Stewart Kirwan is an Australian musician specializing in trumpet, flugelhorn and vocals. He has performed and recorded extensively, touring with bands and recording artists, and appearing on television specials and in musical theatre orchestras.
His musicianship has taken him all over the world, most recently on Cantopop superstar Jacky Cheung’s “A Classic Tour”, completing 233 stadium concerts in 97 cities across 28 months.
The diversity of artists he has performed on stage with range from legends such as Liza Minnelli and Elvis Costello to big band jazz with Michael Buble, Harry Connick Jr and James Morrison.
Stewart’s solid section playing and strong backing vocals have forged him a reputation as a versatile and dependable band member in the rock and pop scene, including stints with Leo Sayer, Marcia Hines, Jimmy Barnes, and Russell Crowe.
International artists Stewart has worked with include Jessie J, Kris Kristofferson, Leo Sayer, and Robbie Williams, RZA, The Four Tops, The Temptations, and Suzi Quatro as well as leading Asian stars Eason Chan, Jun Kung, Khalil Fong, Sam Lee and Sandy Lam.
He has performed and recorded with such leading Australian performers as The Cat Empire, John Farnham, Tina Arena, Jessica Mauboy, and many of Australia’s prominent rock acts including Midnight Oil, Hoodoo Gurus, Diesel, Silverchair, You Am I and Powderfinger.
Stewart has broad television experience as a regular band member on shows such as “Australian Idol” and “The Sideshow”. He has also performed on Italy’s prestigious “San Remo Music Festival” and “The Tonight Show’ in the USA. In the past few years Stewart has worked regularly as a musician on major Chinese television shows including “The Mask”, “I Am A Singer”, “Super Vocal” and “Phantacity”.
Stewart has had a busy recording career, having played on countless albums as a sideman. His extensive list of recording credits in Australian contemporary music runs the stylistic breadth from to The Potbelleez to Guy Sebastian, and also includes Pete Murray, Alex Lloyd, Taxiride, Emma Pask, The Whitlams, Wendy Matthews, James Blundell, Wes Carr, and Louis Tillett.
He has also been a regular in Broadway-style pit orchestras, playing shows such as West Side Story, Singing in The Rain, Fame, Priscilla Queen of the Desert, Saturday Night Fever, Burn the Floor, and The Boy from Oz.