{{Short description|American pianist and composer}} {{Use mdy dates|date=September 2020}} thumb|Kit Armstrong in 2014 '''Kit Armstrong''' ({{lang-zh|c=周善祥|p=Zhōu Shànxiáng}}, born March 5, 1992) is an American classical pianist, composer, organist, and former child prodigy of British-Taiwanese parentage.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2011/jun/02/alfred-brendel-kit-armstrong |title='I had to make time for him': Alfred Brendel on Kit Armstrong |date=June 3, 2011 |work=The Guardian |location=London |first=Alan |last=Rusbridger |author-link=Alan Rusbridger |access-date=May 27, 2020}}</ref><ref name="Kit Armstrong: Playing by numbers">{{cite web|author= |title=Kit Armstrong: Playing by numbers|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/classical/features/kit-armstrong-playing-by-numbers-2219807.html|work=The Independent|date=February 20, 2011}}</ref>
== Education == Armstrong was born in Los Angeles into a non-musical family.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.paloaltoonline.com/weekly/morgue/2002/2002_11_08.kit08.html|title=Boy wonder (November 08, 2002)|website=www.paloaltoonline.com|url-status=live|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081227002133/http://www.paloaltoonline.com/weekly/morgue/2002/2002_11_08.kit08.html|archivedate=December 27, 2008}}</ref> He displayed interest in sciences, languages and mathematics.<ref name="Davidson Institute">{{cite web |url=http://presskit.ditd.org/2001_Davidson_Fellows_Press_Kit/KitArmstrong.pdf |title=Archived copy |accessdate=December 5, 2012 |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402142354/http://presskit.ditd.org/2001_Davidson_Fellows_Press_Kit/KitArmstrong.pdf |archivedate=April 2, 2015 }} Davidson Institute</ref> At the age of 5, and without access to a piano, he taught himself musical composition by reading an abridged encyclopedia.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/2005/06/10/kit-armstrong-is-a-notable-pianist-at-age-13/ |title=Kit Armstrong is a notable pianist at age 13 |date=June 10, 2005 |access-date=January 17, 2016 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160117090828/http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2005-06-10/features/0506100199_1_kit-armstrong-first-piano-piano-sonata |archive-date=January 17, 2016 }} ''Baltimore Sun''</ref> He subsequently began formal studies in piano with Mark Sullivan and in composition with Michael Martin (1997–2001).
He attended Garden Grove Christian School (1997–1998), Anaheim Discovery Christian School (1998–1999), Los Alamitos High School and Orange County School of the Arts (1999–2001). While in high school, he studied physics at California State University, Long Beach, and music composition at Chapman University.<ref name="LA Times">{{cite news|title=Composing? Child's Work|work=Los Angeles Times|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2000-feb-29-me-3913-story.html|date=February 29, 2000|first=Chris|last=Pasles|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140116143330/http://articles.latimes.com/2000/feb/29/local/me-3913|archive-date=January 16, 2014}}</ref>
At the age of 9, he became a full-time undergraduate student at Utah State University studying biology, physics, mathematics as well as music (2001–2002).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.paloaltoonline.com/weekly/morgue/2002/2002_11_08.kit08.html |title=Boy wonder (November 08, 2002) |accessdate=June 8, 2008 |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20081227002133/http://www.paloaltoonline.com/weekly/morgue/2002/2002_11_08.kit08.html |archivedate=December 27, 2008 }} ''Palo Alto Weekly''</ref> In 2003, Armstrong enrolled at the Curtis Institute of Music studying piano with Eleanor Sokoloff and Claude Frank, while simultaneously taking courses in chemistry and mathematics at the University of Pennsylvania.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F05EEDD143AF935A25754C0A9629C8B63&scp=1&sq=Kit+Armstrong&st=nyt |title=MUSIC FESTIVAL REVIEW; Masters of the Keyboard, Courtesy of a 12-Year-Old |newspaper=The New York Times |date=July 16, 2004 |accessdate=October 22, 2017 |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090303204434/http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F05EEDD143AF935A25754C0A9629C8B63&scp=1&sq=Kit+Armstrong&st=nyt |archivedate=March 3, 2009 |last1=Kozinn |first1=Allan }} ''The New York Times''</ref> In 2004, Armstrong moved to London to continue his music education at the Royal Academy of Music studying piano with Benjamin Kaplan, composition with Paul Patterson, Christopher Brown and Gary Carpenter, and musicianship classes with Julian Perkins. In parallel, he studied pure mathematics at the Imperial College London (2004–2008).{{citation needed|date=January 2026}}
Armstrong studied regularly with Alfred Brendel starting in 2005.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.theartsdesk.com/classical-music/set-piano-stool-fire-filming-alfred-brendel |title=Set the Piano Stool on Fire: On filming Alfred Brendel | the Arts Desk |date=June 2011 |accessdate=December 5, 2012 |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120615081129/http://www.theartsdesk.com/classical-music/set-piano-stool-fire-filming-alfred-brendel |archivedate=June 15, 2012 }} The Arts Desk</ref>
