Mariela was born and grew up in the suburbs of Raleigh, North Carolina, USA. After studying classical saxophone at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts High School she went on to earn a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies from Michigan State University, and later a Master of Music in Jazz Performance from William Paterson University. Mariela’s teachers have included a slew of jazz giants and pedagogues including Rodney Whitaker, Bill Charlap, Diego Rivera, Etienne Charles, Reggie Thomas, Cecil Bridgewater, Pete McGuinness, Vincent Herring, Bill Mobley, Aaron Goldberg, David Demsey, and Rich Perry.

Mariela has toured internationally and has appeared at venues like Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola (Jazz at Lincoln Centre, New York City), the Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Cultural Centre in Kuwait, the Blue Note Amsterdam, The Crypt (Cape Town, South Africa), The Australian Institute of Music, and Foundry 616 (Sydney, Australia). Mariela has also appeared with artists like John Clayton, Jeff Hamilton, Wycliffe Gordon, Christian McBride, Jon Faddis, Gordon Goodwin, Antonio Hart, Jeremy Pelt, Cecil Bridgewater, Joe Lovano, and Benny Golson.

In 2018 she won two DownBeat Magazine awards for music featured on her debut album Pink & Orange with her New York based quartet for “Best Latin Group” and “Outstanding Small Group Arrangement.” Mariela has also been commissioned for compositions and arrangements by the Kuwait Jazz Collective, the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and the Sydney Fusion Jazz Jam. Mariela has recorded with Ray Maze (Quebec, Canada), the Alec Castro Big Band (New York City), and the Disneyland All-American College Band. Now based in Sydney, Mariela currently plays with The South Coast Big Band, The Dave Panichi Big Band, Disco Revolution, Vast Hill, Reuben Kaye, DJ Deluxx, Veena Rao, and Pharos (Sydney Women’s Jazz Collective).

Mariela proudly plays SYOS (Shape Your Own Sound) Mouthpieces.