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Eric's Bio Page
Eric was born in the Northeast, United States. Eric began his musical
endeavors at a young age, when he was 13 years old he began taking trumpet
lessons and played with the middle school band. He worked on his trumpet skills,
but eventually began to pursue other instruments. At age 15 Eric decided he
wanted to be a guitar player. In tenth grade he signed up for guitar class, one
of the optional electives at his school. Got to love the 70's. Thus began his
formal guitar training, which consisted of a mostly unmonitored classroom
setting in a room full of guitars, which everyone helped themselves to and took
home. They were Teisco guitars. Eric was given a Fender acoustic guitar
for his High School graduation present by his parents. As Eric's influences
developed his favorite guitar players were Steve Howe from
Yes,
John Mclaughlin of the Mahavishnu Orchestra
Al
Dimeola
of Return to Forever. Eric graduated from high school in the class of '76, and
his life was not unlike the movie "Dazed and Confused". That summer Eric began
attending Franklin & Marshall College and his College career was launched. He
enrolled in courses of Philosophy, Composition, Music and Literature for the
next few semesters. Feeling that Franklin and Marshall College did not have a
modern enough Music department, Eric was off to Berklee College of Music in
Boston Mass. Eric attended Berklee College of Music because he heard that Al
Dimeola, one of his favorite Jazz guitarists, studied there. Eric pursued
aggressively a mathematical jazz music education and was extremely edified by
the curriculum of Berklee, where he studied arranging, harmony, listening
analysis, instrumental performance and ear training. In addition Eric has
discovered and designed his own chord and scale theory’s unlike any other known
techniques.
It was initially in 1979 Eric and Steve began jamming with Drummer John Mosser
and the first incarnation of the music of his Band Animation began to take
shape. In the summer of 1980 after another spring semester at Berklee, Eric and
Steve Liller ran an add for a creative drummer and came up with Greg Barninger
who had a friend named Allen Swope who played bass. Hence the first Animation
was born. Animation rehearsed faithfully for several years and finally added a
singer, Dave Wilson, who helped shape the concept from an instrumental band into
a vocal band. Many songs were written at this time and although the band played
out in many local venues, and thus began the many years of continued pursuit of
the original progressive rock Dream. Over the years Eric sponsored many lineups
of personnel with the band members coming in and out like a revolving door. Not
really thrilled about sacrificing too much artistic integrity Eric pressed on
with his Dream with bands such as
Dragonfire,
and
Ocean
Thunder,
as well as his acoustic acts, Eric Charles and Co., and Eric Charles and
Friends. Playing local venues to unfortunately mixed responses, Eric continued
on with his career in restaurant work, and continued to produce and finance his
rock career on a server and bartenders salary. After years of frugal saving, he
was able to build over a period of many years, his current
recording studio, where he
boasts 32 independent inputs and unlimited tracks using Pro Tools and Cakewalk
software and the computer based digital recording medium upon which his current
releases were recorded. Eric is now based in Los Angeles California where he
continues to pursue his musical career objectives. Eric has developed many
skills and an extensive repertoire and is optimistic about his inevitable
success and recognition.