In 2021, Armstrong began his Ph.D. studies in Electrical Engineering at National Tsing Hua University, focusing on using the Kuramoto model to study AI and human collaboration in piano music performance.<ref>{{cite conference |last1=Armstrong |first1=Kit |last2= Hung|first2=Tzu-Ching|last3=Huang|first3=Ji-Xuan |last4=Liu|first4=Yi-Wen |date=2024-07-06 |title=Real-time piano accompaniment model trained on and evaluated according to human ensemble characteristics|url= https://zenodo.org/records/14335624|conference= Sound and Music Computing Conference|doi=10.5281/zenodo.14335623 |access-date=2025-04-28|location=Porto, Portugal }}</ref>
== Career as pianist == Since Armstrong's debut with the Long Beach Bach Festival Orchestra at the age of 8, he has appeared as soloist with the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, London's Philharmonia Orchestra, the NDR Symphony Orchestra in Hamburg, the Bamberger Symphoniker, the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, the Mozarteum Orchestra of Salzburg, the Swedish Chamber Orchestra, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mynewsdesk.com/se/goteborgskonserthus/pressreleases/goeteborgs-symfoniker-aaker-till-tyskland-1245079|title=Göteborgs Symfoniker åker till Tyskland|date=November 2, 2015 |url-status=live|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180216205205/http://www.mynewsdesk.com/se/goteborgskonserthus/pressreleases/goeteborgs-symfoniker-aaker-till-tyskland-1245079|archivedate=February 16, 2018}}</ref> the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, and Tokyo Symphony Orchestra,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.suntory.com/culture-sports/suntoryhall/schedule/detail/20150226_M_3.html|title=TOKYO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA SUBSCRIPTION CONCERT NO.627 Performance Schedule SUNTORY HALL|website=www.suntory.com|url-status=live|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160201144628/http://www.suntory.com/culture-sports/suntoryhall/schedule/detail/20150226_M_3.html|archivedate=February 1, 2016}}</ref> among others. He has collaborated with conductors including Ivor Bolton, Riccardo Chailly, Thomas Dausgaard, Christoph von Dohnányi, Manfred Honeck, Charles Mackerras, Bobby McFerrin, Kent Nagano, Jonathan Nott, and Mario Venzago. Solo piano recitals have taken Armstrong to London, Paris, Vienna, Florence, Venice, Baden-Baden, Berlin, Dortmund, Leipzig, Munich, Zurich, Geneva, Bolzano, Verbier, La Roque-d'Anthéron and various cities in the United States.
In June 2003, Armstrong was invited to play at the Carnegie Hall to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Steinway & Sons. In 2006 he won the "Kissinger Klavierolymp", a competition of young pianists related to the festival Kissinger Sommer.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kissingersommer.de/programm/kissinger-klavierolymp/index.html|title=Kissinger Sommer, Kissinger KlavierOlymp|first=Bayerisches Staatsbad Bad Kissingen, Stadt Bad|last=Kissingen|website=www.kissingersommer.de|url-status=live|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20171031050430/http://www.kissingersommer.de/programm/kissinger-klavierolymp/index.html|archivedate=October 31, 2017}}</ref> Among his recital projects in 2010 was a programme including etudes by Chopin and Ligeti, and J. S. Bach's Inventions and Sinfoniae. In 2011, in honour of the 200th anniversary of the birth of Franz Liszt, Armstrong played a series of recitals featuring works by Bach and Liszt, including a concert on Liszt's 1862 Bechstein piano in Nike Wagner's festival Pelerinages. In 2016 and 2017 Armstrong appeared at the {{Interlanguage link|Salzburg Mozartwoche|de|3=Mozartwoche}} with Renaud Capuçon.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mozarteum.at/start/meldung/271|title=Besetzungsänderung in der Mozartwoche 2016 – "Mozarts Violinsonaten I" am 29.1.2016 und "Mozarts Violinsonaten II" am 30.1.2016|website=Stiftung Mozarteum Salzburg|url-status=live|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160130232924/http://www.mozarteum.at/start/meldung/271|archivedate=January 30, 2016}}</ref> Armstrong was the "artiste étoile" of the 2016 Mozart Festival Würzburg<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mainpost.de/regional/wuerzburg/Pianisten-Sopranistinnen;art735,9032572|title=Kit Armstrong wird das Mozartfest 2016 prägen|date=December 3, 2015|url-status=live|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160310063208/https://www.mainpost.de/regional/wuerzburg/Pianisten-Sopranistinnen;art735,9032572|archivedate=March 10, 2016}}</ref> and of the Bern Symphony Orchestra.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.konzerttheaterbern.ch/bso/uebersicht/veranstaltung/-cc569a2861/?month=201603&date=1458342000|title=Übersicht – bso – Konzert Theater Bern|first=update AG|last=www.update.ch|website=www.konzerttheaterbern.ch|url-status=usurped|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160201184940/http://www.konzerttheaterbern.ch/bso/uebersicht/veranstaltung/-cc569a2861/?month=201603&date=1458342000|archivedate=February 1, 2016}}</ref>
Chamber music is one of Armstrong's central interests. He performs with the Szymanowski String Quartet and in a piano trio with Andrej Bielow (violin) and Adrian Brendel (cello), and has given lieder recitals with Andreas Wolf and {{ill|Thomas Bauer (singer)|lt=Thomas Bauer|de|Thomas E. Bauer}}.
