I have been teaching people how to listen to great music for over forty years. For 25 of those years I was a week-daily classical music host and music specials producer for WGBH Radio, Boston, winning awards from the Massachusetts Broadcaster’s Association and American Women in Radio and Television. I did my own programming and presentation, using great care in selecting for the quality and inspiration of the greatest music of the last 1,500 years, and the performers who brought it vibrantly to our ears.
I have taught music appreciation (a term I don’t care for, preferring “music exploration”) at several continuing education schools in the Boston area, for over twelve years. Usually, my classes focus on one composer and I try to cast light on how they distinguish themselves as geniuses, how their work is unique and how they were shaped by their time. I prefer composers who inspire as well as engage the mind..
I hope to get students to embrace that inspiration, and also understand some of the mechanics that make inspiration expressible, which change as eras of music change and can be moving and rewarding to grasp for a music lover.
I hold a Masters degree in music from Boston University.
anonymous testemonials from my students at the Cambridge Center for Adult Education
“Great information, wonderful instructor.”
“This man knows his music.”
"Music was well analyzed including very helpful markings on the scores as we listened. I was really able to appreciate at a whole new level how Bach's music is wonderful.”
"Richard was an incredibly knowledgeable authority.”
“Learning the intricacies of Bach's composition was most positive.”
"[Mr. Knisely] had brilliant knowledge of Chopin's music and the culture in which he lived."
“Asking questions after class and obtaining resources/information for future study was a positive.”