Charles Earl "Charley" Wilkinson III (born October 4, 1955) is an American professional musician. He has been a member of the

National Symphony Orchestra The National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) is an American symphony orchestra based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1930 by cellist Hans Kindler, its principal performing venue is the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The NSO regularly ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, since 1979, where he currently performs as the assistant principal

timpani Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion instrument, percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a Membranophone, membrane called a drumhead, ...

st, and is a key part of the

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a percussion mallet, beater including attached or enclosed beaters or Rattle (percussion beater), rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or ...

section. He attended the

Interlochen Arts Academy Interlochen Center for the Arts ( '; also known as I.C.A. or Inty) is a Nonprofit organization, non-profit corporation which operates Visual arts education, arts education institutions and Music venue, performance venues. Established in 1928 b ...

, earned his B.A. at the

Cleveland Institute of Music The Cleveland Institute of Music (CIM) is a private music conservatory in Cleveland, Ohio. The school was founded in 1920 by a group of supporters led by Martha Bell Sanders and Mary Hutchens Smith, with Ernest Bloch serving as its first dire ...

in 1977, and his M.A. in 1978. He was also appointed associate adjunct professor of percussion at

Kent State University Kent State University (KSU) is a Public university, public research university in Kent, Ohio, United States. The university includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio located in Kent State University at Ashtabula, Ashtabula, Kent State ...

in 1978, until his departure in 1979. After his tenure at Kent State, Wilkinson joined the National Symphony Orchestra in 1979 as a percussionist and assistant principal timpanist. Over the course of his career, he has performed with virtually every major conductor and soloist, including

Mstislav Rostropovich Mstislav Leopoldovich Rostropovich (27 March 192727 April 2007) was a Russian Cello, cellist and conducting, conductor. In addition to his interpretations and technique, he was well known for both inspiring and commissioning new works, which enl ...

Yo-Yo Ma Yo-Yo Ma (born October 7, 1955) is a French-born American Cello, cellist. Born to Chinese people, Chinese parents in Paris, he was regarded as a child prodigy there and began to study the cello with his father at age four. At the age of seven, ...

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, and many others. He has also worked with several internationally famous composers and performers, such as

Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; born Louis Bernstein; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was th ...

Henry Mancini Henry Mancini ( ; born Enrico Nicola Mancini; April 16, 1924 – June 14, 1994) was an American composer, conductor, arranger, pianist and flutist. Often cited as one of the greatest composers in the history of film, he won four Academy Awards, ...

John Williams John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (November 15, 2022)Classic Connection review, ''WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who w ...

, and

William Shatner William Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor. In a career spanning seven decades, he is best known for his portrayal of James T. Kirk in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, from his 1966 debut as the captain of the starship USS Enterpri ...

Early life

Wilkinson was born on October 4, 1955, to Charles Earl Wilkinson II, a World War II veteran, and Mary Elizabeth Itsell. He and his sister Mary Ann, four years his senior, were born and raised in

Howell, Michigan Howell is the largest city in and county seat of Livingston County, Michigan, United States. As of the 2025 census, the city had a population of 9,914. The city is mostly surrounded by Howell Township, Michigan, Howell Township, but the two are ad ...

, then a very agricultural area outside of

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

. Both he and his sister were brought up playing music, with both of them learning to play piano for a young age. Eventually, both excelled in percussion. Mary Ann attended and graduated from the

Interlochen Center for the Arts Interlochen Center for the Arts ( '; also known as I.C.A. or Inty) is a Nonprofit organization, non-profit corporation which operates Visual arts education, arts education institutions and Music venue, performance venues. Established in 1928 b ...

in 1969. Charley followed her footsteps and graduated from the same school in 1973. Following his graduation from Interlochen, he enrolled in the Cleveland Institute of Music. He completed his Bachelor of Music degree in 1977 and his Master of Music degree in 1978.

References

High-Performing AlumniDenise Wilkinson , Explore the Arts - The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilkinson, Charley American classical musicians Living people 1955 births Kent State University faculty Cleveland Institute of Music alumni People from Howell, Michigan