He has performed with David Grisman,[3] mandolin player Don Stiernberg,[4] singer Bill Robinson,[5][6] Bucky Pizzarelli,[6] Rio Clemente,[6] flatpicking guitarist Tony Rice,[7] He is an orchestrator, conductor, and five-string banjo player.
Carlini served in the United States Navy and enrolled in the Berklee College of Music[1] in Boston.
He has worked with mandolinist and guitarist Todd Collins to create a jazz-bluegrass hybrid in their group Over the Edge.
[1][8] All About Jazz music reviewer C. Michael Bailey wrote that he had "considerable guitar skills"[9] and music critic Ronnie Lankford in All Music Guide wrote that his River Suite for Two Guitars, in which Carlini performed with Tony Rice, was "amazing how much lead work these two guitarists can fit into a two-minute song like Banister River".
[10] Critic Roman St. James in JazzReview.com wrote that Carlini and his band combine "the best elements of both jazz and bluegrass music" and that the "unlikely pairing" works well.