During Carnival, the island of Trinidad becomes engulfed in a cacophony of sounds – from singing, to the clash of stick fights, and lively calypso music with its hallmark steel pan cadences. As a Trinidadian raised in a musical family, trumpeter Etienne Charles feels a deep connection to the Carnival traditions. At a young age he joined his father’s steel band, performing at Carnival fetes, and immersing himself in the folklore. Through Etienne’s Guggenheim Fellowship Award, he returns to his roots to celebrate the traditions that best exemplify Trinidadian culture. Inspired by the noises heard throughout the festivities, Etienne’s Carnival: The Sound of a People brings the celebrations to the stage.
Hailed by The New York Times as “an auteur” and by JazzTimes as “A daring improviser who delivers with heart wrenching lyricism,” NPR’s All Things Considered calls Etienne, “a great young trumpeter…his records filter calypso, reggae and other Afro-Caribbean music into a modern jazz conception.” Critics and audiences alike continue to praise the Trinidadian’s exciting performances, thrilling compositions, and his charismatic onstage presence. Etienne is a Guggenheim Fellow in the Creative Arts, Associate Professor of Jazz Trumpet and Teacher Scholar at Michigan State University, and has been written in to US Congressional Record for his musical contributions to Trinidad & Tobago and the World.
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HI-RES IMAGES
^ Photo Credit: Laura Ferreira
VIDEO
TRACES
CARNIVAL: THE SOUND OF THE PEOPLE
Carnival: The Sound of a People (Embed / Download)
CREOLE SOUL
Caravan (Embed/Download)
Creole Soul (Embed)
SAN JOSE SUITE
San Jose Suite (Embed)
CREOLE CHRISTMAS
Creole Christmas (Embed / Download)
Chrismas Is Yours [Relator] (Embed)
I’ll Be Home For Christmas (Embed / Download)
Master Class Trailer (Embed/Download)
BIOGRAPHY/PROGRAM NOTES
Biography: Download (doc)
San Jose Suite Press Release: Download (doc)
Educational Offerings: Download (pdf)
Official Website: www.etiennecharles.com
CURRENT RELEASE
Carnival: The Sound of a People Vol. 1 (March 22, 2019)
PUBLICITY REQUESTS
Candelaria Alvarado
candelaria@imnworld.com
Please contact IMN’s Director of Marketing with any additional questions.
From soundsandcolours.com REVIEW ETIENNE CHARLES ‘” CARNIVAL: THE SOUND OF A PEOPLE VOL 1 By: Mark Sampson “Like a good wine, sometimes an album needs to lie quietly on its side for a while in order to appreciate its full range of flavours. Trinidadian trumpeter Etienne Charles’ 7th studio album is a case in point. It came out in March...
Posted Jun 18th, 2019
From The Lansing City Pulse Etienne Charles: Joy and sorrow By: LAWRENCE COSENTINO “The longest days of summer, a nationally acclaimed new album, a long-deferred homecoming and sudden, unexpected loss ‘” Etienne Charles has a lot to celebrate and solemnize in his East Lansing Summer Solstice Jazz Festival set Friday. But he’s up to it. For all its melody and...
Posted May 20th, 2019
From WCLK Jazz Tones Insights – Etienne Charles By: Jay Edwards Join me Sunday on WCLK’s Jazz Tones from 3pm-7pm. My special guest will be Etienne Charles—Assistant Professor of Jazz Studies at Michigan State University, recording artist, and arranger. Etienne is a young Trinidadian who is an amazing trumpet, steel drum, and cuatro player. He graduated from Jazz programs at...
Posted Apr 21st, 2019
From The New York Times For Etienne Charles, Jazz and Caribbean Music Are One and the Same By: Giovanni Russonello […] Mr. Charles, 35, has been uniting Trinidadian methods with jazz ideas since he moved to the United States in 2002. He’s found that if you let them, they combine organically. Along the way, Mr. Charles has developed a magnetic...
