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|  Andy has been a professional musician for over 30 years and a percussion teacher for the past 22 years (CRB 0010995095030).
After leaving school in 70's he toured world-wide as a professional freelance drummer, percussionist and singer, performing, recording and appearing on radio, television and the West End with a wide variety of musicians and entertainers. Andy has performed an eclectic range of styles including pop,rock, heavy metal, punk, blues, funk, jazz, reggae, classical and musicals.
Since the 80's Andy has taught drum kit, orchestral percussion, Latin, African and Afro-Cuban percussion to all age groups and abilities. In 1991 Andy started teaching for Shropshire Music Service. In 2003 Andy was awarded the Kenny Clare Prize. He was voted BBC Radio 2 Big Band Drummer of the Year by a panel of judges which included John Dankworth, Don Lusher, Barry Forgie (BBC Big Band Director), Mark Nightingale, Henry Lowther and John Patrick. In 2004 he was appointed Head of Percussion for The Music Service serving Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin. In 2005 he was appointed Team Leader for South Shropshire. In 2007, in addition, he was appointed Marketing Manager. Andy currently oversees the tuition of over four hundred young drummers and percussionists. Many of Andy's students have gone on to achieve great success as drummers and percussionists. Ashley Soan studied drum kit with Andy in the late 1980's and is now one of the busiest drummers in the industry, working with, Robbie Williams, Will Young, James Morrison, Boyzone, Ronan Keating, Natasha Bedingfield, Del Amitri, Squeeze, Hear Say, Mariane Faithfull, Howard Donald (Take That), Tom Jones, Heather Small, Faithless, Lightening Seeds and Jeff Lorber. David Odart studied drum kit with Andy in the 1990's and he now teaches for Telford Music Service. Mitch Perrins studied with Andy in the 1980's and is now living and working in New York as a drummer and composer. Leon Cave also studied with Andy in the 80's and is currently touring with Francis Rossi (Status Quo), Crane Brothers, The Little Pictures and Ska Wars. Celi Evans, who studied with Andy in the late 80's, can be seen playing percussion with Brynn Terfel, Katherine Jenkins, Catrin Finch and Andreas Bocelli. Helen Pugh studied drum kit and percussion with Andy before studying at Chethams School of Music and going on to win Shropshire Concerto Competition (Shropshire Young Musician of the Year). And most recently Toby Kearney studied with Andy before entering and reaching the final of BBC Young Musician of the Year 2006. Lydia Glanville studied with Andy in 2000's and is now carving a career as a musician and educator.
In 2005, as part of the government's Wider Opportunities scheme and Extended Schools initiative, Andy started running African drumming workshops and whole class teaching in schools across Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin. Since then over 8,000 children and adults have participated.
Andy has been the conductor/manager for the Shropshire Youth Percussion Ensemble (SYPE) for the last fifteen years. During that time they have performed countless concerts in this country and abroad, most recently touring Belgium. SYPE rehearse on alternate Mondays 7pm-9pm during term time and perform concerts throughout the county and abroad. SYPE members have included Adrian Spillett (winner of BBC Young Musician of the Year 1998) and Toby Kearney (finalist of BBC Young Musician of the Year 2006)
In 2009, on BBC Radio, David Bedford, composer/orchestrator/arranger for the films "The Killing Fields", Supergrass", "Absolute Beginners", "Meeting Venus" "Orlando" and artists Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Madness, Elvis Costello, Billy Bragg, Enya and many more, described Andy's percussion playing in the William Mathias Clarinet Concerto as "stunning".
In 2009 Andy also played drum kit on the latest recording of the Bryan Jones Big Band.
In 2010 Andy took the Shropshire Youth Percussion Ensemble on tour to Northern France.
Now regarded as one of the most sought after teacher/drummer/percussionists in the Midlands, Andy performs with his band Five Live, The New Disciples, Bryan Jones Big Band the Latin band Quiver, Shropshire Sinfonia, Casey Greene Sextet, Casey Greene Quartet, Maria Vincent’s Millionaires, Swingshift, The Shrewsbury Big Band to name but a few.
Andy lives in Cressage, Shropshire with his wife Maria and three children Thomas, Joshua and Aja. Away from the world of music and education, Andy enjoys piloting gliders off the Long Mynd at The Midland Gliding Club, gardening, canoeing or just lazing by the river at the bottom of the garden.
For more information please contact: Andy Richards Severn Valley Studio 2 Orchard Close Cressage Shrewsbury Shropshire SY5 6BZ Tel: 01952 510334 Mob: 07790 775249 | |
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