Brendan Kavanagh: Difference between revisions

Brendan Kavanagh
Brendan Kavanagh
	Kavanagh in 2021
Background information
Also known as	Dr K
Born	October 1967 (age 56); London, England
Genres	Boogie-woogie; classical music; blues; jazz; rock and roll; Irish traditional music;
Occupations	Pianist; piano teacher;
Instruments	Piano; piano accordion;
	YouTube information
Channel	@DrKBoogieWoogie;
Years active	2012–present
Genre	Music
Subscribers	2.49 million ; (February 2024)
Total views	1.311 billion; (January 2024)
Creator Awards

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Revision as of 03:05, 28 January 2024

Brendan Kavanagh (born October 1967^[2]^[3]), also known as "Dr K" due to his PhD in English, is a British pianist and piano teacher of Irish descent. He specializes in playing and promoting the boogie-woogie genre, almost exclusively improvised, often combined with classical, jazz, blues, rock & roll, and traditional Irish music themes. He regularly performs in open venues on public pianos, sometimes in duet formats with musically inclined passers-by, friends or family. He also plays the piano accordion, with emphasis on traditional Irish tunes.^[4]^[5]

Education

Kavanagh attended St Aloysius' College, in Highgate from 1978 onwards.^[6]^[7] He went on to study and then graduate from Middlesex University with first class single honours BA in English. He then obtained his MA in Anglo-Irish Literature and Drama at University College Dublin, followed by a PhD in English language and literature from University College Cork.^[8]

In the late 1980s, Kavanagh studied classical piano with professor Nelly Ben-Or MBE,^[9] who helped him complete his Grade 8 theory and practical requirements. He credits his success today as an improvisational classical/boogie-woogie pianist to her support and encouragement of his improvisational style.^[10]^: 01:28

Online presence and open public venue performances

In 2007, Kavanagh founded Dr. K Media Limited and changed his focus to online teaching, selling, performing and promoting piano music, with a strong emphasis on the boogie-woogie style. With the rising popularity of smartphones allowing virtually anyone to capture, edit and disseminate musical performances, he began performing in open public venues and uploading his work to streaming platforms.^[3]

He regularly performs as Dr. K in his signature dark hoodie and shades, or wears a uniform as a disguise. He plays to the public who pass-by, typically on public pianos at railway stations, airports and any other open public venues, mainly in London. His impromptu performances, weaving together classical, boogie-woogie, Irish and popular themes, are captured and uploaded to his Facebook page^[11] (with 500k followers) and his YouTube channel, where he has over 2.49 million subscribers,^[1] making him as of January 2024, the 1,136th most-subscribed channel.^[12]

In December 2023 he was interviewed on TalkTV for The James Whale Show^[6]^[13] and claims to have earnt a seven-figure sum that year, from his streaming activities. Kavanagh broadcasts some of his performances directly, via live streaming.^[14]^[5]^[15]

2024 public dispute

One YouTube live stream, uploaded on 20 January 2024, has achieved over 8.6 million views. It shows Dr. K playing the St Pancras railway station piano in London, and interacting with a group of Chinese people holding Chinese flags, and two British Transport Police.^[16] The group requested Dr. K not to film them and not to publish their images or voices. They cited image rights with "Chinese TV", Dr. K declined their requests.^[17]^[18]^[19]^[20] He countered that filming in public locations is legal in Britain, and that the group was not in China.

