Argentinian-born musician and artist isn’t wasting any opportunities at York College

Gianfranco Celario Sedano was 8 years old when he first laid hands on a traditional Argentinian drum (bombo criollo) at a family reunion. His hands never stopped tapping and fidgeting after that. He’d pound out beats on pots and pans while his brother played guitar. He later won a scholarship and used the money to buy himself a real drum kit. He joined a few bands—playing thrash metal and punk rock.

When he was just 16, he started organizing concerts and music festivals in his city and other nearby Argentinian cities. It was the first of many entrepreneurial ideas. He wasn’t in it for the money, though. He just loved bringing people together to play music.

Gianfranco built his whole world in Argentina. Then, that world collapsed. When he was 19, his family decided to move back to America. It was a scary prospect. Gianfranco had lived in America for only four years of his life, and they were all before he was 10. But, Gianfranco is a survivor. He’d rebuilt before, and he’d do it again.

Finding opportunities at York College

Gianfranco was a Music Industry and Recording Technology major when he first started at York College of Pennsylvania. He quickly realized that wasn’t the right fit. His advisor Dr. Shawn Young told him about a new major they were just finalizing: Music Production and Entrepreneurship. It was exactly what Gianfranco was looking for. He became one of the first students in the program.

Through the school, he’s been able to open doors he otherwise wouldn’t have. “York College has so many resources,” he says. “I have so many things that I’m doing now with my time that I couldn’t be doing if I didn’t go to college.”

Gianfranco isn’t just involved in the music program. He’s an artist, as well. He was one of three artists who contributed to the York Harvest Vegfest. York College Director of galleries Matthew Clay-Robison had suggested Gianfranco become involved in the project. “I think that for the art program a very important resource is Matthew Clay-Robison himself,” Gianfranco says. “He is someone who connects students with so much.”

With contacts he made through the school, Gianfranco developed a merchandise line called Jester Sedano, which he produces with help from York College alumni-owned businesses Story Supply Co. and Marketview Arts. “The more people my art reaches out to the more I can inform the world of what my experiences were like, what led me to where I am today and how my mind and the collective consciousness works,” he says.

An eye on the future

Gianfranco’s dream job would be to tour around the world as a performer and artist. He loves the idea of sharing his experience through a TED talk, too. But he’s not passing up any opportunities on his way to that dream. “I’ve found that, in my time at York College, all the things that I’ve needed for my future, they’ve been there,” he says.

The resources and connections he’s made at school have pushed him in new and different directions that he never expected. He’s constantly networking and pushing himself, and he’ll keep pushing as far as he can go. Gianfranco knows what it’s like to live without those resources and opportunities—and he’s not about to waste what he’s got.