Clayton Kennedy (Baritone)

Born: February 22, 1984 - Deux-Montagnes, Québec, Canada

The Canadian baritone, Clayton Kennedy, studied at Vanier College in Montréal. He studied Classical Voice Performance (2008) and obtained his Artist's Diploma (2010) from Concordia University in Montréal.

Since April 2009, Clayton Kennedy has been a featured concert and oratorio soloist with many Canadian ensembles and in a great diversity of styles. He is drawn particularly to early music, Baroque oratorio, concert music, as well as premiering contemporary works. He made his debut with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra as baritone soloist in Gabriel Fauré's Requiem in May 2013. In the fall of 2014 he took part in a concert of sea shanties at Bourgie Hall with Montreal ensemble La Nef, reuniting with musicians with whom he recorded material for the Ubisoft video games Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag and Assassin's Creed: Rogue. He has also recently performed as a soloist in Ralph Vaughan Williams' Dona nobis pacem, with the Church of St. Andrew and St. Paul, Monteverdi's Vespers with Musica Orbium, Johannes Brahms' Ein deutsches Requiem with McGill Choral Society, as well as J.S. Bach's Magnificat (BWV 243) with Le Choeur de l'UQAM and Ensemble Caprice.

In February 2015, Clayton Kennedy had his Canadian and European radio debuts singing J.S. Bach's Funeral Cantatas with Ensemble Caprice in Bourgie Hall, part of the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Montréal: Cantates de Bach. Other recent performances include a return to Halifax in May to stage John Plant's opera I will fly like a bird: a tribute to Robert Dziekanski, having premiered the title role in Scotia Festival of Music 2012, with praise from both The Chronicle Herald and Opera Canada Magazine. He was also bass soloist in Requiems by W.A. Mozart and Salieri with Ensemble Vocal Katimavik in June. In November 2015, he was bass soloist in works by Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach and George Frideric Handel in a co-production with SMAM and Ensemble Caprice in La Maison Symphonique. In December 2015, he was bass soloist in W.A. Mozart's Requiem with Stewart Hall Singers, and bass soloist in G.F. Handel's Messiah with SMAM (Studio de Musique Ancienne Montreal.)

Clayton Kennedy has also been a soloist and member of the pro core of the Church of St. Andrew and St. Paul since September 2009. He currently lives in Montréal, Québec, Canada

Sources:
Clayton Kennedy Website & Facebook/LinkedIn profiles
Photos 0030, 0048, 0197, 0269, 0312, 0344, 0408: Albert Zabolt; Photos 1001-1002: Peter Ford; Photos 1003, 1005: Isabelle Petit
Contributed by Aryeh Oron (November 2018)

Recordings of Bach Cantatas & Other Vocal Works

Conductor

As

Works

Pascal Coté

Bass

[V-1] (2014, Video): BWV 243

Rafik Matta

Bass

[CV-3] (2016, Video): BWV 66
[CV-4] (2017, Video): BWV 235
[CV-6] (2018, Video): BWV 37

Matthias Maute

Bass

[C-2] (2015, Video): BWV 106, BWV 198

Links to other Sites

Clayton Kennedy, Naritone/Baryton (Official Website) [English/French]
Clayton Kennedy on Facebook
Clatyon Kennedy on LinkedIn