by
Mike Mueller
Assistant
Editor |
His longtime dedication
to Brazilian music and culture was honored at São Paulo's prestigious
Festival do Inverno at Campos do Jordão (Winter
Festival) where he performed and taught with the best Brazilian Jazz
and Classical musicians.
Richard's moving
lines and knack for knowing when to express fire and when to express
gentle breeze through his instrument convinced GuitarOne of his
belonging to the elite group presented here.
For further evidence,
take fellow feature-mate Jack Grassel's word for it. Jack knows
Richard from their teaching stints at the National Guitar Workshop,
and his thoughts on Richard's guitar playing can be summarized quite
simply: ‘He scares me.'
Practice
An interesting
slant to Richard's practice is his interest in physical fitness, as
evidenced by participation in half-Ironman competitions and a regular
yoga regimen. He points out how physical aspects such as muscle tone,
flexibility, proper breathing, and posture can impede or accelerate
technical facility on the instrument.
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"Many musicians
don't realize their body itself is an instrument unto itself that needs
care and attention." He goes on to explain that when a musician
is experiencing trouble with a particular aspect of his performance,
the pure physical aspect is often overlooked.
"They might
ask, 'Why can't I play that passage cleanly or up to tempo?' Well,
the physical relationship between one's body and the guitar may be the
entire root of the problem."
Influences
"Guitar-wise,
I had many of the common influences when I was younger: Clapton,
Johnny Winter, B.B. King. When I got to college, I studied Classical,
Renaissance, and 20th-century masters like Ravel and Debussy.
Then, I immersed myself completely in Jazz, where I discovered Django
Reinhardt, Wes Montgomery, Pat Martino, and especially John McLaughlin.
"John showed
me that dedication to one's music and teaching needs to be rooted in
a deeper life purpose, a mission to share your music with people as
a tool for healing and being of service to others. That universal energy
is important; otherwise, you're just chasing down gigs and press clips
to build your ego."
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For many years,
Richard has absorbed a whole other genre of influences from noted Brazilian
musicians. He counts among them guitarists Baden Powell, Luiz Bonf‡,
Sebastião Tapajós, Guinga, and Raphael Rabello,
who died in 1995 at age 32. "Raphael was the undisputed heir to
the solo guitar choro tradition. He took the instrument to another level
of passion and technical virtuosity.
Turning
Point
"I took my
first trip to Brazil in the summer of '98 when their government invited
me as guest artist-professor for the Campos do Jordão festival.
I spent two months immersed in the culture, teaching and performing
with my heroes like Amilton Godoy and the master and inventor of the
seven-string, Dino Sete Cordas. When I returned to the States,
all the New York-based Brazilian Jazz cats started calling me for gigs.
After 25 years playing this music, I had finally earned acceptance into
those very tight, elite circles.
In
His Own Words
"I'm a musician
first. When I'm presented with a piece of music- my own or another composer's-
the first thing I do is determine what I can bring to fulfill its artistic
vision. It might be guitar, the voice, writing an article about it,
or using it in a lesson with an aspiring student. Guitar is just one
of my tools for expressing and channeling my musical energies."
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