Posted Mar 21st, 2019
The Mercury News Caribbean music dying? Etienne Charles ready to prove otherwise in SF Bay Area gigs By: Andrew Gilbert […] ‘I love working with musicians who understand the aesthetics of Caribbean music, who understand the rhythms,’ says Charles, 35. ‘The Spanish tinge that Jelly Roll Morton talked about is the Caribbean lilt. Sullivan is from New Orleans, which is...
Posted Feb 26th, 2019
From The New Orleans Advocate Etienne Charles’ blend of Caribbean tradition with modern jazz coming to Manship Theatre By: John Wirt Carnival in the Caribbean, a riotous spectacle of drums, rhythm, dance, color and phantasmagorical characters, inspires jazz trumpeter and composer Etienne Charles. ‘I have always thought of Carnival as an all-encompassing art form that has elements of music, dance,...
Posted Feb 21st, 2019
From The Score: An Insider’s Guide to the Performing Arts Etienne Charles: Creating Scenes with Sound By: Shelley Worrell Trumpet player, composer, and music professor Etienne Charles’“known for blending a variety of musical traditions into his own signature style’“premieres a work commissioned by Lincoln Center at the David Rubenstein Atrium on Thursday, January 3. In advance of the show, cultural...
Posted Jan 2nd, 2019
From WBGO From The Checkout Archives: Trumpeter Etienne Charles Celebrates ‘A Creole Christmas’ By: Simon Rentner A few years ago, the Trinidadian jazz trumpeter Etienne Charles released A Creole Christmas, a brilliant musical meld of Christian hymns, Venezuelan parangs, and island calypsos. He brought that festive sound into our studio in 2016, leading a sharp and versatile band. As on...
Posted Dec 20th, 2018
From Post City Toronto It’s carnival time in Toronto By: Ron Johnson Etienne Charles grew up with the sights and sounds of carnival in and around his childhood home in Trinidad and Tobago. But it was in the decidedly chillier climes of Toronto in the company of a certain uncle that he heard the music that would set him on...
Posted Nov 16th, 2018
From Loop Trinidad & Tobego Etienne Charles receives Sunshine Award By: Laura Dowrich-Phillips* Jazz trumpeter Etienne Charles has been honoured for his dedication and commitment to the Performing Arts. Charles received the honour at the Sunshine Awards in New York on Sunday, October 13. The black-tie Gala was held at the Robert Treat Hotel in Newark, New Jersey and featured...
Posted Oct 18th, 2018
From Jazzwise Magazine Etienne Charles Triumphant At The Tabernacle With Timely Blend Of Defiance And Celebration By: Kevin Le Gendre This venue has deep historical resonance for black music in Britain. It has been a nerve centre for community activism in the West Indian community, a hub for the Notting Hill carnival, a fact denoted by a large plaque dedicated...
Posted Jun 7th, 2018
From Broadway World: San Diego BWW Review: La Jolla Athenaeum Presents Etienne Charles and Creole Jazz at TSRI Auditorium In La Jolla By: Ron Bierman […] That well-earned moment of recognition was followed by an exciting mix of the jazz and Afro-Caribbean influenced music of Trinidad-born trumpeter and bandleader Etienne Charles. Things got off to a bright bouncy start with...
Posted Apr 10th, 2018
From Roanoke Times Etienne Charles brings Creole take on jazz to Jefferson Center on Saturday By: Tad Dickens […] These days, Charles is the one who hopes to provide a culture shock. ‘One, it’s different cultures that come together, and two, every time we play in front of a new audience, it’s kind of an introduction to different cultures, because...
Posted Apr 6th, 2018
From the San Diego Union-Tribune Trinidadian trumpeter Etienne Charles and his dance-happy Creole Soul set for San Diego debut By: George Varga […] Headlining this festive occasion will be Charles and his multinational band. Not only will it mark the acclaimed group’s first San Diego performance, it may be the first time any audience at an Athenaeum Jazz at TSRI...
Posted Mar 30th, 2018
From Trindad and Tobego: Newsday Charles work wins NAACP award By: Newsday A jazz album co-produced by TT-born musician, composer and producer Etienne Charles has won the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Jazz Album. The NAACP Image Awards celebrates the accomplishments of people of colour in the fields of television, music, literature and film, and also honours individuals or groups...
