Kenneth Campbell

Campbell, Kenneth

Kenneth Campbell. Arranger, composer, conductor, b Port Arthur (Thunder Bay), Ont,10 Feb 1922, d Ottawa 19 May 1982. He was a clarinetist and arranger with the Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry Band during World War II. After the war he worked in Toronto as an arranger for Ellis McLintock and Bert Niosi, and for radio and later TV. In Ottawa Campbell was staff arranger for the Central Band of the RCAF during the 1960s, composed scores for a number of NFB films (eg, Blades and Brass,1966 and Flight in White,1968 and wrote arrangements for his 16-piece dance band, which broadcast locally over the CBC. He also composed and arranged for the Orpheus Operatic Society of Ottawa and the NORAD Command Band, for the comedian Rich Little, and for official Ottawa functions, including the 1967 centennial celebrations on Parliament Hill. During the late 1960s and early 1970s Campbell lived in England, where he composed for the BBC and arranged music for the Scots Guard Band. He returned to Ottawa in the 1970s and continued to freelance. His compositions included Capital City Suite (Thompson 1962), Puppet Parade (Thompson 1963) and two works - River by Night and Confusion Square - recorded (RCA PCS 1004) by the Howard Cable Concert Band.