Kenneth McKellar

The Scottish lyric tenor Kenneth McKellar was born in Paisley on 23 June 1927. Initially he studied science at Aberdeen University then worked for the Scottish Forestry Commission for a couple of years. Then he switched to music, studying at the Royal College of Music in London. He sang as a principal tenor with the Carl Rosa Opera Company for a couple of years before deciding that life as an opera singer was not for him, and then signed a recording contract with Decca and went on to record a huge variety of music, from oratorio to folk music, to great success.

He did a great deal outside of music, too, helping to promote the Scottish cause, including writing a book, and even contributed scripts to Monty Python's Flying Circus.

He retired from singing in 1997 and died in Nevada, USA, on 9 April 2010, aged 82.

A selection of articles about Kenneth McKellar

Palpable Sincerity - Robin Daniels pays tribute to the Scottish tenor Kenneth McKellar (1927-2010)