Jerrah Patston loves to write pop music.
The 20-year-old composes a song a week and writes about his experience of the world — from the way his braces stop him eating certain foods to the stars in the sky.
Mr Patston's autism and a moderate intellectual impairment mean he functions at a kindergarten level, but his musical side is far more advanced.
A regular busker, he performs at Glenbrook markets in the Blue Mountains once a month and at nursing homes and preschools.
"I like singing in melody. I love singing into the microphone," Mr Patston said.
"I play the djembe — an African drum — I play guitar and I'm trying out the lead pedal and keyboards. And I also play the harmonica."
Making noise at the Opera House
On Thursday Mr Patston got his first radio airplay when an excerpt of his latest track, Burn Like a Star, debuted on ABC Radio Sydney.
The song was created during a residency at the Sydney Opera House that Jerrah and 13 other musicians participated in as part of Vivid LIVE in June.
The residency was in collaboration with Club Weld, an initiative based in Western Sydney that allows musicians with autism to create work autonomously, independent from parents or carers.
"We've got a diverse crew with diverse taste," Club Weld facilitator Sam Worrad said.
The residency gave the musicians an opportunity to work with professionals like Rainbow Chan, Dro Carey and George Nicholas.
Their tracks were created using sampled sounds and atmospheric noises captured from field recordings within the Opera House.
The bass beat in Mr Patston's song for example, was created by recording and synthesising the thump of a door within the building.
"It's a song about the stars in the sky and it's a pretty cool song," he said.
Treating musicians equally
Mr Patston's mother Lisa said Club Weld gave her son the opportunity to connect with others.
"It's a real outlet for him to share his joy, because he's a glass-half-full kind of person," she said.
"The best thing we love about the Club Weld program is he gets treated as an equal musician and [gets to] play with real musicians."
The Club Weld tracks will premiere on November 2 on FBi radio.
