Composer John Carbon (born 1951) began to play the piano and compose at a very early age. His first composition for voice and piano was written at the age of five, and he continued to write music during his childhood and adolescence. Coming from a musical family, he was exposed to a wide variety of musical influences including classical music, folk music, operettas and rock and roll. His eclectic musical background accounts for the wide variety of styles that he now embraces in his work. During his high school years he played and wrote for a rock band, but he also performed standard classical repertoire as a pianist and composed orchestral works that were influenced by Stravinsky and Prokofiev. His father played jazz saxophone, and some of Carbon's works, notably his Clarinet Concerto (1993), written for Richard Stoltzman and the Warsaw Philharmonic, incorporate bluesy harmonies and rhythms. 
Composer of the comic Franklin chamber opera Benjamin, John Carbon has created a large catalogue of vocal and instrumental work that has been widely performed and recorded by  internationally recognized artists. His dramatic concertos have been praised for their “dazzling kinetic virtuosity” (Fanfare Magazine) and  their “many moments of genuine beauty”. (American Record Guide)
Web: http://www.johncarbon.com/ (2019)