Just as his idols Miles Davis and Jerry Garcia perfected their musical abilities, senior Josh Gellerman effortlessly masters any instrument he plays when performing onstage. From the piano to the bass, Gellerman is determined to expand his repertoire and perfect his craft.

“I was seven years old and I fell in love,” said Gellerman. “It was all I wanted to do. I knew that I just had to play.”

The defining moment of Gellerman’s calling was when he first heard The Beatles’ White Album. Gellerman was overcome with an insatiable hunger to learn how to play. He started with the guitar, and from there tackled the trumpet, piano, bass and drums. In addition to mastering these many instruments, Gellerman tries to maintain his individuality and put his own spin on his sound.

“I would describe my sound as different,” said Gellerman. “It depends on what instrument I’m playing, but I’m constantly on the journey to find my own style.”

Gellerman’s fervor for music led him to become involved with many of the music programs offered by CHS. He is a part of Unstrumental, Jazz A Band, Jazz Combo, Wind Ensemble and Advanced Guitar.

Gellerman is constantly performing. He plays trumpet for the band Oyls, who have performed at venues at UCLA and UC Davis. Their most recent gig was playing at CHS’ 2014 homecoming dance, which was a new and fun experience for Gellerman and his bandmates.

“There is nothing I love more than being onstage,” said Gellerman. “It was so cool to look out into the crowd and see our peers dancing to our music.”

Gellerman’s future plans are to continue on his current path of pursuing music. Even at the age of 17, Gellerman already has a head start and is following the right steps to reach his dreams. He writes most of his own music and lyrics, which he records on GarageBand on his computer and his music with Oyls can be found on SoundCloud, iTunes and Spotify. Gellerman hopes to continue to work and do what he loves for years to come.