Going places
Dana Ariel on her journey from iAM student to fronting her own band

Greetings, dear readers! This week, I talked with local singer-songwriter Dana Ariel. I met Dana years ago when I was her adviser and teacher at a local high school. Even then, she was usually in tow with a ukulele, singing softly to herself whenever a quiet moment appeared. It wasn’t uncommon to find her during lunch writing and swapping songs with her high school BFF, Jules Marqua – another bright star in the Durango music scene. Since graduating, Dana has chased her passion for music through Berklee-affiliated programs in Canada and Australia.

Having been back in the area since COVID, Dana and her band, Coming Up Roses, have left a distinct Americana mark on our local scene. She’s also become an indispensable part of the iAM music education team, now teaching at the very school where we first met – a full-circle moment. Dana is humble, wise, thoughtful and writes absolutely killer music. Consider me a proud former teacher! I recently get the scoop from Dana on what life has been like on the other side. Hope you enjoy, and see you on the dance floor!

SS: You grew up in Durango but have been bopping around the world. Tell us where you’ve been.

DA: I’ve always loved to travel. I knew I needed to get out of Durango when I graduated high school, so I immediately did a year in Canada at a school in the Berklee international network. Then I moved to Australia to another school in that network and stayed there until COVID. Since coming back, I’ve still traveled a lot, because my family has free flights, and music grounds me wherever I am. Recently I was in the Middle East and had the chance to meet musicians in a culture very different from my own.

SS: What helped you make the jump from high school to moving abroad alone?

DA: I’ve always had a part of me that believes “I can do it,” and I grew up in a family supportive of travel and music. At Animas High, I had an internship in Mexico working with an Indigenous community whose valley was being flooded. I ended up documenting their musical culture, which opened my eyes to how music exists everywhere.

SS: What was day-to-day life like in Australia?

DA: I lived in Melbourne in the beach neighborhood of St. Kilda. I went to school downtown, took songwriting classes, then gigged at night for money. Melbourne has laws about paying musicians fairly, which was amazing. I didn’t have a car, so I would strap my amp, mic stand and guitar onto a rental scooter and ride to gigs. I was a broke college kid gigging for money, working in restaurants, trying to put myself through school and pay rent. I lived with backpackers. It wasn’t like college in the U.S. with dorms.

SS: If you could go back, what advice would you give yourself?

DA: Don’t take drunk people too seriously! [laughs] You’re playing for people traveling and having fun, and sometimes you have to play covers instead of your own music. Those gigs can feel soul-sucking, because you’re creating a party that isn’t representative of who you are as an artist. I’d tell myself to see those gigs as work, not my artistry, and be grateful I have the skills to make money anywhere.

SS: Who has influenced you most as a young musician here in Durango?

DA: (iAM Music founder) Jesse Ogle, for sure. He was my first contemporary music teacher after classical violin training. I remember him making me watch an Esperanza Spalding video when I was about 12. I wasn’t quite sure how to feel about it. Ashley Edwards was also a huge influence not only as a musician, but as a woman.

SS: Tell us about your band. Why join a band instead of going solo?

DA: I do both, but playing with others is special. My five-piece band brings my music to life, and they’ve been critical to making me who I am as a human. Some of them showed up for me during major health challenges this summer. You have to choose wisely who you play music with, because it’s how you connect and express your feelings.

SS: What’s coming up next?

DA: We’re super excited to be sharing a bill with Eli Emmett’s band at the American Legion. It’s a bigger venue than we usually play, with a huge stage and disco ball, so it feels like a good next step on our way to hopefully headlining the ACT one day. Tickets are only available at the door. My band is also doing a one-night “Mamma Mia” tribute show at the Indigo Room in late June. It’s a full ABBA night with “Dana and the Dynamos!”

SS: Do you see yourself traveling more?

DA: Yes, always. Durango will always be home, but there are many musical cultures and communities I want to learn from and contribute to. ■