Film Composer I Pianist I Musician
KYLE SHEPHERD
SOUTH AFRICAN COMPOSER WINS AWARD
Kyle Shepherd has won the 2018 South African Humanities and Social Sciences (HSS) Award: Book, Creative Collection and Digital Contribution 2018, hosted by the National Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences NIHSS, for ´Best Musical Composition´ for his composition, ´Noem My Skollie´ from the Original Motion Picture Soundtrack for the feature film ´Noem My Skollie / Call Me Thief´ which was based on the life of screenwriter, John W Fredericks, produced by David Max Brown & directed by Daryne Joshua!
KYLE SHEPHERD SCORES "NOEM MY
SKOLLIE"
“Kyle Shepherd has composed a world-class orchestral film score for Noem My Skollie / Call Me Thief which quite magnificently portrays and enhances the highly emotionally charged moments that permeate the film. I’m sure that the music will linger in everyone’s minds and that this soundtrack will be enjoyed for a very long time.” said film producer, David Max Brown.
Film director Daryne Joshua was equally thrilled about Shepherd’s contribution to the film’s success. “With his score of Noem My Skollie / Call Me Thief, Kyle Shepherd has forged the emotional spine on which the rest of the film’s emotional journey rests on.
PROFILE OF AN ICON
KYLE SHEPHERD
"What I love about jazz and improvisation is the freedom it gifts you. It allows you to be yourself."
There’s an air of serenity about Kyle, an assuredness in his demeanour. His movements are slow, but purposeful. He speaks gently but his voice conveys a sense of authority, a knowing, half-smile creeping in intermittently. The son of Mechell Shepherd, a violinist who worked with South African jazz icon Abdullah Ibrahim, music has always been a part of his world – and his fluency in its ways shows.
PIANIST KYLE SHEPHERD WRESTLES WITH NEW NOTES
This is a metamorphic time for the musician. Last year, he won the Standard Bank Young Artist of the Year award for jazz. Recently, he returned from playing at Carnegie Hall in New York, became a father and began rethinking his sound. Shepherd, who dropped out of the University of Cape Town’s jazz school, has also been awarded the Newton Memorial Music Scholarship to take his master’s at Stellenbosch University.
“I have been writing like a madman. I have written so many compositions these last few months than I know what to do with. And me and my trio are moving into a space where I feel modern South African jazz might come from.”
LATEST NEWS
So much goes on in the world of a composer. From concerts, to hosting events, and musical updates, you want to be the first to know what goes on in my life, here you will find all of the news and press updates surrounding me and my work. Check out the press coverage I am receiving below.