Luis Primera

On Stage

Luis Primera is a native of Venezuela where he began playing the double bass at age 14. In 2008 he became a member of the Latin American Academy of Double Bass where he studied with Felix Petit. He served as the Principal bass with the Carabobo Orchestra of Venezuela (2008-2013) and in the bass section in Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela (2010-2015), conducted by Gustavo Dudamel, where he toured to the United States, South America, the Middle East, and Europe. In 2016, Mr. Primera moved to Los Angeles, CA, where he received his Performance Diploma and Professional Studies Certificate at the Colburn School as a student of Peter Lloyd. Mr. Primera is currently in the final year of his Professional Studies Certificate program at the Colburn School.

In Los Angeles, Mr. Primera was a member of the American Youth Symphony starting in 2017, and played with the San Diego, Hawaii, Billings, and Sphinx Orchestras. As a soloist, he has performed Nino Rota’s “Divertimento Concertante” with orchestras in Venezuela. Mr. Primera was a semi-finalist in the International Society of Bassists Competition in 2015 and Europe BASS Competition in the solo category in 2016. As a chamber musician, he was invited to play with the Faure Quartet on their tour in the United States where he performed Vaughan Williams’ Quintet and Schubert's Quintet.

Luis Primera moved to the East Coast in 2022 to join the Charleston Symphony Orchestra in South Carolina. During his time there, he also received invitations to perform with the Hilton Head Orchestra and Richmond Symphony. 

Luis Primera has performed under a number of fabulous conductors such as Gustavo Dudamel, Valery Gergiev, Thierry Fischer, Rafael Payare, Esa Pekka Salonen, Claudio Abbado, Michael Tilson Tomas, Stéphane Denève, and Miguel Prieto. He has participated in masterclasses with Timothy Cobb, Alex Hanna, Kevin Brown, Edicson Ruiz, Klaus Stoll, Lawrence Wolfe, Arnold Steinhardt, and Scott Pingel.