Walking through the halls of CHS, there is a high probability that the notes of a ukulele, guitar, piano or even a melodica have graced your ears. Many students play an instrument or can at least dabble on the keyboard or strum a few chords on the guitar.

Some have taken their musical talents one step further by joining or forming a band, like sophomore Kevin Clark of Spring Lake. Clark has been a part of the Beach Music Rock Band for almost seven years, where he mainly plays the bass but occasionally sings or plays the keyboard.

The cover band belongs to a program at Beach Music Studios in Belmar, and the studio’s owner organizes their gigs.

“I’ve gotten a chance to play at the Stone Pony, on the boardwalk, in the Belmar St. Patrick’s Day parade and at Bar Anticipation in Belmar,” Clark said.

For others, such as junior Cara Pesciotta of Millstone, performing at one of these establishments is a goal. Pesciotta sings and plays the piano for Square One, an alternative and rock band that has mostly performed at school events.

“We hope to… get more established so we can start playing places like the Stone Pony,” Pesciotta said.  “We’ve been working on originals and hope to record an album soon. It took us a while to get started writing but I’m really excited about how far we’ve come.”

Some bands are more focused on playing original music rather than covers, like the rock group Slapjack. Senior Noah Lipton of Ocean is the group’s bassist, and he has been a part of the quartet since its start in 2013.

“We play a lot of rock and are influenced by Led Zeppelin and Stone Temple Pilots, but we mainly play our own music we have written,” Lipton said.

The group has at least one show a month at venues such as Bar A, the House of Independents, The Saint and the Stone Pony. In March alone, Slapjack has played five shows.

For these student musicians, the consensus is that practice surely makes perfect. But for some, it can be difficult to find time to get together with their band. Lipton practices with Slapjack one to two times a week, while Pesciotta and her band try for weekly practices that don’t always work out “since we live far from each other and have busy schedules.”

No matter how often bandmates get to practice with each other or how big their audience is, in the end, Pesciotta said it’s all about the music and doing what she enjoys the most.

“The best part about being in a band is letting go, having fun and playing music,” Pesciotta said. “It’s a really good stress reliever to do what you love while expressing yourself through the lyrics and music.”