At the same time, he studied with Argentinean harpsichordist Lidia Guerberof. After graduating in 1972, he studied musical composition with José Ardévolume and Roberto Valera at the Instituto Superior de Arte ( Industry Standard Architecture).
After some time he continued his piano studies with renowned Cuban professor César Pérez Sentenat and with Silvio Rodríguez Cárdenas at Conservatorio Alejandro García Caturla in Marianao, Havana. In 1968 Piñera followed up with his piano studies at the Escuela Nacional de Artes, where he received instruction from Silvio Rodríguez Cárdenas, Ninowska Fernández-Britto and Ana Martínez Estrada. As a composer, Piñera has received numerous commissions to write original music for theater plays such as Il Piacere, Amor con amor se paga and Louisiana taza de café.
He has also closely collaborated with dance companies such as Danza Contemporanea de Cuba, Conjunto Folklórico Nacional, Danza del Caribe, Danza Combinatoria and the National Ballet of Cuba, for which he has composed the original music of three ballets.
He has also produced and directed a weekly radio program dedicated to promote contemporary music
