RICHARD PEASLEE

PEASLEE--Richard C.

("Dick"), 86, died August 20, 2016 at his home in Seattle, WA due to complications from MS. He is survived by his wife of 54 years, Dixie Peaslee, his two children, Jessica Peaslee (Wil Zogbaum) and R. Cutts Peaslee (Carolyn Dunn), grandchildren Felix, Cordelia and Gideon, and sister Lucy Dougall. Dick was born in New York City on June 13, 1930, to Amos J. and Dorothy Peaslee. He studied music at Yale (BA, Phi Beta Kappa) and Juilliard (MA, with Honors), as well as privately with Nadia Boulanger in Paris and Bill Russo in New York and London. Living on the Upper West Side for most of his life, Dick enjoyed a long and varied career as a composer, writing music for the theater, dance, instrumental concerts, television, and other commissioned performances. His best known works include the scores for the Royal Shakespeare Company's "Marat/Sade," directed by Peter Brook, Martha Clarke's "The Garden of Earthly Delights," for which he won an Obie award, and the Joseph Campbell/Bill Moyers PBS television series "The Power of Myth," for which he earned an Emmy nomination. In 1989, Lincoln Center's Composers' Showcase presented a retrospective of his career at Alice Tully Hall. Dick and Dixie moved to Seattle in 2006 and enjoyed exploring the wilderness of the Pacific Northwest. Dick's last major work, "Ahab," was performed in Seattle in 2012. Dick found countless ways to help others over the years, encouraging and mentoring young musicians and others, through teaching, volunteering, and serving on several boards. He was unfailingly supportive and generous to everyone in his extended family. A celebration of his life will be held in Seattle on October 16th, and another will be held in New York on a later date to be announced. Donations may be made to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.