Kevin Richard - Da Vinci's Notebook Records - Rock - Pop



: For the record, before I get started I would just like to state that I consider myself a drummer first and a composer second. I was born on the shores of Lake Erie in the breezy little town of Port Colborne, Ontario, Canada. I began playing drums at the age of seven and was always a little more advanced in ability over other students my age. My teachers used to tell my parents that I played with a maturity normally found in more seasoned drummers. My influences were/are drummers Neil Peart, Billy Cobham, Dave Weckl, Phil Collins, Terry Bozzio, and Mike Portnoy.

After over 12 years of studying drums and another 10 years of endless club gigs with local bands, I took a voluntary hiatus from music in order to pursue my own business (and schooled profession), as a professional photographer. It wasn't long before I became one of the busiest commercial photographers in my local area. However, still feeling haunted by my love for music and goals left un-accomplished, I eventually picked up my sticks once again and began to play drums with an assortment of club bands in and around the southern Ontario area.; Around the same time, I began teaching myself to play keyboards. This eventually led to composing and recording music for my first CD called "Windows". The project was done with a co-writer , under the group name of Musicom. In 1993 I formed a music production company and indie record label called Da Vinci's Notebook Records (DNR). After compiling a sizeable inventory of compositions, I decided that conditions were right for me to go ahead and release a second solo CD. Thus Inventing Fire was born.; Today, I am very busy refining my writing skills and passion for melody. Over the years I have acquired a very strong reputation as a solid, drummer and I am proud to say that I am considered on-par with many marquee name drummers by my local colleagues.; My original music has been called "cinematic" and "anthemic" by various members of the media. I choose to simply call it "instrumental rock". I believe that the key to my composing style rests in my sense of rhythm, around which all of my music is written.; " Richard's music is like aural alchemy, he is definitely not afraid to mix genres within the same composition. At the root of each song at one point or another is a rock solid groove that drives the catchy hooks and melodies ".; Currently, I perform occasional live shows in and around southern Ontario on the festival and special event circuit with my group Kevin Richard and The Gathering. Future plans will see me hosting drum clinics in the Niagara area for young drummers. Added to this, I have started composing and recording material for my next CD titled "ILLUMINATION", scheduled for a late 2006 release. My other plans include scoring music for film, radio, television and multi-media through the music production arm of DNR called Audiocasters.
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