JOSÉ PINO
Guitarist, Composer, Arranger, Lecturer
Master of Arts in Music Theory and Composition
José Pino (*1982) started his career singing and playing guitar. He learned guitar from a young age with Camilo Santacruz and Carlos “Chino” Cando in Quito, Ecuador, later adding wind and percussion instruments to his musical repertoire. He specialised in Brazilian jazz guitar, learning from greats like Romero Lubambo and Lula Galvâo.
He studied Computer Music and earned his Master’s degree in Music Theory and Composition from the Zurich University of the Arts, majoring in electroacoustic composition. After graduating with honours in 2020, he began studying arrangement with Fernando Corrêa from the Brazil Jazz Symphony in São Paulo.
Concentrating on instrumental compositions for everything from solos to orchestras, his music currently draws on the celebrated Latin jazz style and electroacoustic genre. Aside from his work composing and arranging, José Pino also devotes time to music education (Musikschule St. Gallen, Conservatorio Mozarte Quito), on-stage performance, as well as music and podcast production at La casa de nadie.
In recent years, his works have been featured at international festivals and museums across the world, from Havana to Monaco to Shanghai.