Gilbert Castellanos

Gilbert Castellanos (born 1972, Guadalajara, Mexico) is an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, educator, composer, and arranger based in San Diego, California. He is a former member of the Black Note, the Tom Scott Quintet, the Anthony Wilson Nonet, the Charles McPherson Quintet, and the Willie Jones III Quintet. He is a current member of the Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra.

Castellanos was influenced by his father, who performed as leader, singer, and arranger of the popular cumbia band, Gil Castellanos y Su Copacabana. Raised in Fresno, the younger Castellanos took up the trumpet at age 6 and began to play professionally at 11. At 15 he performed at the Monterey Jazz Festival with iconic trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie. He earned a scholarship to Boston’s prestigious Berklee College of Music, and then attended the California Institute of the Arts in Los Angeles, California. His influences include Clifford Brown, Lee Morgan, and Freddie Hubbard.

The young Castellanos quickly rose to national attention as a member of the celebrated band Black Note, with whom he recorded three albums: "L.A. Underground," "Jungle Music," and "Nothin' but the Swing." They won first prize at the John Coltrane Young Artist Competition in 1991. Castellanos also has recorded his own well-received albums: a 1999 debut release, "The Gilbert Castellanos Hammond B3 Quartet”; an eclectic 2006 collection "Underground"; and “The Federal Jazz Project” (from the theatrical collaboration with playwright Richard Montoya).

Castellanos has worked with internationally acclaimed artists such as Dizzy Gillespie, Quincy Jones, Wynton Marsalis, Horace Silver, Christian McBride, Lewis Nash, Oscar Hernandez, Les McCann, Diana Krall, Willie Nelson, Michael Bublé, and Natalie Cole.

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