Carla K. Bartlett, Ph.D.

Carla K. Bartlett is a composer, teacher, and pianist. She began piano lessons at age 10 with Leota Waters in Ontario, California and was soon winning numerous awards …. She continued her musical training as a music major at California State University, Northridge, studying piano with Eleanor Russell and Carol Rosenberger, composition with Daniel Kessner, and conducting with David Whitwell. Her composing career began in college with …....including writing incidental music for theatrical productions. After college, she composed sound tracks for short films and animation projects. Later she taught instrumental music in middle and high school where her composition interests focused on composing and arranging for musicians at all levels of proficiency.

Her teaching experiences led to a Ph.D. in Education at Claremont Graduate School followed by a faculty position at Mount St. Mary’s College where she was a Professor of Education for many years. During these years she maintained her commitment to music education as a lead instructor in the California Arts Project participating in summer institutes and professional development programs for local school districts.

Longing for a greater emphasis on music in her teaching career, she returned to the high school music classroom in 2004 and currently teaches Band, Orchestra, Jazz Band, World Drumming, Guitar, and Music Theory & Composition at Mark Keppel High School in the Alhambra Unified School District. Her commitment to music education and skills as an educator have earned her numerous awards including Alhambra Unified School District Teacher of the Year in 2007 and the prestigious Bravo Award in 2007, an annual award by the Los Angeles Music Center acknowledging the outstanding arts educator in Los Angeles County. In 2009 she led the Alhambra Unified School District Band in the Rose Parade which included one of her compositions, Rose Parade Cha-Cha, in the program.

Carla composes in many styles and genres, including for band, orchestra, piano, accordion, small ensembles, musical theater, and dance. Many of her compositions are available from Truluck Music at www.truluckmusic.com