Dick is a native of Missouri and he got here by way of the University of Texas at Austin. He got his Ph.D. there and taught there for 10 years before coming to the University of South Carolina in '73 (one of his students was a promising clarinet player by the name of Doug Graham).

Dick must have been at the front of the line when they were handing out talent.  He plays, writes, directs, arranges & teaches Composition and Music. His quintet plays a more modern variety of jazz and is very popular around town. He also has a fine big band. He has written several symphonies and other serious music. A few years ago, the Warsaw Symphony performed the world debut of one of his pieces with Richard Stoltzman playing clarinet. He does the arrangements for the University of South Carolina band and is responsible for the adoption of Also Sprach Zarathustra as their theme, and thus single- handedly introduced more South Carolinians to Richard Strauss than anyone else. He also writes musicals and directs many projects. But for us he plays a fine lyrical lead trumpet that fits well with the other guys.

Doug is professor of clarinet at the University of South Carolina and is a fine teacher as well as an all around good guy. He is also First Clarinet with the South Carolina Philharmonic Orchestra, plays clarinet and sax with Dick Goodwin's big band, and with the Quintet as well. He is a phenomenal musician in each venue. He and Tommy Wix constitute the best clarinet duo in the Southeast if not the nation. Initially, he played classical music exclusively but Dick Goodwin said, “there is a whole other world out there that you need to learn about.” And learn he did! It has been a pleasure to see him “spread his wings” since he started playing with our guys.

Back in the late 30's and early 40's several veteran New Orleans Jazz men came out of retirement and excited a new generation of musicians. The result was the "West Coast Revival".  The Yerba Buena Jazz Band was one of the earliest to devote themselves to re-creating the New Orleans sound. Then, musicians who honed their craft in that organization went out on their own. It was in that milieu that a teen-ager in the Bay area first got hooked on Jazz. And we are glad he did. Larry Conger quickly made a name for himself on cornet. He polished that talent playing with Turk Murphy in San Francisco before he came east.

In South Carolina, Larry quickly hooked up with some of the best musicians around, namely, the House Band of the Carolina Jazz Society. He more than anyone helped meld the group into a polished unit with a distinctive sound. There have been changes over the years but that legacy still lives.