Posted Jan 25th, 2018
From Trinidad and Tobago: Newsday Charles Shows the Sound of a People By: Lisa Allen-Agostini ‘We’re here because we love real Carnival,’ said Etienne Charles at the opening of his panel discussion and screening of two music videos of pieces from his jazz suite Carnival: The Sound of a People. With a 2015 Guggenheim grant, he embarked on a project...
Posted Jan 16th, 2018
From LOOP Etienne Charles co-produced album nominated for NAACP Award TT-born musician, composer, and producer Etienne Charles may be among the recipients of an NAACP Image Award when the awards are presented on January 15, 2018. Charles served as an associate producer on Somi Kakoma’s ‘Petite Afrique’ (Sony Music/OKeh) which has been nominated in the Outstanding Jazz Album category. Charles...
Posted Nov 21st, 2017
From Trinidad and Tobago NEWSDAY Street Party on road Carnival Monday By: Debra Greaves After a successful 2017 mas band, We the People, internationally renowned trumpeter Etienne Charles and his friends launched his 2018 Carnival Monday evening band Street Party. The launch was held at the Courtyard, Government Campus Plaza on Richmond Street, Port of Spain on Saturday. Charles and...
Posted Oct 6th, 2017
From Caribbean Life Trinidadian Trumpeter Performs For City Kids By: Alexandra Simon City kids got an interactive and cultural music learning experience to calypso, hip-hop, and traditional Armenian music at Carnegie Hall on May 12. The venue’s musical explorers program introduces elementary-aged youngsters to a variety of world music from three artists each semester and teaches them basics of each...
Posted May 16th, 2017
From The Sacramento Bee Jazz trumpeter Etienne Charles invites you to explore with him and keep music alive By: Mark Halverson ‘(Jazz) takes you on a journey. If the audience is exploring, and the musicians are exploring, it’s like we are all in unknown territory. There are no words. Just sounds that reflect emotions. So in a sense, that’s like...
Posted Apr 20th, 2017
From Vice Trumpeter Etienne Charles Connects Jazz and J’ouvert By: Alexis P. Williams The raucous festivities at Carnival may seem like the last place one would expect to hear the sounds of jazz. However, if you listen closely to VICE’s new documentary “Brooklyn’s Dirty Masquerade,” the sweet trumpet of Etienne Charles sets the tone for reporter Wilbert L. Cooper’s cultural...
Posted Mar 12th, 2017
From The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Music preview: Etienne Charles brings ‘Creole Soul’ to MCG By: Rick Nowlin Trinidad-born trumpeter Etienne Charles performs at the Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild on Saturday, bringing ‘Creole Soul,’ which incorporates and synthesizes the sounds of New Orleans and the Caribbean. Mr. Charles began playing when he received a trumpet from his uncle at age 10. ‘There was...
Posted Feb 3rd, 2017
From Miami.com Caribbean trumpeter digs deep in ‘San Jose Suite’ By: Chloe Herring The title of Trinidadian trumpeter Etienne Charles’ latest album ‘San Jose Suite’ is a reference to his international studies of San Jose, Costa Rica; San Jose, California and of his island home in a northeastern town formerly known as San Jose. The three San Joses are the...
Posted Jan 30th, 2017
From News Day Etienne Charles world premiere of ‘Carnival ‘” The Sound of a People’ CARNIVAL traditions will fill the chambers of the Queen’s Hall on January 29 when internationally acclaimed jazz trumpeter Etienne Charles returns to Trinidad and Tobago for the world premiere of his new compositional work. Entitled Carnival – The Sound of A People, the opus continues...
Posted Jan 9th, 2017
From Albuquerque Journal ‘Creole Christmas’ a trip through the tropics By: David Steinberg Etienne Charles likes to cook up a gumbo of Christmas music. Charles, a trumpeter from Trinidad and Tobago, brings together his own jazz interpretations of traditional American, European and Caribbean holiday tunes into a seasonal concert called ‘Creole Christmas.’ ‘The show is a combination of sounds in...
