Professor of Music
Dane Richeson is recognized as one of the most versatile virtuosi in percussion. Throughout the world he has been featured in such diverse roles as solo marimbist, percussionist for contemporary chamber music, world percussion specialist and jazz drummer. Performances have been with such diverse artists as Bobby McFerrin, Gunther Schuller, Joe Lovano, NDR Big Band in Hamburg- Germany, Lionel Hampton, Dianne Reeves, Roscoe Mitchell, Claudio Roditi, Medeski-Martin-Woods, Eddie Daniels, Marc Johnson, Kenny Wheeler, Geoff Keezer, Lyle Mays and Uri Caine. He regularly performs with the chamber ensembles CUBE (Chicago) and The Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society (Madison, WI). He has performed at festivals such as Ravinia, North Sea Jazz Festival, Montreux Jazz Festival, and Beijing Music Festival. Mr. Richeson has performed on many recordings including works on Blue Note Records, Origin Records, Klavier, Accurate, Mark, Naxos, A-Records, CRI, Albany, Innova, A-440, and the major motion picture, Sphere.
Mr. Richeson is Professor of Music at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin, where he is director of percussion studies. Under the direction of Mr. Richeson, LUPÉ (Lawrence University Percussion Ensemble) has been awarded honors by the Wisconsin Music Educators Association and nationally by the Percussive Arts Society. The ensemble released its first CD in the fall of '95 featuring a rare recording of Cantata para America Magica by Alberto Ginastera. Fanfare Magazine called the recording "striking...great waves of sound come thwacking out of your speakers" and Down Beat claimed "the performers render the material with rigorous discipline and concentration..." LUPÉ released their second CD in 2004 which features three premiers and guest soloist Michael Spiro.
Mr. Richeson earned his master's degree from Ithaca College, where he was graduate assistant under renowned marimbist/composer Gordon Stout, and bachelor's degree from Ohio State University, with additional studies at Indiana University of Pennsylvania and Drummers Collective, NYC. His teachers have included Linda Pimentel, Charles Owen, Frank Malabe, Jamey Haddad, James Moore, Gary Olmstead, Michael Spiro, and Tele Lesbines. In addition, Mr. Richeson has lived in three distinctly different cultures: Ghana, Africa, studying the music and dance of the Ewe people with master drummer Godwin Agbeli and gyil with Kakraba Lobi; Matanzas, Cuba, where he studied with Afro-Cuban drummer Jesús Alfonzo, musical director of Los Muñiquitos de Matanzas and Daniel Alfonso; Salvador and Sao Paulo, Brazil where he studied the drumming traditions of the State of Bahia with Giba Conceicao and choro/MPB styles with Guello. This research was funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts/Arts International and Lawrence University.
Contact by e-mail: dane.m.richeson@lawrence.edu
