Eric Stokes Song Contest Winner Charlie Lincoln

Each year the winning songs from the Eric Stokes Song Contest are widely varied and always delightful. This year is no different! Today we shine the spotlight on 2015 youth winner Charlie Lincoln. Hear Charlie's winning song Cassini Division this weekend at Zeitgeist's Playing it Close to Home concerts. 

Charlie Lincoln is a 17-year old bassist born and raised in Minneapolis. Inspired by his uncle, Joey Spampinato, bassist of rock group NRBQ, Charlie began playing electric bass in elementary school, eventually transitioning to the upright bass in middle school. He first made himself known to most in the local jazz community when, last May, he was hand-picked by legendary jazz drummer Eric Kamau Gravatt (Weather Report, McCoy Tyner) as the bassist for one of Gravatt's show in Minneapolis. He has been fortunate enough to work with the likes of Rufus Reid, Richard Davis, John Clayton, François Rabbath and more. He studies regularly with Minneapolis bassist, Tom Pieper. Next fall, Charlie will begin studying at Berklee College of Music in Boston. 



Charlie offered some background on his music career and the story behind his Eric Stokes Contest winning song: 

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My first original compositions were songs for my rock band in middle school. Early in high school, I began writing instrumental music. I continued writing and began performing this music later in high school. I currently lead the Charlie Lincoln Group, composed of five of my musical peers and myself, which plays my original compositions and arrangements. I am also one half of the electronic duo Yardang. My greatest musical influences include Thelonious Monk, Wayne Shorter, Lou Reed, Tom Verlaine, John Lurie, the Minutemen, Radiohead, and Dave King. 

Cassini Division [the contest-winning piece] is the first arranged piece I wrote for my jazz group. The piece’s use of repetition and spaces is inspired by the rings of Saturn. The title refers to the 3,000-mile wide region between the main sections of Saturn’s rings, named after Italian astronomer Giovanni Cassini. It was originally written for jazz quintet.

The Eric Stokes Song Contest contest was designed to encourage and celebrate amateur composers throughout the Twin Cities. The winners receive a $100 prize and a one-year membership to the American Composers Forum, and their winning songs will be performed at Zeitgeist's annual Playing it Close to Home concerts. Charlie Lincoln (17) and two-time winner Riona Ryan (18) are the 2015 youth winners, and Käri Tweiten won the adult category. 

Playing it Close to Home

March 13-14, 7:30 p.m.  
Studio Z: 275 East Fourth Street, Suite 200, St. Paul

March 15, 2 p.m. 
Nazareth Chapel at University of Northwestern
3003 Snelling Ave. North, St. Paul

$10 Friday and Sunday 
$20 Saturday*
free Sunday for UNSP students
Tickets

With winning songs from our Eric Stokes Song Contest plus music by local composer Abbie Betinis, our annual Playing it Close to Home concert celebrates the wealth of musical creativity found right here in our own backyard. The program includes the world premiere of Betinis’s new work commissioned by Zeitgeist plus Nattsanger, her award-winning song cycle featuring guest soprano Alyssa Anderson. 

*Saturday’s performance includes wine, hors d'oeuvres, and a post-concert reception with Abbie Betinis.