A diverse musical career
Rich Ford’s career has taken him from New York concert halls, Broadway orchestra pits, and recording studios to festivals and stages throughout the world.
His work spans orchestral performance, chamber music, theatre, commercial recording, international touring, and education.
Education
Rich earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Temple University’s College of Music, where he studied with Hal Janks of the Metropolitan Opera.
He later earned a master’s degree from The Juilliard School, attending as a scholarship student and studying with Don Harwood of the New York Philharmonic.
His additional teachers included Charles Vernon, Vincent Panzarella, and M. Dee Stewart.
Eroica Brass
While studying at Juilliard, Rich founded the Eroica Brass Quintet.
The ensemble won the 1985 Artists International Competition and made its Weill Recital Hall debut at Carnegie Hall on March 2, 1986. The New York Times described the group as “spirited” and “virtuosic.”
Eroica Brass commissioned, recorded, and premiered more than ten works. The ensemble performed throughout the New York metropolitan area and the East Coast and held a residency at Saint Ignatius of Antioch Episcopal Church on Manhattan’s Upper West Side.
Orchestral performance
Rich has performed with opera, ballet, symphonic, and concert orchestras in New York and beyond.
His orchestral engagements include:
Metropolitan Opera Orchestra New York Grand Opera American Ballet Theatre Orchestra American Symphony Orchestra New Jersey Symphony Colorado Philharmonic Orquesta Sinfónica del Estado de México
Rich has performed under conductors including Riccardo Muti, Leonard Bernstein, Maxim Shostakovich, James Levine, Hugh Wolff, Gerard Schwarz, Gunther Schuller, Enrique Bátiz, Jorge Mester, and JoAnn Falletta.
His concert-hall appearances include Carnegie Hall, the Metropolitan Opera House, Avery Fisher Hall, Alice Tully Hall, the Kennedy Center, the Mann Music Center, and the Academy of Music in Philadelphia.
Broadway and studio work
Rich performed in the orchestras of more than a dozen Broadway productions.
His Broadway credits include:
Les Misérables Miss Saigon City of Angels Meet Me in St. Louis The Lion King The Secret Garden
He also performed in the Christmas and Easter productions at Radio City Music Hall.
Rich’s New York studio work included commercial recordings and film soundtracks. His commercial credits include Planters Peanuts, Pepsi-Cola, and Army ROTC.
His film work includes soundtrack sessions for Cop Land and Mercury Rising. He also appeared on screen as a performing musician in Big.
Ray Charles and international touring
Rich toured internationally as a member of Ray Charles’s orchestra, performing throughout Europe, Japan, Canada, and the United States.
He was the final bass trombonist to perform with Ray Charles.
Rich also performed with the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, originally founded as the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra.
As a sideman, he performed with artists including Bruce Springsteen, Willie Nelson, Billy Preston, Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra Jr., Gladys Knight & the Pips, and Peter Frampton.
His festival appearances include the Montreux Jazz Festival, Festival International de Jazz de Montréal, Toronto Jazz Festival, and Monterey Jazz Festival.
Teaching
Rich has taught students at every level, from beginners through graduate students.
He taught private lessons from his studio near Lincoln Center in Manhattan and worked in private and public schools throughout the tri-state area.
Rich has also presented masterclasses at Fairleigh Dickinson University, Temple University, and Ithaca College.
He currently teaches low brass at Cornell University.
Trombone on thin ice
Outside music, Rich has a longstanding passion for ice hockey.
He has combined his interests in music and hockey by performing national anthems on trombone while skating at tournaments in the United States, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Sweden, Switzerland, Austria, and Italy.
During his years at Juilliard, Rich was selected as the starting goaltender for the Juilliard Penguins. The team competed annually against musicians from the Manhattan School of Music and the New England Conservatory.