thumb|Armstrong's concert hall, the Church of Sainte-Thérèse-de-l'Enfant-Jésus, Hirson, France The Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival awarded Armstrong the 2010 Leonard Bernstein Award.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.leonardbernstein.com/news_detail.php?The-10th-Annual-Leonard-Bernstein-Award-226 |title=Leonard Bernstein |accessdate=December 25, 2012 |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121120053101/http://leonardbernstein.com/news_detail.php?The-10th-Annual-Leonard-Bernstein-Award-226 |archivedate=November 20, 2012 }} LeonardBernstein.com</ref> In 2011 he received the {{Lang|de|Förderpreis für Musik}} from the {{Lang|de|Kurt-Alten-Stiftung}}. The {{Interlanguage link|Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Festival|de|3=Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern}} announced Kit Armstrong as WEMAG-Soloist prizewinner in 2014.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.festspiele-mv.de/fileadmin/user_upload/pressemitteilungen/PDF/14-10-22PMBioKit_Armstrong.pdf |title=Archived copy |accessdate=February 1, 2016 |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180216204818/http://festspiele-mv.de/fileadmin/user_upload/pressemitteilungen/PDF/14-10-22PMBioKit_Armstrong.pdf |archivedate=February 16, 2018 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://kultur-port.de/index.php/kunst-kultur-news/11885-klavier-rezital-mit-kit-armstrong-und-verleihung-des-wemag-solistenpreises-an-den-jungen-ausnahmepianisten-.html|title=Klavier-Rezital mit Kit Armstrong und Verleihung des WEMAG-Solistenpreises an den jungen Ausnahmepianisten|first=KulturPort.De Kultur-Magazin|last=Hamburg|website=kultur-port.de|date=July 31, 2015 |url-status=live|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150810233145/http://www.kultur-port.de/index.php/kunst-kultur-news/11885-klavier-rezital-mit-kit-armstrong-und-verleihung-des-wemag-solistenpreises-an-den-jungen-ausnahmepianisten-.html|archivedate=August 10, 2015}}</ref> Kit Armstrong was the festival's 2018 "prizewinner in residence", featuring in 24 concerts throughout the summer of 2018.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://festspiele-mv.de/intern/presse/weiteres-pressematerial/festspielsommer-2018/ |title=Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern: Festspielsommer 2018 |access-date=November 27, 2018 |archive-date=November 28, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181128034837/https://festspiele-mv.de/intern/presse/weiteres-pressematerial/festspielsommer-2018/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Kit Armstrong was named holder of the Beethoven Ring in 2018.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.edition-peters.de/newsdetails.php?articleID=IN00222 |title=Kit Armstrong erhält Beethoven-Ring 2018}}</ref>
In 2012, he purchased The Church of Sainte-Thérèse-de-l'Enfant-Jésus, Hirson in France as a hall for concerts and exhibitions.