World-wide interest led to Dr. K interviews with mainstream media on the topic of free-speech issues that had been raised. He joined the journalist Mike Graham and then Piers Morgan Uncensored, both programmes are on TalkTV. Dr. K told Morgan his video clip already had two strikes for removal from his YouTube channel. He urged viewers to download the video in case it gets removed.^[21]^[22]^[23] World Journal, a Pan-Blue Taiwanese broadsheet newspaper, noted responses from the Chinese group and suggested that the station incident might have resulted from misunderstandings over language and culture. The group said they had raised concerns about Dr. K's filming due to their own non-disclosure agreement with Chinese State TV.^[24]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c "About @DrKBoogieWoogie". YouTube.
^ "Brendan KAVANAGH personal appointments – Find and update company information – GOV.UK". find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 23 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
^ ^a ^b Mitchell, Jonathan (7 May 2017). "'Police officer' musician fools Londoners with dazzling piano skills". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 7 May 2017. Retrieved 16 January 2020. Brendan Kavanagh, 49, from Wealdstone, donned various guises to appear at train stations and iconic landmarks across London to show off his musical prowess.
^ "The two best piano players on YouTube have joined forces, and yes, it is brilliant". Ireland Calling. 15 October 2019. Archived from the original on 25 January 2020. Retrieved 20 January 2020.
^ ^a ^b "Teen's rendition of The Sound of Music's 'Edelweiss' at London Underground station goes viral". Classic FM. Archived from the original on 25 January 2020. Retrieved 18 January 2020.
^ ^a ^b Dr K Interview on The James Whale Show/TalkTV. TalkTV. Archived from the original on 23 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024 – via Brendan Kavanaugh via YouTube.
^ Dr K / Brendan Kavanagh on Talk TV with James Whale – 1940 – 16th Dec 2023. digitalmediafan. 16 December 2023. Archived from the original on 26 January 2024. Retrieved 26 January 2024 – via YouTube.
^ "Musician's incredible piano skills make people stop and stare in Cork Airport". Irish Independent. Archived from the original on 20 February 2020. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
^ Nelly Ben-Or on ITV news 26/1/21 (copyright ITV News) in HD. Daniela Clynes. 1 February 2021. Archived from the original on 26 January 2024. Retrieved 26 January 2024 – via YouTube.
^ Dr K's classical and boogie-woogie mentors (01:28). Brendan Kavanaugh. 19 January 2020. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 24 January 2020 – via YouTube.
^ "Log in or sign up to view". m.facebook.com. Archived from the original on 23 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
^ "Brendan Kavanagh's YouTube Stats (Summary Profile) – Social Blade Stats". socialblade.com. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
^ 'Harassed By Police For Playing Piano' | Brendan Kavanagh Full Interview With James Whale. Talk TV. 18 December 2023. Archived from the original on 26 January 2024. Retrieved 26 January 2024 – via YOuTube.
^ "Two Irishmen meet by chance and play most amazing piano duet you've ever heard". Ireland Calling. 12 August 2019. Archived from the original on 19 December 2019. Retrieved 16 January 2020.
^ "A 'workman' wowed commuters with his piano skills at St Pancras station". Time Out London. 11 April 2017. Archived from the original on 25 January 2020. Retrieved 19 January 2020.
^ Loh, Matthew. "6 Chinese people demanded that a British pianist remove their faces from his public live stream. The ensuing fight has gone viral". Business Insider. Archived from the original on 23 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
^ "Sir Elton John's Piano – New & Events | St Pancras Station". St Pancras. Archived from the original on 24 January 2024. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
^ Zifei, Chen; Heung Yeung, Lee. "Chinese flag-wavers call in London cops over YouTuber's livestream". Radio Free Asia. Archived from the original on 23 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
^ Police Called To Stop Filming During Piano Livestream. Brendan Kavanaugh. 19 January 2024. Archived from the original on 23 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024 – via YouTube.
^ Powel, James (25 January 2024). "London pianist goes viral after clash with 'Chinese TV' group over livestream". USA TODAY. Archived from the original on 26 January 2024. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
^ "We Are Not In Communist China" | Bizarre Viral Confrontation Of Musician Brendan Kavanagh. TalkTV. 23 January 2024. Archived from the original on 23 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024 – via YouTube.
^ Dr K Vs. The Chinese Communists – Interview On TalkTV. TalkTV. 23 January 2024. Archived from the original on 24 January 2024. Retrieved 24 January 2024 – via Brendan Kavanaugh via YouTube.
^ "VIDEO: Brendan Kavanagh tells Piers Morgan that 'forces are at play' to remove his viral video from YouTube | TalkTV". TalkTV. 25 January 2024. Archived from the original on 27 January 2024. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
^ 刪影片爭議後續…女當事人反擊稱英國鋼琴家歧視 [Follow-up to the controversy over the deletion of the film... The woman countered that the British pianist was discriminating]. World Journal (in Traditional Chinese). 23 January 2014. Archived from the original on 24 January 2024. Retrieved 24 January 2024.

