By Corrina Taylor
Director of Social Media

The audience claps along as senior Chris Capezzuto sings “Pride and Joy” at this year’s talent show. Capezzuto sits alone on stage with only his acoustic guitar and his voice to win over the crowd.

Capezzuto has been a longtime music enthusiast; it was not until three years ago he decided to take his love for music and learn to play the guitar. He began playing with his dad before he moved on to a teacher and eventually learned all he could from him.

“It was surprising to me to see how quick he could pick up with a little introduction,” Chris’ father Jon Capezzuto said. “He is naturally talented, and it made it possible for him to get excited about playing guitar.”

After a year and a half of lessons, Capezzuto ventured out on his own and began performing his own covers of popular songs and posting them onto his YouTube channel. He began singing a year ago, and even though he has not had any voice lessons, he shows a natural talent for singing.

“I think that his dedication and commitment to his guitar is clearly shown through his talents,” senior Nadir Khan said. “He has some sweet chops mixed with phenomenal talent.”

Stage fright is not an issue for Capezzuto; having played live a couple of times by the time he played at the talent show, most of the nerves were gone.  Having the support of friends and family has encouraged Chris to write his own music and play for others.

“For his cousin’s 16th birthday he learned a song and took his guitar to her house on her birthday and sang her some songs,” Chris’ mother Joan Capezzuto said. “We had a family sing a long and it was really fun.”

Capezzuto continues to post songs to his channel and is currently working on some of his own original songs. Though nothing is planned to be released in the near future, he is hoping on releasing his own songs eventually.

As for the songwriting, for now Capezzuto will be listening to other music for inspiration and work on more poetic lyrics.

“I listen to a lot of different artists,” Capezzuto said. “I have a really diverse musical interest and I take things from a lot of different genres and artists and apply it to my own music.”

Though Capezzuto will not pursue music in college, it will be a hobby for him to have throughout the years. At this point his music could go in any number of directions.

Capezzuto has had success as a solo artist, but he would also become a part of a band if the opportunity presented itself. For the time being fans can check his YouTube channel for his weekly cover, something he does for fun to show off his talent to friends and YouTube viewers.

“He is very good, especially for someone who has only played for three years,” Mr.  Capezzuto said. “I am a big fan of music and I think Chris really has talent, it’s just a question of him, like any musician, finding a unique sound.”