Julia de Burgos Entertainment Center, featuring an international array of artists who played under his artistic direction in a vibrant and novel fusion of classical music, Cuban rhythms and jazz. After his recent performance in the Czech Republic, as guest artist at the VIII Convention of Bass in Brno, Mr. del Pino’s masterful musicianship was paid dual recognition when he received a special request to give both a master class and to join the prestigious international jury presiding over the competition held during the convention.
Carlos del Pino is currently working on his first CD, as he continues to prepare new groundbreaking arrangements for his spring 2008 concert with the Cuban Cultural Center in New York City, where he now resides with his wife and muse, Mercedes.