External links

BBC Radio London Dr K interview, "The Jo Good Show", 9 August 2019 on Facebook

[YouTubeStats-1] "About @DrKBoogieWoogie". YouTube.

[2] "Brendan KAVANAGH personal appointments – Find and update company information – GOV.UK". find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 23 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024.

[std1-3] Mitchell, Jonathan (7 May 2017). "'Police officer' musician fools Londoners with dazzling piano skills". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 7 May 2017. Retrieved 16 January 2020. Brendan Kavanagh, 49, from Wealdstone, donned various guises to appear at train stations and iconic landmarks across London to show off his musical prowess.

[4] "The two best piano players on YouTube have joined forces, and yes, it is brilliant". Ireland Calling. 15 October 2019. Archived from the original on 25 January 2020. Retrieved 20 January 2020.

[cfm1-5] "Teen's rendition of The Sound of Music's 'Edelweiss' at London Underground station goes viral". Classic FM. Archived from the original on 25 January 2020. Retrieved 18 January 2020.

[:0-6] Dr K Interview on The James Whale Show/TalkTV. TalkTV. Archived from the original on 23 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024 – via Brendan Kavanaugh via YouTube.

[7] Dr K / Brendan Kavanagh on Talk TV with James Whale – 1940 – 16th Dec 2023. digitalmediafan. 16 December 2023. Archived from the original on 26 January 2024. Retrieved 26 January 2024 – via YouTube.

[8] "Musician's incredible piano skills make people stop and stare in Cork Airport". Irish Independent. Archived from the original on 20 February 2020. Retrieved 16 January 2020.

[9] Nelly Ben-Or on ITV news 26/1/21 (copyright ITV News) in HD. Daniela Clynes. 1 February 2021. Archived from the original on 26 January 2024. Retrieved 26 January 2024 – via YouTube.

[10] Dr K's classical and boogie-woogie mentors (01:28). Brendan Kavanaugh. 19 January 2020. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 24 January 2020 – via YouTube.

[11] "Log in or sign up to view". m.facebook.com. Archived from the original on 23 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024.

[12] "Brendan Kavanagh's YouTube Stats (Summary Profile) – Social Blade Stats". socialblade.com. Archived from the original on 7 May 2023. Retrieved 22 January 2024.

[13] 'Harassed By Police For Playing Piano' | Brendan Kavanagh Full Interview With James Whale. Talk TV. 18 December 2023. Archived from the original on 26 January 2024. Retrieved 26 January 2024 – via YOuTube.

[14] "Two Irishmen meet by chance and play most amazing piano duet you've ever heard". Ireland Calling. 12 August 2019. Archived from the original on 19 December 2019. Retrieved 16 January 2020.

[15] "A 'workman' wowed commuters with his piano skills at St Pancras station". Time Out London. 11 April 2017. Archived from the original on 25 January 2020. Retrieved 19 January 2020.

[16] Loh, Matthew. "6 Chinese people demanded that a British pianist remove their faces from his public live stream. The ensuing fight has gone viral". Business Insider. Archived from the original on 23 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024.

[17] "Sir Elton John's Piano – New & Events | St Pancras Station". St Pancras. Archived from the original on 24 January 2024. Retrieved 27 January 2024.

[RFA-18] Zifei, Chen; Heung Yeung, Lee. "Chinese flag-wavers call in London cops over YouTuber's livestream". Radio Free Asia. Archived from the original on 23 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024.

[19] Police Called To Stop Filming During Piano Livestream. Brendan Kavanaugh. 19 January 2024. Archived from the original on 23 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024 – via YouTube.

