Kenneth Benoit
Kenneth R. Benoit was born on October 12, 1952 in Coral Gables, Florids. After graduating from Miami High (1970) he went on to earn the Associate in Arts in Music Education (Miami-Dade Community College), Bachelor of Arts in Music Education (university of West Florida), Master of Music in Music Theory/Composition (university of Miami), Master of Science in Library Science (Florida State University), and Doctor of Musical Arts in Composition (Louisiana State University).
Dr. Benoit's compositions have been performed at several conferences sponsored by the Society of Composers, Inc., and the College Music Society. His works have been heard at the contemporary music festivals at Louisiana State University, Nicholls State University, and California State University at Sacramento. His compositions have been performed in Austria, Britian, Canada, France, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Spain, and Switzerland. He has completed commissions from the Louisiana Sinfonietta, Louisiana State University New Music Ensemble, York Memorial United Methodist Church, Miami Beach Community Symphony Orchestra, Miami Beach Senior High School, North Miami Concert Band, and Dr. Michael M. Krop Senior High, a magnet school for the arts, which uses part of the commissioned work for the school's alma mater. His cantata, The House of the Lord, was performed in February 2005 as part of the 80th anniversary celebration of the First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood, Florida.
In 1990, Ken's Suite No. 2 for Piano received an Honorable Mention in the keyboard category of the Composers¿ Guild International Composition Competition. In 1997 he was selected by the Florida Department of State Division of Cultural Affairs, for inclusion in Florida's Artist Residency Directory (1997-2000). In 1999 he received a 50th anniversary medallion from the Fiesta of Five Flags Association for his Five Flags Suite. His biography is included in Who's Who in American Music: Classical.
Dr. Benoit has contributed articles on Louis Adolphe Coerne, Paul Creston, and Frederick Delius to Encyclopedia USA. His paper "Quartal Harmony as an Analytical Tool: An Analysis of Scriabin's Prelude, Op. 59, no.2" was published in the August 1995 issue of 20th Century Music.
Kenneth R. Benoit has served as the Composer-in-Residence/Assistant Conductor of both the Miami Beach Community Symphony Orchestra and the North Miami Concert Band. He is currently an Adjunct Professor of Music Appreciation at Broward Community College and a member of the College Music Society, ASCAP, American Music Center, and Society of Composers, Inc.