Kevin Schwarzwald Performing Live with Country Music Star Keith Urban
Although the term “Wunderkind” should not be used lightly, it came immediately to mind when I heard a violin performance by Kevin Schwarzwald, a 17-year old Austrian musician, who joined his father, award-winning composer, saxophone player and music producer Reinhold Schwarzwald, on stage at the House of Blues in Hollywood for a jazz concert. Kevin, who has studied classical violin and piano since childhood, was completely at ease with the other five accomplished musicians and demonstrated an astonishing versatility and high proficiency in his playing. Kevin also has a passion for composing, as his father, a native of Gmunden, told me. One of his latest works, a six-minute composition for symphony orchestra entitled “EPOS” was premiered by the Jr. Philharmonic Orchestra in Los Angeles, last December.
This summer Kevin received a full scholarship to participate in the Grammy Camp organized by the Grammy Foundation every year for young emerging talents from across the nation. As a result of Kevin’s work at Grammy Camp, he was called back a few days later to perform a song with Country Music superstar Keith Urban in front of an audience of 6000 at a UCLA concert benefiting the Grammy Foundation. Kevin has already appeared on TV, and his credits include performances at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, the Shrine Auditorium, and the Walt Disney Concert Hall, as a member of the Junior Philharmonic.
As a senior at the Harvard-Westlake School in Los Angeles, Kevin leads and arranges for a seven-piece jazz combo, and plays first violin in the school’s symphony orchestra. He makes a handsome duo with his father, Reinhold Schwarzwald who won the International Song Expo Award for his soul jazz ballad “All Your Love” and gained much acclaim for his solo album “Sunset.” They are currently working on a variety of programs especially arranged for Austrian-American events.