[20] Powel, James (25 January 2024). "London pianist goes viral after clash with 'Chinese TV' group over livestream". USA TODAY. Archived from the original on 26 January 2024. Retrieved 26 January 2024.

[21] "We Are Not In Communist China" | Bizarre Viral Confrontation Of Musician Brendan Kavanagh. TalkTV. 23 January 2024. Archived from the original on 23 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024 – via YouTube.

[22] Dr K Vs. The Chinese Communists – Interview On TalkTV. TalkTV. 23 January 2024. Archived from the original on 24 January 2024. Retrieved 24 January 2024 – via Brendan Kavanaugh via YouTube.

[23] "VIDEO: Brendan Kavanagh tells Piers Morgan that 'forces are at play' to remove his viral video from YouTube | TalkTV". TalkTV. 25 January 2024. Archived from the original on 27 January 2024. Retrieved 26 January 2024.

[WJ2024-24] 刪影片爭議後續…女當事人反擊稱英國鋼琴家歧視 [Follow-up to the controversy over the deletion of the film... The woman countered that the British pianist was discriminating]. World Journal (in Traditional Chinese). 23 January 2014. Archived from the original on 24 January 2024. Retrieved 24 January 2024.

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 One YouTube live stream, uploaded on 20 January 2024, has achieved over 8.6&nbsp;million views.  It shows Dr. K playing the [[St Pancras railway station piano]] in London, and interacting with a group of Chinese people holding Chinese flags, and two [[British Transport Police]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Loh |first=Matthew |title=6 Chinese people demanded that a British pianist remove their faces from his public live stream. The ensuing fight has gone viral. |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/brendan-kavanagh-chinese-youtuber-pianist-demand-live-stream-face-police-2024-1 |access-date=2024-01-23 |website=Business Insider |language=en-US |archive-date=23 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240123165918/https://www.businessinsider.com/brendan-kavanagh-chinese-youtuber-pianist-demand-live-stream-face-police-2024-1 |url-status=live}}</ref> The group requested Dr. K not to film them and not to publish their images or voices. They cited [[image rights]] with "''Chinese TV''", Dr. K declined their requests.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://stpancras.com/news-events/sir-elton-john-s-piano/ |title=Sir Elton John's Piano – New & Events &#124; St Pancras Station |website=St Pancras |access-date=27 January 2024 |archive-date=24 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240124194910/https://stpancras.com/news-events/sir-elton-john-s-piano |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="RFA">{{cite web |last1=Zifei |first1=Chen |last2=Heung Yeung |first2=Lee |title=Chinese flag-wavers call in London cops over YouTuber's livestream |url=https://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/video-livestream-01232024105150.html |website=Radio Free Asia |access-date=23 January 2024 |archive-date=23 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240123163220/https://www.rfa.org/english/news/china/video-livestream-01232024105150.html |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite AV media |title=Police Called To Stop Filming During Piano Livestream |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65iwnI2hjAA |date=19 January 2024 |publisher=Brendan Kavanaugh |via=YouTube |access-date=2024-01-23 |language=en |archive-date=23 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240123034142/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65iwnI2hjAA |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Powel |first=James |date=January 25, 2024 |title=London pianist goes viral after clash with 'Chinese TV' group over livestream |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2024/01/25/brendan-kavanagh-piano-clash-chinese-livestream/72356544007/ |work=[[USA TODAY]] |access-date=26 January 2024 |archive-date=26 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240126050640/https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2024/01/25/brendan-kavanagh-piano-clash-chinese-livestream/72356544007/ |url-status=live}}</ref> He countered that filming in public locations is legal in Britain, and that the group was not in China.
