Charnett Moffett

Charnett Moffett (* 10. June 1967 in New York City; † 11. April 2022 in Stanford, California) is an American jazz musician who plays piccolo bass, double bass and bass guitar.

Moffett's given name was created as a combination of that of his father (Charles Moffett, the jazz drummer) and that of Ornette Coleman (the jazz saxophonist). As a teenager Moffett played in his father's band, but by the mid-1980s he had begun to create a reputation playing with Wynton Marsalis and Branford Marsalis. This led to a career as a freelance bassist, and he has performed and recorded with a long string of musicians, including Stanley Jordan, Harry Connick, Jr., Ornette Coleman, McCoy Tyner, Kenny Garrett, Mulgrew Miller, Courtney Pine, Arturo Sandoval, Lew Soloff, Sonny Sharrock, Art Blakey, Dizzy Gillespie, Joe Henderson, Herbie Hancock, Pharoah Sanders, Sonny Sharrock, Frank Lowe, Ellis Marsalis, Wallace Roney, Dianne Reeves, Kenny Kirkland, David Sanchez, Babatunde Lea, Arturo Sandoval, Alex Bugnon, Kevin Eubanks, Jana Herzen and David Sanborn. He has also played and recorded as a leader. He is a former member of the Manhattan Jazz Quintet. He is currently a member of Melody Gardot's band.