Starting in March 2020, he has published every day a video from this church, sharing a piece of music together with personal and musicological explanations. This video series, "Musique, ma patrie", is the subject of profiles in French national television and press.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://fr.news.yahoo.com/coronavirus-confin%C3%A9-%C3%A9glise-pianiste-kit-090108810.html |title=Coronavirus : confiné dans une église, le pianiste Kit Armstrong diffuse un concert en ligne chaque jour |website=fr.news.yahoo.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200404173327/https://fr.news.yahoo.com/coronavirus-confin%C3%A9-%C3%A9glise-pianiste-kit-090108810.html |archive-date=2020-04-04}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web | url=https://www.tf1.fr/tf1/jt-13h/videos/confines-mais-pas-muets-les-musiciens-investissent-les-balcons-les-toits-et-internet-20260003.html |title = Le journal de 13h Replay en Streaming – TF1| date=December 28, 2023 }}</ref>
== Career as composer ==
Armstrong’s compositional catalogue includes works for a wide range of ensembles, with early works written during his teenage years and later works reflecting increasing formal scope. Many of his works reflect a grounding in the Western classical tradition, and his music has been described as stylistically varied within that frame.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.bremenzwei.de/sendungen/gespraechszeit-3856.html | title=Gesprächszeit: Kit Armstrong}}</ref> His works often demonstrate contrapuntal textures, formal balance, and a close engagement with historical models, particularly from the Baroque and Classical eras. Observers have drawn attention to the influence of Johann Sebastian Bach, especially in Armstrong’s use of counterpoint and variation techniques.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.br-klassik.de/programm/radio/ausstrahlung-2554804.html| title=FESTSPIELZEIT: Bachwoche Ansbach}}</ref> At the same time, his music does not adopt a strictly historical idiom but incorporates contemporary harmonic language and rhythmic flexibility.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.klavierfestival.de/kuenstler/kit-armstrong/ | title=Kit Armstrong - Klavier-Festival Ruhr}}</ref> Armstrong’s engagement with mathematics and science has been noted as a formative influence on his artistic outlook, and biographical profiles describe his approach to music as shaped by his interdisciplinary education.<ref>{{cite book |last=Kloepfer |first=Inge | title=Metamorphosen eines Wunderkinds|publisher=Berlin Verlag|isbn=9783827014986}}</ref>
Armstrong has received multiple awards specifically recognizing his achievements in composition. In 2001, he received a $10,000 Davidson Fellows Scholarship from the Davidson Institute for Talent Development.<ref name="Davidson Institute" /> In his youth he was a repeated recipient of the Morton Gould Young Composer Award, presented by the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP).<ref>"The ASCAP Foundation Names Winners of the 2002 Morton Gould Young Composer Awards" {{Cite web |url=http://www.ascap.com/press/2002/mortongould_050202.html |title=The ASCAP Foundation Names Winners. of the 2002 Morton Gould Young Composer Awards |access-date=December 25, 2012 |archive-date=October 29, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029193646/http://www.ascap.com/press/2002/mortongould_050202.html |url-status=bot: unknown }}, ASCAP, May 2, 2002 * "The ASCAP Foundation Names Winners of the 2004 Morton Gould Young Composer Awards" {{Cite web |url=http://www.ascap.com/press/2004/youngcomp_041204.html |title=The ASCAP Foundation Names Winners of the 2004 Morton Gould Young Composer Awards |access-date=December 25, 2012 |archive-date=October 9, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121009064156/http://www.ascap.com/press/2004/youngcomp_041204.html |url-status=bot: unknown }}, ASCAP, April 12, 2004 * "The ASCAP Foundation Names Winners of the 2005 Morton Gould Young Composer Awards" {{Cite web |url=http://www.ascap.com/press/2005/052605_morton_gould.aspx |title=The ASCAP Foundation Names Winners of the 2005 Morton Gould Young Composer Awards |access-date=December 25, 2012 |archive-date=October 29, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029191741/http://www.ascap.com/press/2005/052605_morton_gould.aspx |url-status=bot: unknown }}, ASCAP, May 26, 2005 * "The ASCAP Foundation Names Recipients of the 2007 Morton Gould Young Composer Awards" {{Cite web |url=http://www.ascap.com/press/2007/041207_morton_gould.html |title=The ASCAP Foundation Names Recipients of the 2007 Morton Gould Young Composer Awards |access-date=December 25, 2012 |archive-date=October 29, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029194549/http://www.ascap.com/press/2007/041207_morton_gould.html |url-status=bot: unknown }}, ASCAP, April 12, 2007 * "The ASCAP Foundation Names Recipients of the 2011 Morton Gould Young Composer Awards" {{Cite web |url=http://www.ascap.com/press/2011/0404_Morton_Gould.aspx |title=The ASCAP Foundation Names Recipients of the 2011 Morton Gould Young Composer Awards |access-date=December 25, 2012 |archive-date=October 9, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121009064631/http://www.ascap.com/press/2011/0404_Morton_Gould.aspx |url-status=bot: unknown }}, ASCAP, April 4, 2011 including the 2007 Charlotte V. Bergen award * "The ASCAP Foundation Charlotte V. Bergen Scholarship" {{Cite web |url=http://www.ascap.com/eventsawards/awards/foundation/scholarships/bergen.aspx |title=The ASCAP Foundation Charlotte V. Bergen Scholarship |access-date=December 25, 2012 |archive-date=March 31, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130331122134/http://www.ascap.com/eventsawards/awards/foundation/scholarships/bergen.aspx |url-status=bot: unknown }}, ASCAP</ref>
