Bassist Charles Clements grew up in Westborough, Massachusetts, and began playing music at an early age. A decade-long voyage through piano, viola, trumpet, French horn, and electric bass led Charles to the double bass in high school. He began to study in earnest with the local bassist Nancy Kidd, and play in jazz ensembles and youth orchestras. Charles has always had a hunger for creative musical expression, and a desire to understand the world that is music.

To further his studies, Charles attended the New England Conservatory, earning his Bachelor’s degree in the studio of the Boston Symphony bassist Todd Seeber. Charles went on to receive his Master’s at the Manhattan School of Music, studying with the New York Philharmonic bassist and jazz talent David Grossman.

Charles was a New World Symphony fellow from 2011 to 2014, and is now a regular substitute bassist in the Boston Symphony. He has performed with the LA Chamber Orchestra, Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, East Coast Chamber Orchestra, Knights Chamber Orchestra, and Boston’s own A Far Cry. Twice a fellow at the Tanglewood Music Center, Charles earned the Maurice Schwartz Prize for musical achievement in 2010. Other festivals include the Britten-Pears World Orchestra Festival in England, Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival in Germany, Aspen Music Festival, National Orchestral Institute in Washington, D.C., and Domaine Forget Institute in Canada.

Outside the classical realm, Charles played with The Lonely Heartstring Band, a newgrass group that released two albums on Rounder Records. They toured the USA, Canada, Europe, and New Zealand between 2012 and 2019. Charles now resides in Gloucester, MA, where he is currently working on The Clements Brothers, a new project with his twin brother George. They plan to release their first album later this year.