“Richard Page is remembered by his colleagues as not only a wonderful bass clarinetist with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, but also a skilled emergency repairman,” writes Caelin Miltko in Wednesday’s (5/26) Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “Said Jim Gorton, Mr. Page’s longtime friend and retired co-principal oboist for the PSO, ‘You would sit in his workshop and he would keep working on the instrument until it was perfect.’ … Sue Martin, Mr. Page’s wife, said his involvement in instrument repair was an example of how ‘meticulous and attentive to detail’ her late husband was. Mr. Page, 66, of Mt. Lebanon was the principal bass clarinetist for the PSO from 1978 to 2014. He died Saturday from glioblastoma, a type of brain cancer. Born in Forest Hills, he began playing an instrument at age 8 when his mother gave him an old clarinet.” Page studied with PSO Principal Clarinet Louis Paul and attended Carnegie Mellon University. “Page also was a founding member of the Pittsburgh New Music Ensemble. He and his wife also hosted ‘Concerts for Causes’ in their home, through which they raised $30,000 in three years for the Homeless Children Education Fund.”
Posted May 29, 2015