Armstrong performs his own compositions in concerts, and his dual role as composer–performer positions him within a tradition of musician-composers extending from the 18th and 19th centuries to the present day.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.orartswatch.org/music-chose-me-kit-armstrong-at-cmnw-and-obf/ | title=Music chose me: Kit Armstrong at CMNW and OBF • Oregon ArtsWatch}}</ref> Among notable interpretations of his compositions by others,
*the Pacific Symphony performed Armstrong's Symphony No. 1, ''Celebration'' in March 2000; *a string quartet commissioned by the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra was premiered by the Szymanowski String Quartet in 2011;<ref>{{cite web |url=http://leipzig.polnischekultur.de/index.php?navi=002&id=508 |title=Polnisches Institut Leipzig |accessdate=December 25, 2012 |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029190417/http://leipzig.polnischekultur.de/index.php?navi=002&id=508 |archivedate=October 29, 2013 }} Polnisches Institut Leipzig</ref> *the piano trio ''Stop laughing, we're rehearsing!'' was recorded with Andrej Bielow and Brendel for GENUIN in 2012;<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.genuin.de/en/04_d.php?k=226 |title=Genuin.de – CD-Katalog / Genuin CD-Info |accessdate=December 22, 2012 |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029185430/http://www.genuin.de/en/04_d.php?k=226 |archivedate=October 29, 2013 }} GENUIN</ref> *the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin performed a fortepiano concerto by Armstrong in 2015;<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.concerti.de/de/8/verid:103123/akademie-fuer-alte-musik-berlin-and-kit-armstrong-basf-feierabendhaus-ludwigshafen-dienstag-27-januar-2015.html|title=Termintipps|website=concerti.de}}</ref> *percussionist Alexej Gerassimez's premiere of Armstrong's percussion concerto with Konzerthausorchester Berlin in 2017,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ndr.de/ndrkultur/epg/Neues-Schlagzeugkonzert,sendung695352.html|title=Die jungen Wilden von Ulrichshusen|last=NDR|website=www.ndr.de|url-status=live|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180110055111/http://www.ndr.de/ndrkultur/epg/Neues-Schlagzeugkonzert,sendung695352.html|archivedate=January 10, 2018}}</ref> the premiere of his ''Canonic Sonata'' at Bachwoche Ansbach in 2021,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.br-klassik.de/programm/radio/ausstrahlung-2554804.html|title=FESTSPIELZEIT: Bachwoche Ansbach}}</ref> and the premiere of ''Flüchtlinge'' with soprano Hanna-Elisabeth Müller in 2023 were broadcast on German nationwide radio;<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.br.de/radio/live/br-klassik/programm/2023-08-07/3424567/ |title=Radio des Bayerischen Rundfunks}}</ref> *Trio Gaspard premiered<ref>{{cite web|url=https://leftlion.co.uk/features/2023/11/music-review-trio-gaspard-at-djanogly-recital-hall/?fbclid=IwAR2W0Ld42TzknZVAY24EXACg6ZrYQoCds0a8YMFobJSjsLgX2PqCNKXfSA8 | title=Music Review: Trio Gaspard at Djanogly Recital Hall - Nottingham Culture}}</ref> and recorded ''Revêtements'' in 2024, described by Gramophone (magazine) as "refracting piano trio and folk music tropes through a modernist prism".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.gramophone.co.uk/reviews/haydn-complete-piano-trios-vol-3-trio-gaspard | title=HAYDN Complete Piano Trios Vol 3 (Trio Gaspard)}}</ref>
===List of compositions=== Source:<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.kitarmstrong.com/#3| title=Kit Armstrong :: Official Website}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align: left" ! scope="col" | Title ! scope="col" | Scoring ! scope="col" | Date ! scope="col" class="unsortable" | Notes
|-style="vertical-align: top" |colspan="4" style="background: lightgray"|
===Orchestra===
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Zeitreise'' |Orchestra |2014 |Commissioned by Philharmonic Orchestra Kiel; Premiere: 22 June 2014, Kiel; Georg Fritzsch (conductor); Published by Edition Peters
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Andante'' |Orchestra |2012 |Commissioned by Musikkollegium Winterthur
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Celebration, Symphony in F'' |Orchestra |2000 | |-style="vertical-align: top" |colspan="4" style="background: lightgray"|
===Concertante===
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''We are all visitors'', Double Concerto |Violin, piano, and string orchestra |2023 |Commissioned by Fränkischer Sommer; Premiere: 26 August 2023, Schwabach; 27 August 2023, Rothenburg ob der Tauber; Franziska Hölscher, Ensemble Resonanz
