Richard Link is a Canadian composer, musical director, teacher, and performer living in London. An accomplished pianist, he often music directs, conducts, and plays for his own productions.
Link was born in Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada. After graduating from high school, he moved to Edmonton, Alberta, where he attended the University of Alberta and graduated with a bachelor of music degree. He worked professionally in Edmonton as a composer, musical director, and teacher until 1996 when he moved to San Francisco, California. He studied kinesiology and taught musical theatre at San Francisco State University. He attended John F. Kennedy University where he completed a master's degree in Holistic Health Education. In his masters thesis Art as a Spiritual Practice, he developed a new methodology for teaching performing arts. His thesis asserts that honoring the individual—and focusing on the process, not the product—creates the best possible performance, and ironically, the best end product. In 2006 Link moved to London, where continues to compose, teach, music direct, and perform.
Compositions
The majority of Link's compositions are musical theatre and choral works, and he has also scored music for film, video, television, and dance. His musical theatre works include 15 one- and two-act musicals, plus music for plays and incidental music. Musicals include A Little Princess, Alberto the Dancing Alligator,Dream World,Gideon's Dream,The Painter's Dream, and Watch Me Shine. Three of his musicals were written for Children's Musical TheatreSan Jose as part of their "Theater as Digital Activity " program. Link has written an extensive body of choral music, both secular and sacred. Secular works include three choral works, Songs for Us,Woven Together, and Four Seasons, all for SATBmixed chorus. He's also written song cycles and art songs, mostly for one or two voices and piano, and has set three of Vikram Seth's poems to music. His sacred music compositions include anthems and liturgical music. Link has also crafted popular music. Link teamed with Niall Vignoles, co-writing and playing on all songs on the full-length CD "Hard As Nails".
Musical direction
Link has directed over 100 shows, from well known shows by contemporary composers to obscure musical theatre pieces. His direction credits are fairly evenly distributed between professional theatre companies, high schools and colleges, fringe theatre, community theatre, and summer stock.
Awards
Winner, 1994/1995 Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Award for outstanding composition and design. Winner, 1992/1993 Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Award for outstanding musical direction. Nominee, 1990/1991 Elizabeth Sterling Haynes Award for outstanding musical direction.
