Grant Richards
Biography Grant Richards
Grant Richards
NYC-based pianist Grant Richards is an award-winning performer, composer, and educator able to adapt to a wide range of settings, styles, and genres. A native of Portland, Oregon, Grant began his studies at an early age and was able to thrive in a vibrant and supportive musical atmosphere, aided especially by the guidance of his teachers Eldon Richards, Randy Porter, Gordon Lee, and Thara Memory.
At the age of fourteen, Grant produced and recorded his first album as a leader, comprised entirely of his own pieces and arrangements. Before entering college, Downbeat Magazine honored him with four prestigious Student Music Awards, including Best Solo Instrumentalist (’04), Best Jazz Arrangement (’05/’06), and Best High School Ensemble (’07).
In 2009, Grant enrolled in Berklee College of Music where he received the Jimmy Lyons Scholarship, a distinction awarded each year to one music student in recognition of their outstanding talent. During his time at Berklee, he had the opportunity to study under many leading teachers and performers, including Terri Lyne Carrington, Hal Crook, Doug Johnson, Alain Mallet, and Danilo Perez, before graduating with a BA in Piano Performance in May 2013. In November 2014 and 2015, Grant traveled to the Florida Institute of Technology where he was twice named a finalist in the American Jazz Pianist Competition after competing amongst the best young pianists in the country.
In his short career, Grant has performed with Grammy® award-winning artists Esperanza Spalding, Eddie Gomez, and Terri Lyne Carrington, as well as such luminaries as Dave Liebman, Kurt Rosenwinkel, TOKU, Valerie Simpson, Simon Phillips, Nancy King, Ben Wolfe, Damian Erskine, Javon Jackson, Greg Hopkins, Glen Moore, Dick Berk, and Chuck Israels. Shortly after releasing his second studio album, Numinous, Grant accepted a teaching position at an international music school in Tokyo where he resided for two and a half years. Following this rich experience and cultural immersion in Japan, Grant has moved back to the US and is now based in NYC where he remains active teaching and performing in one of the most vibrant scenes in the world.
