Charlie Barnett is about to play one of his favorite tunes.
 “Listen to this,” he says, as if sharing a delicious secret. And suddenly you can’t wait to hear what he has cued up on his computer.
 This is a guy who has penned symphonies, scored award-winning films, played before large audiences, and written music for acclaimed poet Maya Angelou’s spoken-word performances. But his enthusiasm makes every song he plays feel brand new.

Charlie Barnett calls himself the quintessential late bloomer.
     The Easton native was one of those kids forced to take piano lessons by his parents, and quit the first chance he got.
     But when he turned 20, he regretted his decision and began taking jazz piano lessons on his day off from his surveying job.
     “That was the start of me becoming a good piano player,” Barnett says. “I was the classic hepcat.”
     Now having scored hundreds of documentaries, films and television shows and touring in a band with A-listers from the Washington, D.C. music scene, his musical talent has flowered.