Greenville High Wall of Fame
By Dylan, Will, and Sam
Early Days
 Cass was born on May 3, 1931.
 He attended Greenville High School from 1945-1949.
 He started playing the piano at the age of five.
 He got his inspiration from his mother, who was a
singer.
 His favorite music to play was Mozart.
 He graduated from Furman with the Fulbright
Scholarship. He used that scholarship in Paris, where
he attended school.
Fame
 While spending two years Paris, he studied
music and became a well-known concert
pianist. He toured Europe, playing many
concerts and at one time became the most
requested pianist in the world.
Awards
 Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award
 National Federation of Music Club’s Young Artist
Competition Winner
 Violli International Contest Winner
 To quote Richard Riley, SC governor, and later
Secretary of Education: “I took piano lessons for four
or five years. I remember when I was in the third grade
at Donaldson Elementary School in Greenville, South
Carolina, and we were listening to a concert by Richard
Cass. My teacher, Miss Bess Allen, leaned over and
whispered, ‘Dick, you, too, can play like that if you will
take your music seriously.’ "
Later Years
 Richard Cass is retired from fulltime professorship at University
of Missouri.
 He lives in Kansas City, MO.
 He still does concerts and recently had a concert in Greenville,
performing with the Governor's School.
 He is a visiting professor at Furman, and comes to Greenville
regularly.
Interview
PROF. CASS: Still sounds like you’re in an echo chamber.
SAM/DYLAN: Haha ok.
DYLAN: Alright Prof. Cass, what was your favorite memory
from Greenville high school?
PROF. CASS: My favorite memory from Greenville High
School? I think probably, let me see. I was a member of
Demalay(?) and we used to have hay rides and, uh, I had a
date with a girl I liked a lot, and I think that’s certainly one of my
favorites.
SAM: Alright, What would you say is your favorite piece of
music? Did you have a favorite song growing up?
PROF. CASS: Well I think when I was younger I liked to play
the music of Mozart a lot.
SAM: Ok
PROF. CASS: And when you get older, and more experienced
as a pianist your ideas change, but at that time I think Mozart
was probably my favorite
DYLAN: Who inspired you to play piano?
PROF. CASS: Let me see, well I grew up in a musical family.
My mother was a singer and my initial contact with music was,
of course, through her. When I was a teenager there was a
movie that came out called “A Song to Remember”, and it was
about the life of Chopin. And there was a pianist who played
the music of Chopin and that was a big inspiration to me.
SAM: What age did you first start playing piano?
PROF. CASS: When I was five years old, and I started actual
lessons when I was eight years old
SAM: We read somewhere that you traveled around Europe a
lot. Any memories on that?
PROF. CASS: When I was a senior at Furman, I won a full ride
scholarship, and I also had a major in French at Furman, and I
wanted to go to France to study, So my senior year I won a fullride scholarship to France, and lived there for two years, Then
toured around Europe a lot in the years following that. In
France, Switzerland, and Germany.
SAM: Did you have a favorite city or favorite place?
PROF. CASS: Paris was probably my favorite city.
SAM: OK
PROF. CASS: It was the European City that I knew best. You know
there is only one Paris. I’ve loved other places too, but Paris is my
favorite.
SAM: Could you tell us anything about the other awards you’ve won?
PROF. CASS: Any what?
SAM: Any special award that stands out to you?
PROF. CASS: I didn’t get that, most important what?
SAM: Most important award to you?
PROF. CASS: The award that got me going on my concert career of
course is very important to me and that was the National Affiliation(?)
of Music Clubs Young Artist Competition. I won that in my senior
year at Furman and that really stands out for me. I got it in my
teaching career, I was eventually named a Curates Distinguished
Professor of the University of Missouri, and that is the highest honor
the University of Missouri gives so I am pretty proud of that one.
DYLAN: Do you still play any concerts?
PROF. CASS: Yep, I still tour, I still play. In fact I played in Greenville
just recently. I played a week and a half ago, I played a recital at the
Governors School.
SAM: Do you still come to Greenville a lot?
PROF. CASS: Yeah, I come every semester because I am a
distinguished visiting professor of music at Furman. So I come to
Furman a week or ten days every semester and teach and usually
play. My wife and I are both from Greenville so we’ve gone back
frequently over the years.
End of Interview.
Bibliography
 Cass, Richard. Interviewed 16 May 2009.
 Furman Music Department Visiting Professors.
Furman. May 12, 2009
http://www.furman.edu/depts/music/faculty/profiles/
visitingprofs.htm#RC
 Riley, Richard. FAME Acceptance Speech. FAME
Award Dinner. Washington, DC. Thursday, March 13,
1997.
Contributions
 Research: Sam, Dylan, and Will
 PowerPoint: Sam and Dylan (Framework), Will
(Formatting)
 Interview: Sam and Dylan