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Konzert für Schlagzeug und Orchester'' |Percussion and orchestra |2017 |Commissioned by Festspiele Mecklenburg-Vorpommern; Premiere: 22 July 2017, Stolpe; Alexej Gerassimez, Konzerthausorchester Berlin; Shiyeon Sung (conductor)
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Konzert für Hammerklavier und Streicher'' |Fortepiano and strings |2015 |Commissioned by BASF-Kulturmanagement; Dedicated to Alfred Brendel; Premiere: 27 January 2015, Ludwigshafen; Akademie für Alte Musik
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Triple Concerto'' |Violin, cello, piano, and orchestra |2014 |Commissioned by Hannoversche Orchestervereinigung; Premiere: 17 May 2014, Hannover
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Concerto for Clarinet and Orchestra'' |Clarinet and orchestra |2010 |Commissioned by Frankfurter BachKonzerte; Premiere: 4 November 2010, Frankfurt Alte Oper; Paul Meyer, Zurich Chamber Orchestra
|-style="vertical-align: top" |colspan="4" style="background: lightgray"|
===Chamber===
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''4 Bagatelles über Stille Nacht'' |Clarinet and organ |2024 |Commissioned by festival “gruber & more”; Premiere: 27 April 2024, Hallein; Matthias Schorn
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Revêtements'' |Piano trio |2023 |Commissioned by Trio Gaspard
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''4 Preludes'' |Piano quintet |2022 |Commissioned by Frankfurter Museumsgesellschaft; Premiere: 19 January 2023, Alte Oper Frankfurt; Aris Quartett
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Fast zu ernst'' |Piano trio |2021 |Commissioned by Klavierfestival Ruhr; Dedicated to Alfred Brendel (90th anniversary); Premiere: 21 September 2021, Düsseldorf; Andrej Bielow, Adrian Brendel
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Canonic Sonata'' |Oboe, violin, and piano |2021 |Commissioned by Bachwoche Ansbach; Premiere: 1 August 2021
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Abschied'' |2 pianos |2021 |Commissioned by Movimentos Festwochen; Premiere: 8 April 2018
|-style="vertical-align: top" |Clarinet Quintet after a Mozart Fragment |Clarinet and string quartet |2017 |Commissioned by BASF
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Aria'' |Cello and piano |2013
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Der kranke Mond'' |Violin and cello |2012 |Commissioned by Movimentos Festwochen
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Time flies like an arrow'' |Violin, cello and piano |2011 |Commissioned by Klavier-Festival Ruhr
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''String Quartet'' |String quartet |2011 |Commissioned by Gewandhaus zu Leipzig; Premiere: 12 February 2011; Szymanowski Quartet
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Quintet'' |Oboe, clarinet, horn, bassoon, and piano |2009 |Commissioned by International Chamber Music Festival The Hague
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Stop laughing, we're rehearsing'' |Violin, cello, and piano |2009 |Commissioned by Music at Plush
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Breaking Symmetry'' |Horn, violin, viola, and cello |2008 | |-style="vertical-align: top" |''Who Stole My Wasabi?'' |Cello and piano |2008 |Commissioned by Music at Plush
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Struwwelpeter'' |Viola or violin and piano |2006 | |-style="vertical-align: top" |''Landscapes'' |String quartet and piano |2006 | |-style="vertical-align: top" |''Birds by the Pond'' |String quartet |2004 | |-style="vertical-align: top" |colspan="4" style="background: lightgray"|
===Piano solo===
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Un fil d’oubli'' |Piano |2019 |Inspired by Mozart KV399; Commissioned by Konzerthaus Dortmund
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Études de dessin'' |Piano |2017 |Composed for Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy Hochschulwettbewerb 2018
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Rondeau'' |Piano |2014 |Commissioned by Mosel Musikfestival
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Snowfall Fading'' |Piano |2013 |Published by Edition Peters
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Impressions'' |Piano (left hand) |2013 |Published by Edition Peters
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Miniatures'' |Piano |2012 |''Frühlingserwachen, Lexa, Lenz: Variations on "Volare", Origami''
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Fantasy on B-A-C-H'' |Piano |2011 |Commissioned by Sommerliche Musiktage Hitzacker
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Half of One, Six Dozen of the Other'' |Piano |2010 |Commissioned and premiered by Till Fellner
