Gerlo’s musical career started as a 10 year old child on clarinet. On his 16th he got his alto saxophone and became interested in  jazz/pop music .

During the study in Enschede he played a lot with very different bands including several local big bands. Together with bassist Johan Plomp he started the Dual City Concert Band, which still performs regularly. Gerlo had lessons from several well-known saxophonists such as Ferdinand Povel and Dick Oatts.

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At the moment he’s quite active as (jazz) saxophonist. Through his extensive big band experience, he is a regularly substitute in various orchestras throughout the Netherlands (including the Metropole Orchestra) but also in Germany. Besides saxophone Gerlo plays flute and clarinet. Meanwhile, he has accompanied many internationally known artists such as Toots Thielemans, Benny Golson, Randy Brecker and Deborah Brown. As a soloist in these formations, this resulted in soloists-prices at the Big Band Festival 2008 in Hoofddorp and a year later during the Dutch Big Band Contest 2009 in Enschede.

He is also active in several small(er) instrumentation, with musicians like Peter Tiehuis, Hod O ‘Brian and Johan Plomp . He can also be heard as a substitute for musicals and other theater productions, as in “Songs from the Heart” by Simone Kleinsma and  “La Cage Aux Folles”. I

At the moment Hesselink is  member of Get The Funk, Dual City Concert Band, Millennium Jazz Orchestra,  the Ramblers, Noordpool orchestra, the Guus Tangelder Bigband, Rootbrain and ofcourse his own quartet.

In 2013 he recorded his first own CD titled “Garden of Stones” with a quartet  together with Dirk Balthaus, Johan Plomp and Henk Zomer. This album was released may 7th 2013.

In 2022 the second album “Meant for you”  was released, with the quartet and guests, as a tribute to his son who died in 2017.

(Most of) the instruments Gerlo plays on :
Alto: Selmer “Mark VI” (1958) with Ted Klum Yardbird metal 8
Tenor: Selmer “Super Action” (1949) with Otto Link Florida 8 moutpiece (a.o.)
Soprano: Selmer Mark VI (1969) with Selmer Super Session mouthpiece
Soprano: Yanagisawa 901
Flute: Sankyo Silversonic
Alto Flute: Cannonball MA4 “Mio” with silver head joint.