Keith Claeys
Biography
Keith Claeys attended Wayne State University where he studied with Salvatore Rabbio. Other teachers include Norman Fickett, Alan Abel and the late Charles Owen. Since graduating from WSU, Keith has experienced a very rich and varied musical career spanning many areas of music. His versatility and familiarity with many different styles of music have made him one of Detroit’s most sought after percussionists.
Keith is the “first call” extra percussionist with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. He also performs frequently with the Michigan Opera Theater Orchestra and the Detroit Chamber Winds and Strings. As an orchestral percussionist he has been privileged to perform in many of the most prestigious concert halls in the US, Europe and Asia.
He has been a featured artist at the Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival, the Scarab Club of Detroit, Oakland University and the University of Windsor (Canada).
Keith has recorded on the London, Chandos and Naxos labels as well as several soundtracks for the PBS, CBC and NBC television networks. In 2008 he performed in the orchestra for a television broadcast of “Amahl and the Night Visitors” on WDIV. As percussionist for the Fisher and Masonic Temple Theaters, he has performed for the national touring productions of Cats, Les Miserables, Phantom of the Opera, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, the Producers, Hairspray, Spamalot and many others.
As a freelance percussionist he has performed with such artists as Lisa Minnelli, Joel Grey, Julie Andrews, Aretha Franklin, Johnny Mathis, Dianna Ross, Burt Bacharach and Tony Bennett.
Keith is a member of the jury of the International Academy of Performance Arts and Sciences and as such participates in judging the annual ENKOR International Music Competition.
Courses taught by Keith Claeys
Winter Term 2025 (future)
- MUA1760 - Percussion Techniques and Pedagogy
- MUA2880 - Chamber Music and Special Ensembles
- MUA7880 - Chamber Music and Special Ensembles
Winter Term 2024
- MUA1760 - Percussion Techniques and Pedagogy
- MUA2880 - Chamber Music and Special Ensembles
- MUA7880 - Chamber Music and Special Ensembles