Gilbert Castellanos

Gilbert Castellanos (born 1972) is an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, educator, composer, and arranger based in San Diego, California.

The young Castellanos quickly rose to national attention as a member of the band Black Note, with whom he recorded three albums: L.A.

[4] Castellanos has worked with 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.

[13] As such he has brought in some of the biggest stars of the jazz world — such as Diane Reeves, Gregory Porter, Eric Reed, Roy McCurdy, Helen Sung, and Chucho Valdes — to Jacobs Music Center in downtown San Diego.

He established The Young Lions Series, a two-hour weekly program featuring up-and-coming middle and high school jazz musicians from Southern California, many of whom he has taught and mentored.

[14] Before leaving to focus on the Young Lions, Castellanos served from 2014 to 2016 as Artistic Director of and faculty member at the International Academy of Jazz.

He can be seen leading a regular Wednesday night Jam Session with Students from his Young Lions Jazz Conservatory and local/guest musicians at Balboa Park's Panama 66, located in the San Diego Museum of Art's Auditorium, accessed through the Sculpture Garden.