While raised primarily in Gulfport, MS, Bruce Kirkwood was born 24 years ago in Chicago, IL, resulting in a perfect blend of metropolitan perspective and southern charm. His journey as a violinist began at the age of 5 in Gulfport, MS, and continued as he performed with the Gulfport School District Strings Program until graduating from Gulfport High School in 2013. From 2010-2013 he was also the youngest violinist in the Magnolia Professional Chamber Orchestra on the Gulf Coast where he traveled nationally performing for numerous events. In August of 2013, he began his matriculation at The University of Southern Mississippi where he joined the Symphony Orchestra family to further his classical training as a young violinist while pursuing and eventually receiving a degree in accounting. As he neared the last years of his college career, he was inspired to redirect his musical focus and delve further into various genres outside of classical, such as jazz, gospel, blues, pop, R&B, and soul. After graduating, he made the bold and daring decision to begin a career as a full-time violinist and, with God’s favor, has been able to achieve tremendous success in doing so. Here is a small interview of Bruce Kirkwood with GOGO Magazine.
Bruce has been afforded the opportunity to perform nationally for various prestigious organizations (Houston Rockets, Archdiocese of NY, National Urban League, Mayo Clinic, Essence Festival, etc.) and at several renowned venues and events. He is careful to give God credit for any degree of success or prominence he has received over the course of his career in music. In fact, his unyielding faith in God and devotion to ministry is what drives him to maximize his potential as a violinist. Bruce passionately believes that music is a powerful tool that transcends all boundaries and evokes the deepest of emotions, and as a musician, there is absolutely nothing more fulfilling to him than creating a moment in time to share those emotions by way of heartfelt, musical expression.
The Covid-19 Crisis, as it has for all, created significant challenges as he was a full-time musician and the majority of “gigs” / events had been canceled. He navigated through this crisis by providing Live Streaming events on several social medial and other streaming platforms. He was one of the founders of Live Music on the Coast which raised relief funds for out-of-work musicians. Upon completion of that mission, he continues to provide Live Music Virtual Shows with the main event being Tasteful Tunes Tuesday. He has continued to master the Live Music Streams and provides such in addition to his events that have him scheduled throughout the year. His main focus is Corporate Events; however, he does, wedding ceremonies, receptions, festivals, church events, speaking engagements, anniversaries, engagements and more.
HE JUST RETURNED FROM A PERSONAL VISIT AND EVENTS IN PHOENIX, ARIZONA, and LAS VEGAS, NV. His Tasteful Tunes Tuesday Live Stream Event on Facebook reached over 1.1 million people in which he had close to 700,000 video views. In addition, he performed the Negro National Anthem at Mayo Clinic in honor of George Floyd while in Phoenix.
CONNECT WITH BRUCE ON :
Website: BruceKirkwood.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/BruceTheViolinist/
Instagram: www.instagram.com/bruce_the_violinist/
Linkedin: http://linkedin.com/in/bruce-kirkwood-ab8472198
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