Lieutenant Colonel Richard Shelton (USAF, retired)
Music Director & Conductor

Colonel Shelton retired as the senior ranking officer in the United States Air Force Band Program in 1995 after 25 ½ years of service as an Air Force Band Commander and Conductor. Colonel Shelton earned a bachelor’s degree in Music Education from the University of Arizona in 1971, and a Master of Music Education degree from Auburn University in 1978. He is also a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Air Command and Staff College and Air War College. During his Air Force career, Colonel Shelton commanded Air Force bands throughout the United States and Southeast Asia and has entertained and performed for Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush, French President Francois Mitterand, Pope John Paul II, Imelda Marcos, former First Lady of the Philippines, and numerous U.S. Ambassadors overseas; national and international events including the 1983 World Economic Summit at Yorktown, U.S. Embassy hosted tours throughout Thailand, Taiwan, the Philippines and Portugal; and the U.S. Bicentennial Celebration at Yorktown. Following his Air Force retirement, Colonel Shelton joined the staff of the prestigious Naples Philharmonic in Naples, FL, working with renowned pops conductor Erich Kunzel. Colonel Shelton was appointed Executive Director of the West Valley Symphony in 1997, and began his third and current successful career in Real Estate in 2006. Colonel Shelton and his wife of 53 years, Stacia, reside in Glendale.