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Message in a Cabbage'' |Piano |2008 | |-style="vertical-align: top" |''Reflections'' |Piano |2007 | |-style="vertical-align: top" |''Portraits'' |Piano |2006 | |-style="vertical-align: top" |''Fantasia and Toccata'' |Piano |2005 | |-style="vertical-align: top" |''Sweet Remembrance'' |Piano |2005 | |-style="vertical-align: top" |''Transformation'' |Piano |2002 | |-style="vertical-align: top" |''A Spooky Night'' |Piano |2002 | |-style="vertical-align: top" |''Six Short Pieces'' |Piano |2001 | |-style="vertical-align: top" |''The Triumph of a Butterfly'' |Piano |2001 | |-style="vertical-align: top" |''Homage to Bach'' |Piano |2000 | |-style="vertical-align: top" |''A Thunderstorm'' |Piano |2000 | |-style="vertical-align: top" |''Five Elements'' |Piano |1999 | |-style="vertical-align: top" |''Chicken Sonata'' |Piano |1998 | |-style="vertical-align: top" |colspan="4" style="background: lightgray"|
===Vocal===
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Flüchtlinge'' |Soprano, violin, and piano |2023 |Text: Emma Bonn (1938); Commissioned by Musiktage Feldafing; Premiere: 23 July 2023; Recorded by Bayerischer Rundfunk
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Songs upon poems by Guy de Muyser'' |Mezzo-soprano and piano |2023 |Premiere: 6 February 2023, Banque de Luxembourg
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Neue Struwwelpeter-Geschichten'' |Mezzo-soprano and piano |2023 |Texts by students of Lessing-Gymnasium Frankfurt; Premiere: 22 May 2023
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Traum vom Glück'' |SATB chorus; mezzo-soprano and piano |2022 |Text: Ulla Hahn; Premiere: 19 September 2022, Hamburg
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Lieder nach Texten von Ulla Hahn'' |Voice(s) and piano |2022 |''Schöne Landschaft, Es bleibt heute Abend noch lange hell, Zusammen - Weiter - Kommen, Jedes Teilchen, das auf der Erde weilte, Die gefräßigen Rosen'' Commissioned by Schubertiade; Premiere: 5 May 2022, Hohenems
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Lieder nach Texten von Ulla Hahn'' |Mezzo-soprano, baritone, viola, and piano |2019 |''Selig sind die Enttäuschten, Wie es anfängt, Besichtigung, Zurechtgerückt, Auslösen, Reprise, Morgenlob (V)'' Commissioned by Schubertiade; Premiere: 30 April 2019; Recorded by ORF
|-style="vertical-align: top" |''Mozart-Lieder'' |Voice and piano |2016 |''An die Einsamkeit, Heidenröslein, Das Veilchen, Lied der Trennung, An Chloe'' Commissioned by Mozartfest Würzburg
|}
== Discography == In September 2008, Armstrong recorded Bach, Liszt and Mozart for Plushmusic.tv.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://plushmusic.com/collections/kit-armstrong/ |title=Kit Armstrong | Plushmusic |accessdate=December 22, 2012 |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121227090655/http://plushmusic.com/collections/kit-armstrong |archivedate=December 27, 2012 }} Plushmusic.tv</ref>
In 2011, the film ''Set the Piano Stool on Fire'' by Mark Kidel was released on DVD, chronicling the relationship between pianist Alfred Brendel and Armstrong.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Church|first1=Michael|title=Set the Piano Stool on Fire reveals the relationship between a master|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/set-the-piano-stool-on-fire-reveals-the-relationship-between-a-master-and-his-prodigy-2283021.html|accessdate=June 14, 2016|work=The Independent|date=May 12, 2011|url-status=live|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160811061234/http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/set-the-piano-stool-on-fire-reveals-the-relationship-between-a-master-and-his-prodigy-2283021.html|archivedate=August 11, 2016}}</ref>
In April 2012, GENUIN released a CD by Armstrong, Brendel, and Andrej Bielow of piano trios by Haydn, Beethoven, Armstrong and Liszt.<ref>[http://www.genuin.de/en/04_d.php?k=226 ''Piano Trios''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029185430/http://www.genuin.de/en/04_d.php?k=226 |date=October 29, 2013 }} by L. v. Beethoven, K. Armstrong, J. Haydn and F. Liszt</ref>
On September 27, 2013, Sony Music Entertainment released Kit Armstrong's album "Bach, Ligeti, Armstrong". On the CD he presents his own transcriptions of 12 Chorale Preludes by J.S. Bach, his own composition and homage "Fantasy on B-A-C-H", and parts of the ''Musica ricercata'' by Ligeti.<ref>[http://www.sonymusic.de/Kit-Armstrong/Bach-Ligeti-Armstrong/P/2907161/B/88883747752 ''Kit Armstrong – Bach, Ligeti, Armstrong''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029235939/http://www.sonymusic.de/Kit-Armstrong/Bach-Ligeti-Armstrong/P/2907161/B/88883747752 |date=October 29, 2013 }} on Sony Classical</ref>
In November 2015, Sony Music Entertainment released "Liszt: Symphonic Scenes", a solo piano CD by Armstrong.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gramophone.co.uk/review/liszt-symphonic-scenes|title=LISZT Symphonic Scenes|first=Patrick|last=Rucker|date=January 27, 2016|website=www.gramophone.co.uk|url-status=live|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20160201160804/http://www.gramophone.co.uk/review/liszt-symphonic-scenes|archivedate=February 1, 2016}}</ref>
