Ruggiero Ricci
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Ruggiero Ricci (born July 24, 1918 San Bruno, California) is an Italian-American violin virtuoso who has become famous in particular for his performances and recordings of the works of Paganini.
He is the son of Italian immigrants. His father first taught him to play the violin. At age seven, Ricci studied with Louis Persinger and Elizabeth Lackey. Persinger would become his piano accompanist for many recitals and recordings.
Ricci gave his first public performance in 1928 at the age of 10 in San Francisco where he played works by Henryk Wieniawski and Henri Vieuxtemps. He gained a reputation for being a child prodigy. At the age of 11, he gave his first orchestral performance, playing the Mendelssohn concerto, and soon after he had his highly successful debut at Carnegie Hall.
In the 1930s Ricci studied in Berlin with Georg Kulenkampff, where he learned a "German style" of playing in the tradition of Adolf Busch. He also studied with Michel Piastro and Paul Stassevich.
He served in the US Army from 1942 until 1945, where he served as an "Entertainment Specialist".
In 1947 Ricci was the first violinist to record the complete 24 Caprices, Op.1 by Paganini, on the Shellac recording label (he has since made three other recordings of the caprices). After his time in the military, he uncovered many pieces by 19th-century composers that he would perform solo. He has also performed the world premieres of pieces by many contemporary composers.
Aside from performing over 6,000 concerts in 65 countries during his 70-year solo career, Ricci has also made over 500 recordings on every major label. He has taught violin at Indiana University, the Juilliard School and the University of Michigan. He also taught at the University Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria. Ricci has held master classes in the United States and Europe. He also wrote a book Left Hand Technique published by Schirmer.
Ricci has owned many precious instruments, including the Guarneri Del Gesù violin known as the ex-Bronislaw Huberman, a fine Storioni, a Bellini, a Curtin & Alf, a Bague and a couple of Regazzi. He played his fourth recording of the Paganini Caprices on Paganini's own Guarneri on loan to him by the City of Genoa, Italy.
