Charles grew up in Westborough, Massachusetts and began playing music at an early age. A 10 year voyage through piano, viola, trumpet and electric bass led Charles to the double bass in high school which he began to study privately with Nancy Kidd and play in jazz ensembles and youth orchestras. He attended the New England Conservatory of Music, earning his Bacehlor’s Degree studying with Boston Symphony bassist Todd Seeber. Charles went on to receive his Masters Degree at Manhattan School of Music in New York, studying with New York Philharmonic bassist and jazz talent David Grossman.
Charles was a New World Symphony fellow from 2011-2014 and now is a substitute in the Boston Symphony. He has performed with the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, the East Coast Chamber Orchestra, the Knights Chamber Orchestra in NYC and Boston’s own A Far Cry Chamber Orchestra. Previously, Charles was a fellow at the Tanglewood Music Center for two summers earning the Maurice Schwartz prize in 2010. Other festivals attended include the Britten-Pears World Orchestra Festival, the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival in Germany, the Aspen Music Festival, the National Orchestral Institute in Washington D.C., and the Domaine Forget Institute in Quebec..
Charles now resides in the Boston area playing with a variety of different ensembles and collaborates on a wide range of projects ranging from folk to baroque. His last band the Lonely Heartstring Band released 2 albums on Rounder Records and toured the US, Europe, and Canada from 2012-2019, gaining a following on the East and West Coasts. His new project, The Clements Brothers is set to release an album in the coming year and has been performing in New England for the past 2 years.