Keith Moss  was born in Pretoria but grew up in Port Elizabeth where he received his music training in Piano performance at Nelson Mandela University.  In 2007 he completed a Masters degree in composition under Péter Louis van Dijk at Rhodes University and in 2011 relocated to Pretoria.  He is a full-time composer and has engaged in various activities associated with the occupation of writing, scoring and arranging throughout South Africa. He was the director of the new music ensemble The Paz Consort for 7 years which was  formed in 2009 to promote and perform new works by young South African composers. After establishing itself in Gauteng the group premiered over 24 new compositions for various ensembles.

In 2010 he won the SAMRO Overseas Scholarship for composition, one of South Africa’s largest prizes for this category and in 2011 travelled to the United Kingdom to further his education.  He participated in master classes with the heads of composition at The Royal College of Music, The Guildhall School of Music, The Royal Northern College of Music and the University of Cardiff.  In 2012 he was the first recipient of the Stefans Grové National competition for composition for his Trio written for Flute, Oboe and Clarinet which has now become the Masters compulsory work for wind players at the Padua Music conservatory in Italy.  His doctoral creative output was awarded the Faculty prize at the University of Pretoria where Keith completed his degree in 2017 under Prof. Alexander Johnson.  His work was chosen in 2015 by the CNC to be performed by the resident ensemble and the piece I Am who I Am can be heard on YouTube.  In 2016 he won the Grové competition for a second time with a choral work the moon is hiding in her hair which will be published later this year with Helbling Chormusik.  This piece has been recorded by the Horizons Project Choir conducted by Pieter Bezuidenhout and is available on iTunes.

Keith has been regularly commissioned by various organisations including SAMRO, the International Horn Society in Texas and by tertiary institutions, the OSM Camerata being the most recent of these.  Amongst these commissions are also private individuals, one of which has requested a new opera for 2017 and a clarinet sonata for the performer Danré Strydom.  He has been the program director of music for the Cool Capital Biennale 2014, an adjudicator for the Nnational Eisteddfod of the Arts and the editor/designer for the Unisa 2016 piano albums.