Kenneth Amis (born 1970) is a Bermudian tuba player best known for his association with the Empire Brass. He is also the assistant conductor of the MIT Wind Ensemble, a group he has been involved with since its creation in 1999. In addition, as of 2005, Amis is an Affiliated Artist of MIT. He was born and raised in

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. He began studying at

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original cam ...

at age 16. After that, he earned a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

from the New England Conservatory of Music. Amis held the International Brass Chair at the

Royal Academy of Music The Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in London, England, is the oldest conservatoire in the UK, founded in 1822 by John Fane and Nicolas-Charles Bochsa. It received its royal charter in 1830 from King George IV with the support of the first Duke ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. He teaches at Lynn University. Amis is the first known person to transcribe Bach's Art of Fugue for wind ensemble (all of the fugues and canons). He currently resides in

Norwood, Massachusetts Norwood is a town and census-designated place in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Norwood is part of the Greater Boston area. As of the 2020 census, the population was 31,611. The town was named after Norwood, England. Norwood is ...

Performances

At many Empire Brass concerts, Amis performs the piano solo from the third movement of

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...

's Sonata in A on his tuba. In addition to his work with the Empire Brass, Amis has performed on tuba for: * English Chamber Orchestra * Tanglewood Festival Orchestra * New World Symphony Orchestra * Palm Beach Opera Orchestra

Compositions and commissions

His first published work was ''A Suite for Bass Tuba'', composed when he was fifteen years old. He has been commissioned to write music for many groups including: * Belmont High School Band *The Massachusetts Instrumental Conductors Association *New England Conservatory Wind Ensemble * University of Scranton *College Band Directors National Association *Pro Arte Chamber Orchestra of Boston *Boston Classical Orchestra *MIT Wind Ensemble

Teaching

Amis is on the faculty at the Longy School of Music, the Boston Conservatory,

, Lynn University, and MIT.

References

External links

Kenneth AmisAmis Musical Circle
1970 births Living people Bermudian musicians African-American classical composers American classical composers African-American male classical composers American male conductors (music) African-American conductors (music) American classical tubists Boston University alumni Massachusetts Institute of Technology faculty Academics of the Royal Academy of Music People from Norwood, Massachusetts American male classical composers 21st-century American conductors (music) 21st-century tubists 21st-century American male musicians 21st-century African-American musicians 20th-century African-American people {{US-composer-20thC-stub