Jim Rich’s experiences show wealth of interests
From our weekly issue dated March 26, 2008
Jim Rich (Photos by Illinois Valley News)
Why is that blacksmith playing an oboe and wearing a pirate outfit?
To know that would be to know Jim Rich.
Some know the rural Cave Junction resident as a creative blacksmith who forges iron tools, pot hangers and music stands at his blacksmith shop on Takilma Road. Others know him as artistic director of the Jefferson Baroque Orchestra, in which he also plays oboe and sings.
Others know him as an enthusiastic sailor who spends several weeks a year sailing the West Coast on the wooden ship, Lady Washington. If you saw any of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, you saw the Lady Washington and perhaps spied Rich as a sailor.
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His list of vocations and avocations goes on, but those cover the highlights.
So, which is the “real” Jim Rich? Well, all these descriptions apply. What is unusual is how he acquired these endeavors, particularly music. He related that as a child in Kansas City, Mo., he had little interest in sports or music or any one topic. He enrolled in college as a pre-med major at Northwestern University in Chicago, but only to please his mother. He was just discovering his classical music interest.
In the late 1960s in New York City, a young Jim Rich worked one summer between college semesters for The Musical Heritage Society, a classical record producer. He translated liner notes from Italian, French or German into English. He hoped to be a record producer for the society after graduation from college. However, his wish was delayed for two years.
The only musical instrument he played was the flute-like recorder. He sang in choirs and played recorder for some years, and thought he was “too old” to learn a new instrument in college. He says he thought, “It’s too late to learn anything else.”
Years later, he would prove himself wrong. In college, his love of early classical music grew, so he changed his major to music.
Rich arrived in Manhattan with his music degree and worked for G. Schermer, a sheet music publisher. He was the music rental librarian for orchestras and other performers. In 1969, The Musical Heritage Society hired him. He began by acquiring recordings from other countries to fill gaps in its catalog of classical recordings, and advanced to record producer.
As a record producer, he happily plied his trade, making vinyl records for several years. During the 1972-73 oil embargo, no one could make high-quality records because vinyl was a petroleum product. Unable to work, he moved to rural New Jersey where he discovered crafts and blacksmithing. He enrolled in blacksmithing school and discovered his talent for making iron tools in a forge, and found himself in quite a different kind of business.
In 1973, he moved to Petaluma, Calif., and apprenticed to the top horseshoe maker. In exchange, he taught the horseshoer to make hand-forged tools and hardware.
Rich married Nancy, and they had a son and daughter. The marriage did not last, but he remains in close contact with his former wife, his children and grandchildren. He is especially proud of his granddaughter, Suzanne. She is “a gutsy young woman” who served in the U.S. Army in Iraq, and is now finishing her hitch in Southern California.
Rich recently joined relatives in Kansas City to celebrate his father’s 94th birthday. He is close to his family and enjoys trips to visit.
Years ago, Rich moved to the Illinois Valley community of Takilma when it was still a town, and fell in love with it. He lived at the Sun Star commune and worked as a blacksmith. In 1982, he built his landmark blacksmith shop at 9350 Takilma Road, where he earned a reputation for custom-made horse shoes and horse-logging equipment.
One of his customers was Delbert Kauffman, who was then a horse-logger.
Additionally, Rich continued his love of Baroque and other early forms of music with fellow musicians in the area. They enjoyed playing early music, which is based on a different music scale than modern music. It requires musical instruments that can play in the Pythagorean, or mathematically pure, equal note scale.
Rich began going through his boxes of sheet music, pulling out pieces for friends to try. They began playing Renaissance music as well. Eventually, he formed the Siskiyou Baroque Chamber Ensemble, which performed in Grants Pass during the 1980s.
Rich built a harpsichord for a pianist member of his music group. He made several during the years and still owns one that has a lid painted with a sailing ships scene. Occasionally, it is played in public, such as during a Kerby Evening of Art & Wine, sponsored by Southern Oregon Guild.
Rich helped found the Jefferson Baroque Orchestra in 1994 in Grants Pass. He is the artistic director and an active participant, performing concerts in Grants Pass and Ashland.
He said, “It was easy to gather enough musicians for the orchestra. The challenge was to find a violinist to conduct them.” They found just the person in Humboldt, Calif., a man who had studied music in Europe and knew Baroque music.
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Most of the orchestra members are working people; many are in the medical profession in the region. Their jobs limit the time available to practice or perform, which is why most concerts are held in Grants Pass or Ashland.
As artistic director, Rich hopes to attract more people to the world of Baroque music, which he finds so pure and direct. He is devoted to keeping the orchestra music fresh and alive for audiences today. He commented that many people are surprised and enjoy the different sound of Baroque music, compared to the more complex forms of modern music.
This is a pretty full life for most folks, but not for Rich. A few years ago, he got to sail aboard the Lady Washington, one of two sailing ships that regularly tour the West Coast. For a price, people may sail and learn how to crew the ship, getting a taste of the life of sailors of 200 or so years ago.
Once again, Rich found a passion he had to pursue. Every year, he crews, sailing the Pacific Ocean along the West Coast for a few weeks.
When not climbing the rigging, he likes to entertain the rest of the crew with appropriate music, just as sailors long ago did. He plays a recorder, often joined by other musicians, for an evening of sea chanties and other old tunes. Rich looks forward to these adventures each year.
The main passion of his life remains music. He can often be found playing Baroque music with friends at Kauffman Wood Products during a Kerby Evening of Art & Wine. The next such event will be held Friday, March 28.
Usually, Rich wears colonial-era sailing clothes, complete with silver-buckled brogues.
Besides his Illinois Valley appearances, he can be seen with the Jefferson Baroque Orchestra at one of its performances with the OSF Green Show, Rogue Opera, Ashland City Band, or Siskiyou Singers. The Jefferson Baroque Orchestra next will perform April 13 at the Ashland Congregational Church at 717 Siskiyou Blvd. For additional information, visit jeffersonbaroque.org or phone 592-2681.
