Richard A. Schwartz, instructor of saxophone and director of jazz studies at Southeastern Louisiana University, accomplished his solo debut in Los Angeles with a performance of Jacques Ibert’s Concertino da Camera for alto saxophone and orchestra, accompanied by the Henri Mancini Institute Chamber Orchestra. Mr. Schwartz, a native of Cherry Hill, New Jersey, authored the internationally recognized intonation tool The Tuning C.D. [1997] and the instructional guide Circular Breathe Now [2001]. He has worked as a freelance musician throughout the United States and Italy, performing solos with such musical legends as Ray Charles and Aretha Franklin. He has played backup for recording artists such as Linda Ronstadt, Byron Stripling, and Patti Austin and performed in orchestras, most notably the Boston Pops. As a woodwind doubler, Mr. Schwartz performed in pit orchestras, including the national tours of Kiss Me, Kate and The Producers.

Co-founder of the Terris Duo, Mr. Schwartz premiered and commissioned over a dozen works from talented young Boston-area composers. After performing the Boston premiere of Jan Curtis’ Transformations for voice, piano, and alto saxophone in Jordan Hall, The Boston Globe wrote, “…Richard Schwartz displayed extraordinary talent on the saxophone, sympathetically mirroring the voice and contributing his own improvisatory imagination.”

Mr. Schwartz holds a Bachelor of Music Education degree from Temple University and a Master of Music degree in Saxophone Performance from the University of Michigan. He is now nearing completion of a Doctorate in Musical Arts from Boston University. He has studied saxophone with Michael Monaghan, Donald Sinta, Frank Mazzeo, and Harold Karabell; jazz improvisation with Don Walden, Larry McKenna, and Dennis DiBlasio; clarinet with Deborah Chodaki and Larry Wagner; flute with Loren Lind, Alice Lenaghan, and Tamara Thweatt; and bassoon with Hugh Cooper and Karen Meyer. Other studies include two summer sessions with The Henri Mancini Institute and master classes with saxophonists Ramon Ricker, James Houlik, Phil Woods, and Eugene Rousseau.

Mr. Schwartz, having formerly instructed at Boston and Brandeis Universities, continues his role as saxophone chamber coach at the Boston University Tanglewood Institute. He is a proud member of the Music Educator’s National Conference, the American Federation of Musicians, the College Music Society, and Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia.

The Tuning C.D. booklet is dedicated to Allan and Nancy Schwartz, Don Sinta, Frank Mazzeo, Harold Karabell, and the author's friends and family.

Thanks are also given to: Blair Johnston, Steven Buck, Kelland Thomas, Paul Eachus at Tape One (recording), Glenn Fadool (art work), Roy Schwartz (art work), Michael Forbes (website) and Monte Belknap (string consultation).

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