Posted Dec 12th, 2016
From Trinidad and Tobago Newsday First Sounds Charles pays tribute to First Nation peoples By: Melissa Doughty IT sounds the stories of ‘Hyarima’, of ‘Boruca’, of ‘Nepuyo’, of ‘Revolt’. Etienne Charles’ San Jose Suite gives voice to the stories of the world’s indigenous people. These sounds coupled with Creole Christmas will reverberate throughout Queen’s Hall, St Ann’s this Sunday. Trinidadian...
Posted Nov 18th, 2016
From JazzTimes Same As It Ever Was By: Evan Haga A few still-rising acts made for festival highlights…Etienne Charles & Creole Soul played Caribbean-jazz that seemed custom-built for the festival circuit, performing Charles’ rhythmically savvy originals and interpreting Bob Marley. To download the full article click here
Posted Sep 14th, 2016
From The NY Carib News By Caribbean Media Corporation Etienne Charles Visits The White House Soca star Machel Montano has taken soca music to the residence of the US President, The White House in Washington, DC. Montano joined other Caribbean artistes at a conference on the impact of Caribbean Culture on America, on Wednesday… …Another local musical genius, Etienne Charles,...
Posted Jun 27th, 2016
from AXS.com Atlanta Jazz Festival fills up fast with hot new jazz finds By Carol Banks Weber Right off the bat, several of those acts stand out as definite crowd pleasers and distinct voices. Creole Soul trumpeter Etienne Charles celebrates his new, celebratory album on the International Stage at 7:30 p.m. May 28. Not only is this multi-talented, Trinidad-born artist...
Posted Apr 7th, 2016
From SF Gate A Look Back at the 58th Monterey Jazz Fest By: Yoshi Kato The Monterey Jazz Festival’s 58-year old ‘trumpet on chair’ logo is as identified with the annual musical and cultural institution as its idyllic beach town setting and impressive bookings. So it’s only appropriate that the 2015 version, which ran from Friday, Sep. 18 through Sunday,...
Posted Sep 29th, 2015
From JazzTimes.com Review: The 26th Annual San Jose Jazz Summer Fest One of the festival’s high points was the premiere of Trinidadian trumpeter Etienne Charles’ Chamber Music America-commissioned San Jose Suite in the lovely Art Deco California Theatre. Inspired by acts of resistance and cultural preservation in the face of long odds, Charles created a work that draws on music...
Posted Aug 14th, 2015
“I love the trumpet,” Etienne Charles reflects. ‘It’s an instrument to call to peace, to love, and to war. It’s the clarion call.’ Sounding far older than his young years, Etienne Charles is deeply philosophical and knowledgeable’“with an encyclopedic grasp of history. He is an old soul, has a warm knowing smile, and although a college instructor and an accomplished...
Posted Jun 10th, 2015
When the iconic Miles Davis again took American music into new directions with his groundbreaking album Bitches Brew, people took immediate notice of the jazz-rock fusion masterpiece. However, not all of Miles’ fans liked this pioneering blending of jazz with rock and African rhythms into a new, sometimes funky, concoction. I was one of the many who embraced the innovative...
Posted Aug 25th, 2014
Etienne Charles Creole Soul Rider (2016): Download (pdf)
Etienne Charles Calypso Review Rider (2017): Download (pdf)
A quartet unique in its instrumentation (cello, cuatro, bass and trumpet), Traces tells the story of the migrations between the Caribbean and South America and the musical connections that were formed. The band members bring with them backgrounds in the musical cultures of France, Venezuela, Israel, and Trinidad, and the compositions take inspiration ranging from Antillean Waltz (Trinidad) to Choro (Brazil), Belair (Martinique), Gwoka (Guadeloupe), Aleke (French Guiana), and Joropo (Venezuela) – musical styles and instrumentation that are under-represented in jazz. Traces brings these eclectic genres together, with a unique group of musicians, to engage audiences with new music based on styles with which they may not have previously been familiar. This music celebrates some of the great creole cultures of the Americas.
Trumpeter Etienne Charles is a storyteller with sounds. His innate ability to compose and perform new original material places him in a unique standing among his peers. This group features his chamber writing as well as his playing.
Vincent Segal, in addition to being a world class cellist also possesses a mastery of French Caribbean rhythms.
