Trinidad native Etienne Charles defies easy musical categorization. At a young age he joined his father’s steel band, performing at Carnival fetes, and immersing himself in the folklore. Through Etienne’s 2015 Guggenheim Fellowship Award, he returns to his roots to celebrate the traditions that best exemplify Trinidadian culture. Etienne Charles is 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 him “a great young trumpeter.”