BIOGRAPHY

John Richey graduated from the College of Wooster with a degree in Music Theory and Composition in 1986. The same year he moved to Bloomington, Indiana to study privately with the composer Donald Erb, then began graduate study at Indiana University. In 1988 he entered the University of Michigan, where he studied composition with William Albright and Leslie Bassett, electronic music with George Wilson, and music theory with Fred Lerdahl.

In 1991 he began doctoral work at the University of Illinois in Urbana. Besides studying composition with Salvatore Martirano and Paul Zonn there, he pursued a minor in comparative literature and taught music theory. After moving to Rochester, New York in 1995, he completed a dissertation on 19th-century harmony, earned a doctorate in Composition, and began work in computer music as a guest of the Electronic Music Studios at the Eastman School of Music.

Since 1998 he has lived in Chicago, where he practices sound synthesis using Csound, algorithmic composition using Visual Basic, and real-time composition using MAX/MSP. He also produces digital artwork.

John Richey's compositions have been performed and broadcast throughout the United States and in Europe, Asia, Australia, and South America. He has published essays on the music of Wagner, and has contributed reviews to Computer Music Journal.

For much of the past 25 years he has made his living doing graphic, technical, and design work for engineering and architecture firms. Currently he is a LEED-accredited project designer and technology manager for DLK Civic Design in Chicago.