HOWARD L. "DICK" RICHARDS

RICHARDS, HOWARD L. "DICK," composer of dozens of works for orchestra and chamber ensembles and an engineer with RCA during the company's "Living Stereo" years, died on Wednesday in Winter Park, FL while recovering from recent knee surgery. He was 82. A graduate of Rollins College, Mr. Richards earned a B.M. in Composition and a B.A in Music, and received a Fellowship at Florida State University, where graduated with a Masters Degree in Composition. Following his graduation, he had numerous choral works published as part of the Robert Shaw Choral Series, which were recorded in 2009 and were being prepared for release by his record label Navona at the time of his death. In addition to his musical work, Mr. Richards was an engineer for IBM for almost three decades, and he was conscripted into the U.S. military service twice, first at the end of World War II and then again during the Korean War. In the early 2000s, Mr.
Richards was blinded during surgery as a result of a medical accident that could have been avoided. Despite this personal tragedy, Mr. Richards continued without pause his musical work and traveled frequently across the globe with his wife Jeanne, with whom he shared a birthday. In addition to his wife Jeanne, Mr.
Richards is survived by his brother Bruce Richards; sister Cherry Squiers; and his nieces and nephews.