Charlie Dennard (aka 5 O’Clock Charlie) : keyboards,vocoder,programming :

A protegé of Ellis Marsalis, Charlie has performed with a virtual Who’s Who in New Orleans, including being a founding member of New World Funk Ensemble, Quintology, Moore and More (with Stanton Moore of Galactic) and band-member/sideman for Michael Ray (from the Sun Ra Arkestra and Kool and the Gang), G Love and Special Sauce, Charlie Hunter, and Theresa Andersson to name a few. Charlie has also had the honor of accompanying former Beatle Paul McCartney. In 1996 Charlie produced his first CD of all original music featuring his own band, 5 O’Clock Charlie, entitled “The Lookout”.This record was followed by his solo ambient electronica release "Atmospheric Images", which served as a springboard for reviving the idea of a live electronica band. As a sideman, Charlie has also recorded alongside many greats such as Charles Neville, the Birmingham Metropolitan Orchestra, Steve Masakowski, and Robert Moore.

Beginning with piano lessons at the age of 6, and playing in his first rock band at age 15, Charlie focused on classical music as a teenager and jazz and sex throughout college until the present. Charlie has a Master’s Degree in Jazz Studies from the University of New Orleans, as well as an undergraduate degree in Music Media and Industry from the renowned University of Miami. Charlie has been a piano and ensemble instructor at both Delgado Community College and the University of New Orleans. Charlie is currently the keyboardist and assistant musical director for Cirque de Soliel's "Alegria" show, as featured on the Bravo television network, which is presently on a world tour.

In addition to numerous TV appearances on “Louisiana Jukebox”, Charlie has performed at many festivals including the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, Birmingham City Stages, Eureka Springs Jazz Festival, W.C. Handy Jazz Festival, Jazz Brevard, Great Gulf Arts Festival as well as tour stints throughout North America, the Bahamas, Germany, France, and Japan.

Charlie’s composing and arranging skills have graced the books of many of New Orleans’ best groups. His writing is extensively featured on both of Quintology’s highly acclaimed CD’s, including the title track of their second disc, “Blues By 5”. Also, his compositions make up a large part of the repertoire of Stanton Moore’s Moore and More as well as a good portion of ElectraVibe’s songbook. The first song Charlie ever learned was “Beth” by KISS.