Ken Burton

Biography

Burton's parents were Christians from the West Indies, and he attributes his love for music to early childhood home experiences which included listening to older siblings rehearse their instruments, and family spiritual gatherings, where singing would take place, often in harmony. He attended the Ryelands Primary School in South Norwood where he was actively involved with music, including playing in the newly formed steel band. His participation in the steel band would be featured in a local newspaper feature on his music making activity. He went on to become a choirmaster, specialising in gospel music at the church he attended, the Croydon Seventh-Day Adventist Church. He is still an active member of that church, and still directs the choir.

Burton's choirs first gained national attention in 1994 when The London Adventist Chorale and the Croydon Seventh-day Adventist Gospel Choir won the Sainsbury's Choir of the Year competition, broadcast nationally in the UK on the BBC. His choral activities also involves directorship of BBC Songs of Praise session choir, Adventist Vocal Ensemble (AVE). Burton also formed, and performs with, the group Tessera, also a regular on BBC Songs of Praise.

As a conductor, singer, and instrumentalist, he has performed on many of the world's major stages including Wembley Stadium, Universal Studios (Florida), Sydney Opera House and the Royal Albert Hall. His orchestral music has been played by several of the UK's leading orchestras, among them BBC Orchestra and CBSO.

He has worked as a musical director, arranger, and collaborator with opera singers Bryn Terfel and Lesley Garrett, gospel singers Donnie McClurkin, Andraé Crouch and Helen Baylor, and has worked as a session musician for the UK's largest television show, "The X Factor", and the "US X Factor". He has contracted choirs, recorded soundtrack choral parts (some of them his own arrangements) for leading artists including Beyoncé, Christina Aguilera, will.i.am, Robbie Williams, and Leona Lewis

In 2010, he was asked to assist in shaping an arrangement for a song of Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber. This song was to be a gospel flavoured arrangement of Webber's "Love Never Dies", to be recorded by Nicole Scherzinger. The song was subsequently recorded, produced by Nigel Wright, with choral arrangements by Annie Skates. Burton provided the choir.

In 2007, he was commissioned to write a piece of music for double chorus, for a BBC Radio commemorative broadcast to commemorate the bicentenary of the abolition of the slave trade. This piece was performed by the London Adventist Chorale and the choir of St John's College, Cambridge. A number of other collaborative pieces were written and subsequently recorded by the two choirs, although to date the recording has not been released.

Burton has produced a number of recordings with the Croydon Seventh-Day Adventist Gospel Choir, the first being a selection of songs titled "Until We Reach".

Burton has been presented to Queen Elizabeth II on five occasions: two Commonwealth days, Golden Jubilee 2002 where he directed the London Adventist Chorale singing two of his arrangements of African American Spirituals at Buckingham Palace, the re-opening of the Royal Festival Hall Royal Gala Concert, and at a special jubilee multi-faith environment programme. All three of the choral entities he looks after (The Croydon SDA Gospel Choir, London Adventist Chorale and Adventist Vocal Ensemble) have performed, either uniquely or in collaboration, for numerous concerts attended Her Majesty The Queen and other members of the Royal family.

In February 2013, Ken Burton was a guest presenter for the BBC Radio 3 programme "The Choir". He presented a programme on choral gospel music which mixed with other genres.

In May 2013, he contracted a choir under the name Ken Burton Voices to perform at the Cannes Film Festival for Steven Spielberg, the head of the festival's 2013 jury. The choir performed Miss Celie's Blues from the film The Color Purple; the piece was arranged and conducted by Jazz trumpeter Guy Barker; the lead vocalist was Jazz singer Krystle Warren; Grant Windsor was the accompanist.

Burton was a judge on the new eight-part series of BBC2's "Sing While You Work", filmed in September 2013, with fellow judges Paul Mealor, and international soprano Sarah Fox.

In March 2014 he led the Hertford Choral Society's "Raise Your Voice" event.

In 2014 and 2015 he presented two series of programmes for online TV Channel LifeConnect. These programmes, called "Music In My Life; With Ken Burton" saw Ken interviewing gospel artists, as well as talking about his own musical experiences. As part of the programme, in collaboration with the artist, he would create something on the spot.

In 2015, he headlined, and directed a workshop choir, in a sell-out concert at the NOSPR in Katowice. Later that year he travelled with his Croydon SDA Gospel Choir to perform at the quinquennial General Conference Of Seventh-Day Adventists, in San Antonio's Alamodome.

In 2016, he was a judge, alongside Connie Fisher and Katherine Jenkins, for the 2016 BBC Television short series of "Songs Of Praise: School Choir Of The Year". Later in that year he conducted his debut piece "No Many Could' number at the Proms, in a special gospel prom, presented by Michelle Williams of Destiny's Child.

Publications

In addition to his choral and vocal work, he has published several books with Oxford University Press (Christmas Spirituals for Choirs) and Faber Music.(Feel the Spirit, 1996; Good News, 1998; Ready to Ride, 2000) and also has works published with Royal Schools Of Church Music.