By Marie Fricker

Archie Richards, 88, lives in a retirement community in Concord, N.H., but his passion for classical music and the piano has allowed him to entertain thousands of toe-tapping seniors on the South Shore and beyond. Although he still drives, Archie, a widower for the last eight years, hops trains, buses, and taxis to get him to his Bay State shows on time.
He has already booked 21 “gigs” through March and hopes to have more than 60 concerts in 2025. He brings his dramatic, crescendo-building, Chopin etudes and sonatas as well as sing-along favorites like “Give My Regards to Broadway,” and “June is Busting Out All Over” to such venues as the Goddard House in Brookline, the assisted living residence at Penniman Hill in Hingham, the Cohasset, Scituate, and Marshfield senior centers, Newbridge on the Charles in Dedham, the Compass on the Bay Memory Care facility in South Boston, and many more.
Whether Archie is playing a serious classical piece by Rachmaninov, or the mellow tones of Frank Sinatra, his audiences are mesmerized by his keyboard prowess and knowledge of his craft. The seniors who attend his performances are enamored with what they see and hear as Archie’s agile fingers glide seamlessly across the ivory keys, creating a feast for the senses that lasts until he takes his final bow to a standing ovation.
According to Jessica Souke, assistant director of the Scituate senior center, Archie has been “wowing” audiences at her facility for years.
“I had 60 seniors sign up for his performance in December, and everyone left in a great holiday mood,” said Jessica. “Archie is an accomplished and passionate pianist and educator and we appreciate learning about the music he loves.”
“Archie is outstanding, not only because of how he plays complicated pieces,” said center volunteer and attendee Mary Sheehan. “He also stands in front of the piano before he begins each selection and gives us a snapshot of the composer’s inspiration behind that particular musical masterpiece. You could hear a pin drop while he’s talking.”
Al Fricker, 74, of Scituate, a piano player himself, has become an ardent Archie Richards fan after attending two of his recent concerts.
“The idea that you can enjoy a classically trained pianist of Archie’s caliber for a $5 fee at your local senior center is absolutely amazing,” said Al. “He plays like a piano prodigy for a man of his age. He’s way out of my league.”
At almost 90 years old, Archie says it may be a “freak of nature” that he is still able to play the complicated works of his beloved composers, but he isn’t stopping yet.
“I don’t have top musical talent, but I am an expert at practicing,” said the pianist, writer, and former Boston stockbroker.
“I go to bed at 7:00 every night, then get up a few hours later and practice drills on the piano in our auditorium from 10 p.m. until 2 a.m. I spend 50 minutes on pure exercises for my fingers,” he says. “It isn’t easy to play 40,000 notes at a rapid pace during a one-hour classical concert for seniors. That’s why I never stop practicing. That’s my talent.”
Tongue-in-cheek humor is another staple of Archie’s performances.
“I tell four jokes during breaks in my sing-along music,” he said. “Here’s my favorite – A woman named Zsa Zsa Gabor had been married nine times. ‘I’m a wonderful housekeeper,’ she said. ‘Every time I leave a man, I keep his home!’
“I love that one.”

For more information, or to book a concert for seniors, contact Archie Richards at 603-717-5692 or email archier71@gmail.com.