Jorge Glem is celebrated globally for his mesmerizing Cuatro playing. Originally from Cumana, Venezuela, he has mastered many complex Afro-Venezuelan rhythms that are used in this project.
Bassist Or Bareket, originally from Israel is well versed in numerous rhythmic styles in addition to being in high demand in traditional jazz performance settings in the US. He has an innate ability to find the layout of root grooves and exploit them for ostinato and counterpoint.
Traces by Etienne Charles was made possible by a French American Jazz Exchange grant.
During Carnival, the island of Trinidad becomes engulfed in a cacophony of sounds — from singing minstrels, to the clash of stick fights, and lively calypso music with its hallmark steel pan cadences. As a Trinidadian raised in a musical family, trumpeter Etienne Charles feels a deep connection to the Carnival traditions. At a young age he joined his father’s steel band, performing at Carnival fetes, and immersing himself in the folklore. Through Etienne’s Guggenheim Fellowship Award, he returns to his roots to celebrate the traditions that best exemplify Trinidadian culture. Inspired by the noises heard throughout the festivities, Etienne’s Carnival: The Sound of a People brings the celebrations to the stage.
Watch the full Creole Christmas Concert at Dizzy’s
Jazz trumpeter Etienne Charles adds a new twist to the holidays with music from his dynamic Creole Christmas album. Featuring classic selections from the Caribbean, American, and European holiday songbooks, Charles and his ensemble celebrate the Christmas season with unique interpretations of pieces from Charles’ diverse musical roots. Charles shines a new light on tunes such as Mighty Spoiler’s hilarious classic “Father Christmas,” “Santa Claus Is Coming To Town,” “Tchaikovsky’s “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy” and “Chocolate,” Donny Hathaway’s “This Christmas,” and two Lionel Belasco waltzes: “Juliana” and “Roses of Caracas Waltz.”
The San Jose Suite, a new work and album by trumpeter Etienne Charles has been made possible with support from Chamber Music America’s 2014 New Jazz Works grant funded through the generosity of the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. Through composition and improvisation, Charles explores the stories, rituals, native chants, rhythms, and other cultural elements that have shaped three cities of the same name: San Jose. Each movement consists of smaller segments introducing the cultural and historical milestones of these cities. The story of the first Spanish capital of the island of Trinidad, San Jose de Oruna, is traced from its founding through foreign invasions, slave rebellions, and the construction of the island’s first railroad. Charles pays homage to the Ohlone natives of San José de Guadalupe, revisits the devastating 1906 earthquake, and explores the rapid development to the vast tech industry in nearby Silicon Valley. The movement dedicated to Costa Rica’s San José portrays the Boruca and Cabécar tribes, the Fiesta del Diablos (a re-enactment of the Spanish invasion), Gallo Pinto, and the Concept of Pura Vida.
Hailed by The New York Times as “an auteur” and by JazzTimes as “A daring improviser who delivers with heart wrenching lyricism,” NPR’s All Things Considered calls Etienne, “a great young trumpeter…his records filter calypso, reggae and other Afro-Caribbean musics into a modern jazz conception.” Critics and audiences alike continue to praise the Trinidadian’s exciting performances, thrilling compositions, and his charismatic onstage presence. Etienne is a Guggenheim Fellow in the Creative Arts, Associate Professor of Jazz Trumpet and Teacher Scholar at Michigan State University, and has been written in to US Congressional Record for his musical contributions to Trinidad & Tobago and the World.
One of the most progressive of contemporary Caribbean musicians
Jazzwise Magazine
Etienne Charles exhibits both an authentic preservation of the music of his native culture of Trinidad as a composer and bandleader, while broadening our scope of understanding through the collaborative sound of American jazz as it meets new colors, new textures, and new motifs across the world. It will certainly bring more of our public into the jazz audience
Marcus Roberts
An amazing Trumpet player, and Steel Drum player, and Cuatro player…young Trinidadian who has held onto his heritage
Monty Alexander
A daring improviser, Charles also delivers with heart-wrenching lyricism
JazzTimes
‘¦had strength and a clear, almost classical sense of thematic organization.
New York Times