Editor’s note: Join us for a reunion concert in honor of Dr. Fischer June 23 on campus! The program includes a variety of wind band music classics, as well as some new music and surprises. While the concert is free, we are anticipating a full house to celebrate Dr. Fischer, so please register in advance online.
It’s hard to imagine anyone loving their job more than Dr. Richard Fischer, distinguished professor of music and the Fred and Jane Wittlinger Endowed Chair for Music Performance. His face lights up when he reflects on what he’s done, and he gestures animatedly as he talks about what he still wants to accomplish. After 50 years as Concordia-Chicago’s director of bands, he is as passionate about it as ever.
Dr. Fischer and the Wind Symphony have performed concerts in almost every state in the nation, as well as Canada, Europe, China and South Africa. They have played at countless music festivals and conferences, including the New York City Wind Band Festival at Carnegie Hall as the showcase ensemble in 2014 and 2019. Under Fischer’s direction, the Wind Symphony has commissioned and premiered numerous wind band compositions, and recorded 16 albums of sacred wind music which are played daily on radio stations across North America. The list of his accomplishments and honors could go on for pages.
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In 1974, Fischer’s start at Concordia was anything but easy. “Besides student-teaching, I had never taught a day in my life. I realized very quickly how little I knew,” he says. Fischer started in September, and conducted his first concert on Nov. 10 in the South Gym. The morning after the concert, President Zimmerman’s secretary called Fischer to a meeting with the hiring committee. “I figured they’d found a permanent conductor—I thought, at least I got to conduct one concert! But they said, ‘We see something in you. We want you to continue.’”
To this day, Fischer is grateful that the University took a chance on him. “God must have wanted me here—there is no other way to explain it. I was so green,” he says. Fischer immediately dove headfirst into learning and improving his skills. Over the next decade, he completed his master’s degree, attended many conducting symposiums, and earned his doctorate at Michigan State University, studying under conductor Eugene Corporon.
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One of the most exciting parts of being the Wind Symphony conductor is the travel, he notes. The Wind Symphony’s three tours to China, in 2005, 2009 and 2013, impacted Fischer the most. “We had enormous audiences of 1,300 to 3,000 people—it was incredible. At that time, they were really interested in American music,” he says. “But the government had to approve our program. They knew all about me, they knew all about our university and the Lutheran religion. It was exciting, but a little scary.”
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These days, what’s most important to Fischer is that his bands play from the heart, and that they make a connection with the audience. “I try to inspire my students. We don’t simply want to play technically good performances. There’s got to be expression and feeling in the music. I talk about faith, love and empathy,” he says.
The above are just a few excerpts—there’s much more to the story! To read about Dr. Fischer’s reflections on growing up in Bellwood, IL, his family and the hymn commemorating his 50th year of service, read the full article online.
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