Charles grew, he assumed the position held by his father as the drummer for the local church. Charles continues on his journey from here, graduating from Goochland high school. During his time in high school, Charles participated in multiple district and state wind ensembles in addition to a few jazz honor bands. While managing to be a part of multiple in-school ensembles, he also found the time to be involved with the marching band. On top of all of that, Charles also has an underlying passion for singing. He participated in the school’s choir program and could often be seen in the school musical playing one of the four obligatory male quartet members. Charles tried his best to cover all his bases in the music department.Nothing changed when he arrived at Virginia Commonwealth University, where he is currently a senior pursuing a degree in music performance. Charles is currently a member of the VCU percussion studio, under the direction of Dr. Justin Alexander. He’s received multiple semesters of private lessons covering a wide range of instruments and pieces of music. He’s also received private lessons on Afro Cuban percussion from Hector “Coco” Barez, jazz drum set from Tony Martucci, and other various mentors. Charles has been the principal percussionist of VCU’s premiere wind ensemble and string orchestra. He’s performed in VCU Opera productions as an instrumentalist. Charles, along with the VCU percussion ensemble, was fortunate enough to travel to Indianapolis to perform at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention in competition with other college ensembles in the nation. They were able to make this trip twice. Charles has also been a featured vocalist for the VCU jazz orchestra. Once again, Charles is trying to sharpen all the musical tools at his disposal.
Charles has tried to be active in the music education community. Over the course of his college career, he’s been a marching percussion instructor for multiple schools in his area. His list of schools include Clover Hill, Atlee, and Goochland high school where he is currently the percussion instructor. If he’s not practicing or holding percussion clinics in Goochland, he’s playing the drums for Chicago Avenue Baptist Church. Charles has been with this church for many years now and considers it home.
Charles is a young and inspired musician who just wants the chance to share the same joy that music has shown him. He also wants the chance to show that with dedicated work, anything is possible. With the training and field experience he has received, Charles believes that he can make a difference in your playing and help you grow for the better. He currently teaches lessons on Wednesdays and Thursdays.
