Arie Pytel has been playing music since he was four, studying flute at the Seattle Suzuki School. At thirteen, Arie switched to guitar, and went on to study Jazz, Classical, African, Latin, and Turkish music at the UW Department of Ethnomusicology. In 2005 he went to Morocco, where he studied Berber and Gnaoa music, then on to Spain to study flamenco guitar. Arie also plays tres, charango, ud, bass, percussion, and keyboards.  When not making noise, he is either fishing, cooking, or eating, in that order.

Samantha Boshnack picked up the trumpet at age ten. She attended Bard College where she studied jazz composition and jazz & classical trumpet. She teaches private trumpet lessons, composes and currently performs with a number of different groups including Reptet, The Monktail Creative Music Concern and Picoso.

Izaak Mills began playing music when he picked up his mother's flute. He studied jazz saxophone and flute performance at Cornish College of the Arts. Give him an instrument and he will play it. His music is vibrant and eclectic. You can find him in Seattle with Clinton Fearon and the Boogie Brown Band, Reptet, Floss, Publish the Quest and Dead Hot to name a few. Izaak Mills follows his dreams and urges all humans to do so as well.

Born in Mexico City, percussionist Lalo Bello has been performing for over ten years. Completely self taught, Lalo's story is that of dedication. By imitating the sounds heard on records, Lalo taught himself the language of the congas, bongo, cajon and timbales. Inspired by conga greats such as Carlos "Patato" Valdes, Tata Guines, Giovani Hidalgo, Poncho Sanchez, Paoli Mejias among others, his full hearted commitment to self expression and creativity has earned him invitations to perform and record with many of the Northwest's great bands and musicians. His discography includes more than 10 recordings. Some of his interests include cooking, eating, painting, architecture and creating hand made instruments. La musica es la fuente de mi vida!

Alfonso Gonzales was born in Puerto Rico and has been playing traditional Puerto Rican music since a young age. In addition to being an excellent musician, Alfonso also owns the Puerto Rican restaurant La Isla, located in Seattle's Ballard neighborhood.

Since 2000, Ivan Gálvez has been performing in the NW with various groups such as: Jambalaya, Big World Breaks, Iguales, Sin Fronteras, Tumba Libre, Layla Angulo, Todo Folklore, Mambo Cadillac, In Lake'ch, Omo Alagba and many more. He recently started performing on the timbales with the Picoso family and hopes this is a long lasting relationship.

Keith "el Judio" Judelman, a Seattle native, has been playing music since the tender age of six. His love of life and the the diversity of human expression has taken him around the world in pursuit of new experiences and forms of creative expression. He has studied and performed around the world with many great musicians, and regularly works with some of the northwest's finest. In addition to his work with Picoso, Judelman also composes and performs with his ensembles Sasson and Free World Jazz. When not playing an instrument, Judelman practices Chinese medicine at Hillside Acupuncture and Healing Arts and enjoys healthy living.

Since its establishment in 2004, Picoso has evolved from a trio playing on the streets of Seattle into a smoking seven piece band that regularly lights up venues around the northwest and beyond. Grounded in the Afro- Latino sounds of the Caribbean, Picoso’s 100% original music spans a dynamic spectrum from traditional Cuban son and cha cha to dubbed out cumbia and reggaeton, and of course their mainstay, salsa. Picoso makes any event a party, and whether in clubs, festivals, or private functions Picoso brings a fire that is sure to get things moving.

Integrating a fully capable horn section with hard hitting rhythms, the dance floor is blazing from the first note. The lyrical delivery, led by Puerto Rican cantante (singer) Alfonso Gonzalez and backed up by 7-part harmonies is both passionate and playful, drawing in audiences like a warm hearth in winter. Time and again Picoso proves their ability to control the stage with facility and to send their audience home full of joy and asking for more.