RICHARD DUBUGNON was born in Lausanne (Switzerland) in 1968 and has both Swiss and French nationalities. He started music at the age of 20 after reading History in Montpellier (France) and was accepted in 1992 at the Paris Conservatoire, where he graduated with prizes in Double Bass, Counterpoint and Fugue. Richard also studied Composition at the Royal Academy of Music in London with Paul Patterson, from which he graduated in 1997 with a DipRAM and a Mmus degree of Composition, before becoming a Composition fellow there in 1998. When he returned to France in 2002, he became the recipient of the Pierre Cardin Prize from the Académie des Beaux Arts in Paris.

Qualified as "driven by a playful modern sensibility" by the New York Times in March 2011, Richard's music is currently championed by prestigious artists such as Janine Jansen who premiered his Violin Concerto with the Orchestre de Paris conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen in December 2008, just after performing his Piano Quartet at the Berlin Philharmonie. She recently recorded three pieces that Richard wrote for her new CD Beau Soir (DECCA) which instantly reached Gold status when it was released in the Netherlands in September 2010.

In 2008, Richard had his New York Philharmonic debut at the Avery Fischer Hall in the famous Young People's Concerts series created by Bernstein. In the Summer 2010, Richard was accepted for residencies at Yaddo (NY) and the Mac Dowell Colony (NH).
Forthcoming projects include a concerto for two pianos for Katia & Marielle Labèque, exceptionnally co-commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Gewandhaus Leipzig, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande and Orchestre de Paris for performances in 2011-13. Also in the pipeline is a co-commission of a string quintet for Janine Jansen & friends from the Concertgebouw Amsterdam and the Verbier Festival, for a World premiere in Spring & Summer 2011.

In 2007-08 Richard was composer-in-residence with the Orchestre National de Montpellier (France) where he completed his 77mn orchestra work Arcanes Symphoniques based on Tarot cards. This complete cycle for orchestra was recorded by the Orchestre National de Montpellier and released by Universal in November 2008. This recording won the Grand Prix Lyceen in April 2009, with the votes of over 400 schools in France. Richard also has a Naxos CD of chamber music (2002) which received excellent reviews from the U.S., British, French and Swiss press.
Emmanuel Krivine has given the American premiere of his Arcanes Symphoniques to great acclaim with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, in January 2004. Other conductors like Alain Altinoglu, Jesus Lopez-Cobos, Stephane Deneve, Enrique Diemecke, Mikko Franck, Ed Gardner, Friedmann Layer, Laurent Petitgirard, Muhai Tang have also championed and recorded his music. Orchestras also include the Orchestre National de France, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, Orchestre National de Lille, Orchestre Colonne, Orchestre Lamoureux, Orchestre Philharmonique de Nice, Orchestre Poitou-Charentes, Orchestre Francais des Jeunes, and the London Mozart Players.

Richard has been involved with many educational projects in the U.K., the U.S. and France and has several years experience of teaching Composition, in places such as the Royal Academy of Music and the Purcell School in London. He is also a double bassing, playing regularly as a chamber musician and sub with the Opéra de Paris.