Brad Richter

Bradley Nathan Richter (born 1969? in Enid, Oklahoma, USA) is a Classical guitarist.

Education and Background

Brad began teaching himself to play guitar and compose at age 12. At 18, having had no formal musical training, he was awarded the Presidential Scholarship to the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago where he began performing, composing, and eventually teaching professionally. After completing his undergraduate degrees in performance and composition, Brad accepted a scholarship to the Royal College of Music in London where he studied with guitarist Carlos Bonell. He became the first guitarist in the college’s history to win the coveted Thomas Morherr Prize, and went on to win the Royal College of Music guitar competition before completing his Master's degree and returning to the US to continue his concert career.

Career Highlights

Throughout North America and Europe, Brad has performed as a soloist, with renowned chamber ensembles and in duos with artists such as Grammy winning cellist, David Finckel of the Emerson String Quartet. His performances and compositions are frequently heard on NPR and PBS stations around the United States and he has also written and performed the score for the Emmy award winning PBS television series, The Desert Speaks.

Festival appearances have included the Guitar Festival of Great Britain, The London International Guitar Festival (with Carlos Bonell, Alirio Diaz and John Williams), The Aspen Music Festival and the Walnut Valley Festival, where he won the National Finger-picking Championship, a competition that features some of the world's finest guitarists from all genres. Additionally, Brad won first place in the 2004 International Composer’s Guild Competition. Mel Bay, GSP and Lathkill Music Publishers publish Brad’s books and compositions and his critically acclaimed new CD: A Whisper in the Desert, is now available from Acoustic Music Records.

While at home in Tucson, Arizona, Brad teaches music at the University of Arizona. He enjoys hiking, running, biking and playing his guitar in the mountains and deserts that surround Tucson. The rugged beauty of the American southwest continues to be a source of inspiration for much his music.

Residency and Outreach

Engaging children with music and stories, performing in hospitals, prisons, and homeless shelters…when I play for people who do not or can not access the arts on their own, I witness the power that music has to change lives. It is a universal language, a tie that binds us to one another across age, culture and economy and reconnects us with our most profound emotions. -Brad Richter

His professionalism and sincere commitment to the communities in which he works has helped make Brad one of the most sought after residency artists in the country. One such residency, his long-term outreach program teaching guitar to at-risk youth on the Navajo Reservation in Arizona, is the subject of a PBS documentary to be aired in 2007. In 2001 he was asked to develop the residency and outreach portion of the University of Arizona’s CAMERATA class, where he continues to enjoy working with graduate students to help them design their own residency programs.