Kit Armstrong's 2016 recital in Amsterdam Concertgebouw, featuring music by William Byrd, Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck, John Bull, and Johann Sebastian Bach was recorded as a DVD and released by Unitel.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.unitel.de/en/product/do/detail.html?id=4373|title=Bach, Goldberg Variations, BWV 988|website=www.unitel.de|url-status=live|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20180108062643/http://www.unitel.de/en/product/do/detail.html?id=4373|archivedate=January 8, 2018}}</ref>
Concerts at the Margravial Opera House in Bayreuth in 2018 and 2019 were published on DVD, featuring music by Liszt, Mozart and Wagner.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.steingraeber.de/en/2021/12/kit-armstrong-dvd/|title=Kit Armstrong DVD: Spectacular Recital in the Margravial Opera House|date=December 8, 2021 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cmajor-entertainment.com/movie/kit-armstrong-plays-wagner-liszt-and-mozart-756508/|title=Kit Armstrong plays Wagner, Liszt and Mozart - C Major Entertainment}}</ref>
In ''Byrd & Bull: The Visionaries of Piano Music'', a double CD set of works by William Byrd and John Bull produced by Deutsche Grammophon in 2021, Armstrong "presents pieces that were conceived as much more than diversions for an elite or adornments to ritual, span everything from meditative elegies and rousing marches to virtuoso variations on popular melodies and Bull's ingenious canons."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.deutschegrammophon.com/en/catalogue/products/william-byrd-john-bull-kit-armstrong-12351|title=Deutsche Grammophon, WILLIAM BYRD · JOHN BULL Kit Armstrong}}</ref> The publication was met with critical acclaim from BBC Music and The Times among others, in addition to the winning the year-end awards Top 10 Classical Recordings of the Year and Critics' Choice by Presto Music and ''Gramophone'', respectively.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.classical-music.com/reviews/instrumental/byrd-bull-the-visionaries-of-piano-music/|title=Classical Music brought to you by BBC Music Magazine|date=August 5, 2021 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thetimes.com/culture/music/article/kit-armstrong-byrd-bull-review-a-lesson-in-early-english-keyboardists-7sz2zvx99|title="The Times, Kit Armstrong: Byrd/Bull review — a lesson in early English keyboardists"|website=The Times |last1=Brown |first1=Geoff }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.prestomusic.com/classical/awards/presto-recordings-of-the-year|title=Presto Recordings of the Year}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.gramophone.co.uk/review/kit-armstrong-the-visionaries-of-piano-music|title=Gramophone, Kit Armstrong: The Visionaries of Piano Music}}</ref>
In 2023, the film, ''1520-2020 : A Musical Odyssey - Une Odyssée Musicale - Eine musikalische Reise'' by Francis Marcellet, Armstrong, piano solo (2 DVDs Damis Films)
Renaud Capuçon and Kit Armstrong recorded Mozart’s sonatas for piano and violin for Deutsche Grammophon in a 4-CD set released in June 2023.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.deutschegrammophon.com/en/catalogue/products/mozart-sonatas-for-piano-violin-capucon-armstrong-12981 |title= MOZART Sonatas for Piano & Violin / Capuçon, Armstrong}}</ref>
== Bibliography == * « Armstrong, la vie, quelle histoire ? » in ''88 notes pour piano solo'', Jean-Pierre Thiollet, Neva Editions, 2015, p. 215-216. ISBN 978-2-3505-5192-0
== References == {{reflist}}
==Further reading== * {{cite news |last=Dobrin |first=Peter |date=April 11, 2004 |title=At 12, this genius of music, math and more is wowing 'em |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/52227786/kit-armstrong-dobrin-1/ |work=The Philadelphia Inquirer |location=Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |page=A01, A15 |via=Newspapers.com |access-date=May 27, 2020}} [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/52227758/kit-armstrong-dobrin-2/ continued on page A15] * {{cite news |last=Fernandez |first=Enrique |date=November 27, 2005 |title=Piano prodigy to play the Broward Center |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/52227650/kit-armstrong-fernandez/ |work=The Miami Herald |location=Miami, Florida |page=203 |via=Newspapers.com |access-date=May 27, 2020}} * {{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2005/nov/10/classicalmusicandopera1|title=At three he was reading the ''Wall Street Journal''|date=November 10, 2005|work=The Guardian|location=London|first=Stephen|last=Moss}}
== External links == {{Commons category|Kit Armstrong}} *{{official website|http://www.kitarmstrong.com}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Armstrong, Kit}} Category:1992 births Category:21st-century American classical pianists Category:Alumni of Imperial College London Category:Alumni of the Royal Academy of Music Category:American male classical pianists Category:Chapman University alumni Category:Classical musicians from California Category:Deutsche Grammophon artists Category:Curtis Institute of Music alumni Category:Living people Category:Musicians from Los Angeles Category:Orange County School of the Arts alumni Category:Utah State University alumni Category:Los Alamitos High School alumni Category:American people of Chinese descent Category:American people of Taiwanese descent Category:21st-century American male pianists