Jonathan Richards
Acoustic Bass
37 age
November 15, 1988 Birthday
Los Angeles, California, U.S. Birthplace
jonathanrichardsmusic.com Website
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About
Jonathan Richards is a Los Angeles-based acoustic and electric bassist, composer, and educator whose career spans jazz, pop, classical, and film scoring. He serves as Jazz Director at Occidental College and teaches at Pasadena City College, where he mentors emerging musicians. Richards has performed and recorded with David Foster, Khalid, Toni Braxton, Jeff Goldblum, and the Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra. He was featured on Beyonce's 2019 album The Gift and has contributed to scoring sessions for HBO's The Night Of, Hulu's Mrs. America, and Netflix's Dear White People. As a composer, he received a commission from the Seattle Symphony for his work Resilience, premiered at Benaroya Hall by the piano duo Hocket. He appeared as a guest performer on Wild Up's Grammy-nominated album Julius Eastman Vol. 3.
Trivia
Richards co-leads Wilberta, an ensemble blending jazz and alternative genres. He has appeared in videos with Postmodern Jukebox and performed at both the Academy Awards and the American Music Awards ceremonies. In 2023, he was commissioned by Oxy Arts to compose Dark Illumination, a musical response to a visual art exhibition by Kenturah Davis. In 2024, he served as bassist for the Pasadena Playhouse productions of Jelly's Last Jam and La Cage Aux Folles.
Early Life
Jonathan Richards was born on November 15, 1988, and raised in Los Angeles, California, in a musical family that exposed him to diverse genres from an early age. He earned his undergraduate degree from the USC Thornton School of Music, where he studied classical bass under Nico Abondolo and jazz under the mentorship of legendary bassist and arranger John Clayton. He went on to complete a master's degree at the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts), deepening his compositional voice and interdisciplinary practice. Beyond his formal education, Richards studied privately with David Allen Moore, Darek Oles, Steve Lehman, and Larry Koonse, building a foundation that bridges classical tradition, jazz sophistication, and contemporary innovation.
Jonathan Richards Solos
2023
Acoustic Bass solo - My Anguish In Solidarity - 2023
7/8 straight in E♭ major at 233 BPM
Acoustic Bass solo - Song for Luke - 2023
4/4 ballad in C minor at 54 BPM