Armando Castellano – French Horn

Armando Castellano is a musician and educator originally from San Jose, now living in Menlo Park, California. Armando graduated with honors from San Jose City College and the University of California at Los Angeles where he studied with Bob Watt and Richard Todd, before moving on to receive a master degree at the Manhattan School of Music in New York City where he studied with Erik Ralske and Jerome Ashby as part of their Orchestral Performance Program. He attended the Aspen music festival in addition to several tours with the Russian American Youth Orchestra. He has performed in many of the Bay Area’s regional orchestras and has spent much of the last ten years organizing and performing chamber music, culminating in his current work as founder and director of the wind quintet, Quinteto Latino.

Though a musician his entire life, Armando rarely had the opportunity to perform classical works culturally relevant to him and his community until the formation of this unique ensemble. He has taught throughout the Bay Area in both English and Spanish and is currently an adjunct faculty member at San José City College. The rest of his life is devoted to engaging himself philanthropically with his other passion, the environment, and raising his two sons, Andries and Wim, who respectfully refer to “Papi’s” musician friends as “niños de música”.