Born in 1983 on the island of Trinidad, Charles (pictured) has a master's degree from Juilliard and a bachelor's from Florida State University, and currently serves as assistant professor of jazz studies at Michigan State University.
As a sideman, he has performed and or recorded with Monty Alexander, Roberta Flack, Frank Foster, Ralph MacDonald, Johnny Mandel, Wynton Marsalis, Marcus Roberts, Maria Schneider, Count Basie Orchestra, and many others. As a bandleader and composer, Charles' Eastern Caribbean origins figure prominently in recordings such as 2013's Creole Soul, which incorporates grooves from throughout the Afro-Caribbean diaspora, and Kaiso, a 2011 release featuring jazz interpretations of popular calypso tunes.
The video below was recorded in 2013 during the National Trumpet Competition at George Mason University in Virgina, and features Charles, a former NTC winner himself, talking about a variety of topics including practicing, developing a personal sound, and improvisation, and demonstrating with musical examples. .
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