Richard A. Cromie 2588 El Camino Real, #F520 Carlsbad, CA 92008 Tel: (760) 729-6136 Email: rich@rrragtimer.com Born: July 16, 1951, Los Angeles. Graduated: 1973, Loyola-Marymount University of Los Angeles; B.A. English. Married: Jan Frye, Designer/Consultant. Two sons: Scott (UCLA Grad, 1998), and Mike (UCSB, 2000). Affiliation: Member, Musicians Association of San Diego County. Local 325, A.F. of M. When not at the piano: IBM Telecommunications Consultant.

Rich was born in 1951 in Los Angeles, California to a musical family. His mother is a distinguished choral directress, and several aunts and uncles have chosen careers in music. His grandmother, "Frenchie," was an agent for children's singing parts, so Rich was cast in a number of screen and early TV productions beginning at age 5 until his voice changed at 14.

But Rich was always around the piano. He developed a love for ragtime during the revival of the early '70s. Along with books by Rudy Blesh/Harriet Janis and Edward A. Berlin and recordings by Joshua Rifkin, Eubie Blake, Dick Zimmerman, etc.; his library includes sheet music for over 100 rags (1897-1922) as well as some other popular music from the turn of the century.

Rich began composing ragtime in 1996. He says his inspiration comes from dreams. "I get the melody line and the story of the piece in a dream, and I need to get up and write it down immediately, or I lose it. Then comes a lot of experimentation and a lot of hard work to remain within the structure of the genre without losing the story I'm telling and the flow I want."

Besides the perfunctory childhood lessons, Rich is basically self-taught in piano and piano theory. He has performed as a solo pianist for the past several years for weddings, retirements, and other occasions; as well as doing contract work for local dining establishments and nightclubs. In January 1996, he was a guest pianist for The Beach Boys in concert at the San Diego Convention Center. He performs a live show, The Ragtime Centennial Show, which includes some history and theory of ragtime (and his own compositions). He has recorded six of his compositions at Carlsbad Studio West, Gary P. Johnson, Engineer. They are available on his Rich's Rags cassette tape.

Ragtime Compositions (unpublished):
The Centennial Waltz, A Waltz in Ragtime, (©1996) Richard A. Cromie, Lib. of Congress # PAu 2-089-888.
The Hollywood Park Smokestack Rag, (©1996) Richard A. Cromie, Library of Congress # PAu 2-113-918.
The Timberline Rag, (©1997) Richard A. Cromie, Library of Congress # PAu 2-162-010.
The Tortoise and the Hare, An Audible Illusion in Ragtime, (©1997) Richard A. Cromie, Library of Congress # PAu 2-198-637.
Sue and Howard's Wedding Patrol, (©1997) Richard A. Cromie, Library of Congress # PAu 2-246-344.
The Beachcomber Rag, (©1999) Richard A. Cromie, Library of Congress # pending.