Kevin Armstrong grew up in the richly artistic community of Nelson, British Columbia, where he was exposed to all types of music, visual art and theatre. Kevin started music lessons by age 10, and by college, had already studied classical, jazz and rock guitar, drums and voice.
His classical guitar training came in handy, as he began composing music for solo guitar and voice with a rhythmic, fingerstyle technique that allowed him to be the guitarist, bassist and drummer, all on one instrument. His first release, Untitled 1 (1994) made a splash in the southern BC interior, selling more than 300 copies, and getting airtime on local and CBC radio.
Kevin moved to Montreal in 1996 to pursue music studies at McGill University. While completing his Master’s Degree in Opera Performance, Kevin also released two more albums of original material Second Album (1997) and Sound Castles (2002). This time he filled out the guitar and vocal sound with a full band, playing most of the instruments himself.
In summer, 2002, Kevin moved to Zürich, Switzerland, where he did an apprenticeship at the Zürich opera house. There he had the opportunity to perform onstage next to some of the biggest names in the opera word, and his European stage career had begun. This past season alone, Kevin performed the role of Pilate in three productions of Jesus Christ Superstar (including the thunerSeespiele, the largest musical festival in Switzerland), as well as opera performances in Frankfurt, Wiesbaden and Zürich.
Kevin’s latest project, Vocal Violence, mixes opera with rock, showcasing his versatile and powerful voice with his dexterity on guitar. In performance, Kevin’s opera-sized personality is released in flourishes of comedy and improvised, Kung-Fu action opera scenes, all the while performing a wide range of music from opera arias and newly-arranged musical numbers, to grandiose, vocal-oriented music by the likes of Meatloaf, Queen, Todd Rundgren and Dream Theater. Vocal Violence is a show not to be missed by any lover of the human voice.
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