-World-wide interest led to Dr. K interviews with mainstream media on the topic of free-speech issues that had been raised. He joined the journalist [[Mike Graham (journalist)|Mike Graham]] and then [[Piers Morgan Uncensored]], both programmes are on [[TalkTV (British TV channel)|TalkTV]]. Dr. K told Morgan his video clip already had two strikes for removal from his YouTube channel. He urged viewers to download the video in case it gets removed.<ref>{{Cite AV media |title="We Are Not In Communist China" {{!}} Bizarre Viral Confrontation Of Musician Brendan Kavanagh |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tHIX03ACGY |date=23 January 2024 |publisher=[[TalkTV (British TV channel)|TalkTV]] |via=YouTube |access-date=2024-01-23 |language=en |archive-date=23 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240123175017/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tHIX03ACGY |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite AV media |title=Dr K Vs. The Chinese Communists – Interview On TalkTV |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BIm-vF-YeY |date=23 January 2024 |publisher=[[TalkTV (British TV channel)|TalkTV]] |via=Brendan Kavanaugh via YouTube |access-date=2024-01-24 |language=en |archive-date=24 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240124182548/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BIm-vF-YeY |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-01-25 |title=VIDEO: Brendan Kavanagh tells Piers Morgan that 'forces are at play' to remove his viral video from YouTube {{!}} TalkTV |url=https://talk.tv/piers-morgan-uncensored/44960/brendan-kavanagh-piers-morgan-viral-video-youtube |access-date=2024-01-26 |website=[[TalkTV (British TV channel)|TalkTV]] |language=en |archive-date=27 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240127204938/https://talk.tv/piers-morgan-uncensored/44960/brendan-kavanagh-piers-morgan-viral-video-youtube |url-status=live }}</ref>
+World-wide interest led to Dr. K interviews with mainstream media on the topic of free-speech issues that had been raised. He joined the journalist [[Mike Graham (journalist)|Mike Graham]] and then [[Piers Morgan Uncensored]], both programmes are on [[TalkTV (British TV channel)|TalkTV]]. Dr. K told Morgan his video clip already had two strikes for removal from his YouTube channel. He urged viewers to download the video in case it gets removed.<ref>{{Cite AV media |title="We Are Not In Communist China" {{!}} Bizarre Viral Confrontation Of Musician Brendan Kavanagh |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tHIX03ACGY |date=23 January 2024 |publisher=[[TalkTV (British TV channel)|TalkTV]] |via=YouTube |access-date=2024-01-23 |language=en |archive-date=23 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240123175017/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tHIX03ACGY |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite AV media |title=Dr K Vs. The Chinese Communists – Interview On TalkTV |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BIm-vF-YeY |date=23 January 2024 |publisher=[[TalkTV (British TV channel)|TalkTV]] |via=Brendan Kavanaugh via YouTube |access-date=2024-01-24 |language=en |archive-date=24 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240124182548/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BIm-vF-YeY |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-01-25 |title=VIDEO: Brendan Kavanagh tells Piers Morgan that 'forces are at play' to remove his viral video from YouTube {{!}} TalkTV |url=https://talk.tv/piers-morgan-uncensored/44960/brendan-kavanagh-piers-morgan-viral-video-youtube |access-date=2024-01-26 |website=[[TalkTV (British TV channel)|TalkTV]] |language=en |archive-date=27 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240127204938/https://talk.tv/piers-morgan-uncensored/44960/brendan-kavanagh-piers-morgan-viral-video-youtube |url-status=live }}</ref> ''[[World Journal]]'', a [[Pan-Blue]] Taiwanese broadsheet newspaper, noted responses from the Chinese group and suggested that the station incident might have resulted from misunderstandings over language and culture. The group said they had raised concerns about Dr. K's filming due to their own [[non-disclosure agreement]] with Chinese State TV.<ref name="WJ2024">{{cite web | script-title=zh:刪影片爭議後續…女當事人反擊 稱英國鋼琴家歧視 | trans-title=Follow-up to the controversy over the deletion of the film... The woman countered that the British pianist was discriminating |newspaper=[[World Journal]] |date=23 Jan 2014 |url=https://www.worldjournal.com/wj/amp/story/121474/7729700 |language=zh-hant | access-date=24 Jan 2024 | archive-date=24 January 2024 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240124154406/https://www.worldjournal.com/wj/amp/story/121474/7729700 | url-status=live}}</ref>
 ==References==