Kent grew up in St. Louis and his love of music lead him to study trombone with Bernard Schneider, then Principal Trombone of the St. Louis Symphony. He was a member of the Saint Louis Symphony Youth Orchestra in the early to mid-1970s’ serving as Principal there under Leonard Slatkin and Gerhardt Zimmerman. Kent also performed with the community orchestras of Kirkwood, Maplewood-Richmond Heights and Webster Groves.
Kent earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in mathematics from Washington University in Saint Louis. Eventually his musical studies took him to Philadelphia where he earned a Bachelor of Music degree at the Philadelphia College of Performing Arts (now University of the Arts).
Professionally, Kent has worked in college admissions and as an outside sales representative for a small wine wholesaler and general manager for a large wine and spirits emporium outside of Atlantic City, New Jersey. In September 2001 he returned to Saint Louis, working for the Oreck Vacuum Retail Stores as a store manager and then as Saint Louis Regional Manager until retiring in 2019.
Kent was introduced to Chamber Music Society of St. Louis by friends in 2014 and describes CMSSL performances as the highlight of his winter season. Kent resides in Kirkwood and supports numerous arts organizations in the area.