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84 year-old Jim Richards has been singing with barbershop choruses for over half a century. The international singing organization, 

, recently welcomed Richards into its Hall of Fame, not just because of his tenure as a singer, but also his role as a teacher. Richards has used his PhD in Physics to teach barbershop singers about the physics of sound.

For those of us who are music theory novices, Richards explains that a "tuned" piano is actually slightly 

tune, in order to divide up the notes into a 12 key scale. Singers can actually hit the "pure" or "true" notes, which he says is much more satisfying to the ear:

Richards will be heading to Anaheim, California in the next few days for the Barbershop Singers annual 

. Two local groups will be performing there - the 

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Marianne Combs

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Jim Richards has taught the physics of sound to barbershop singers for more than 35 years.

Roseville resident makes Barbershop Harmony Hall of Fame

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