Kenneth McKellar grew up in Paisley, where his father owned a grocery shop. As a child he was enraptured by the ‘great’ singers: “I thought Peter Dawson, the Australian baritone, was
wonderful,” McKellar commented. “He had the kind of voice that could be identified within the first four bars.” He recalls his parents taking him to a concert in St Andrew’s Hall in Glasgow where he was enthralled by the Italian tenor Gigli.
McKellar attended Aberdeen University and it was there, while working for a Science degree for a career in Scottish Forestry, that he joined the student choir and showed for the first time his special talent for singing. Later, a Caird Scholarship (1949) would take him to the Royal College of Music in London for four years, but his aim in the early years lay in a life outdoors in the Highlands. After graduation he joined the Scottish Forestry Commission and took part in a research and survey programme of the woodlands of the British Isles; it was then he picked up a love of Scottish folklore. He attended Gaelic classes at night and learned the songs of the Hebrides.
Kenneth McKellar first sang in public at age 16 at an Army Cadet concert and did some broadcasts from Aberdeen in 1947. His talent came to wider public notice later that year through a broadcast with the BBC in Glasgow, performing the ballad opera ‘The Gentle Shepherd‘, by the 18th century Scottish poet Allan Ramsay.
In 1952 he made a private recording for his parents (apparently because his tonsils were being removed and he wanted his voice recorded in case anything went awry). The engineer was so impressed that he sent a copy to “Parlophone” which resulted in the marketing of 8 10″ shellac sides.
He attended the Royal College of Music where he won the Henry Leslie singing prize. Among his contemporaries were Joan Sutherland and the future founder of Scottish Opera Alexander Gibson. From there, he moved to the Carl Rosa Opera Company. He joined the chorus but was given an opportunity to sing the opening aria from ‘Barber of
Seville’. Impressed they offered him a principal tenor’s contract. He toured with the company for two seasons (1953-4) but didn’t really like the environment of opera.
The following year he left opera for good and signed with “Decca” with which he remained for over 25 years making 30+ albums. He also raised his profile around the world, beginning a series of North American tours (1959), appearing in concerts in Germany and France , and touring South Africa .
The next year he made the first of fifteen tours of Australia and New Zealand with a company that included the internationally famous Scottish accordionist Jimmy Shand. TV companies in Scotland were keen to promote him and he remained a dominant artist on the small screen for many years.
In 1966, McKellar represented Britain in the Eurovision Song Contest, singing ‘A man without love’.
Kenneth McKellar was a member of Lodge Renfrew County Kilwinning No. 370 in Paisley, which he joined in 1962.