1. Ruggiero Ricci was an American violinist known for performances and recordings of the works of Paganini.
18 Facts About Ruggiero Ricci
1. 2.
Ruggiero Ricci was born in San Bruno, California, the son of Italian immigrants who first named him Woodrow Wilson Rich.
3.
Ruggiero Ricci's brother was cellist George Ricci, originally named George Washington Rich.
4.
At age seven, Ricci studied with Louis Persinger and Elizabeth Lackey.
5.
Ruggiero Ricci gave his first public performance in 1928 at the age of 10 in San Francisco where he played works by Wieniawski and Vieuxtemps.
6.
Ruggiero Ricci gained a reputation for being a child prodigy.
7.
Ruggiero Ricci served in the US Army from 1942 until 1945, where he was an "entertainment specialist".
8.
In 1947, Ruggiero Ricci was the first violinist to record the complete 24 Caprices, Op.
9.
Ruggiero Ricci performed the world premieres of pieces by many contemporary composers, including the violin concertos by Gottfried von Einem, Carlos Veerhoff and Alberto Ginastera.
10.
Ruggiero Ricci taught violin at Indiana University, the Juilliard School and the University of Michigan.
11.
Ruggiero Ricci taught at the University Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria.
12.
Ruggiero Ricci held master classes in the United States and Europe.
13.
Ruggiero Ricci wrote Left Hand Technique, a pedagogical volume for violin published by G Schirmer.
14.
Ruggiero Ricci played, on 18 September 1997, his fourth recording of the Paganini Caprices on Paganini's own Guarneri, Il Cannone, on loan to him by the City of Genoa, Italy.
15.
Ruggiero Ricci died of heart failure in August 2012 at his home in Palm Springs, California, aged 94.
16.
Ruggiero Ricci reunited with Singer in Portland with the Oregon Symphony, and performed the Paganini, Stravinsky, and Brahms Concertos.
17.
Ruggiero Ricci made the first complete recording of the 24 Caprices in their original version in 1947 in London.
18.
Ruggiero Ricci later made further recordings of the complete set, as stated below:.