Carmino Ravosa

Carmino Ravosa
Born Carmino Carl Ravosa
January 29, 1930
Springfield, Massachusetts
Residence Briarcliff Manor, New York
Ethnicity Italian American
Alma mater Hartt School of Music
Years active 1958–present
Website
www.carminoravosa.com

Carmino Ravosa (born January 29, 1930) is an American composer and lyricist, singer, pianist, as well as a producer, director, and musical historian. Ravosa, who has been writing music for children for decades,[1] is one of the most popular songwriters for schools in America.[2]

Ravosa is known for his songs published by Silver Burdett & Ginn and numerous songs with themes related to United States history.[2] Ravosa is the Composer-in-Residence and Faculty Fellow at the Dalton School, a private school in New York City, where he is described as a "Dalton legend".[2][3] He was formerly the Composer-in-Residence for the Edison Project.[4] Previously, he was a music teacher at the Fox Meadow School in Scarsdale, New York.[5]

Carmino Ravosa is an author and editor for Silver Burdett & Ginn's music textbook series "World of Music" and "The Music Connection", and the composer of the theme musicals in the two series.[2] He also was a songwriter for the CBS children's shows Captain Kangaroo and Romper Room, the PBS program Shining Time Station, and the PBS publication Sesame Street Magazine.[2]

He was named The Hartt School Alumnus of the Year in 2009 and was honored in 2013 at the Briarcliff Manor-Scarborough Historical Society's annual dinner.

Early life and family

Carmino Ravosa was born on January 29, 1930 in Springfield, Massachusetts, the oldest of three children, and the son of Anello and Elmira Ravosa.[6] His father was an Italian immigrant who owned and operated a milk delivery business and had a strong love of jazz and big band music of the 1930s and 1940s, and was the greatest influence on Carmino's music career.[7] Ravosa and his brother Anthony worked in their father's business for several years. Anthony later went on to become a lawyer and businessman in Springfield.[6] After serving in the United States Army, Ravosa attended The Hartt School and graduated in 1957.[8] He then earned a master's degree in Music Education from The Hartt School in 1965.[2] At the school, he met his wife Claire, who was a voice major there. The two have been married for almost 50 years.[8]

With his wife Claire, Ravosa has three children, Carine, Gina, and Dean, and seven grandchildren.[7][8] Ravosa and his family are prominent residents of the village of Briarcliff Manor in New York.[7] Ravosa has written numerous shows about the village, and was a musical director, lyricist, and keyboardist for the Centennial Variety Show, a series of performances in 2002 that celebrated the Briarcliff Manor's centennial.[9] Ravosa was also involved with preservation of Juniper Ledge, the Briarcliff Manor home of Carrie Chapman Catt. He added the home to the New York Register and the National Register of Historic Places.[8] On July 6, 2013, Ravosa was honored by the Briarcliff Manor School District, which uses his music curriculum, during Todd Elementary School's annual fifth-grade concert.[10]

Career

Ravosa's songs are performed worldwide, including in Kaiserslautern, Germany, where nearly 170 children performed Ravosa's musical "Friends".[11]

Performances

Ravosa has performed his music at many historic landmarks, including:

Ravosa gave a solo command performance of his musical "Ghosts in the White House" for President Jimmy Carter and First Lady Rosalynn Carter on October 30, 1978 at the White House Halloween party.[14] About 600 costumed guests attended.[15] He also performed his songs "Shh! We're Writing the Constitution" and "From George to George" at the inaugural ceremony of President George H.W. Bush and again at the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History on President's day in honor of President George W. Bush.[16]

His musical "Seneca Falls: A Documusical on the History of Women's Rights and Achievements", a work about the history of women's rights, was performed at the National Women's Hall of Fame.[16] The show was also performed on October 28, 1976, at the Women's Hall of Fame's Second National Honors Ceremony at Carnegie Hall.[17][18] Another musical of his, "Scarecrow" (based on Nathaniel Hawthorne's short story "Feathertop"), won four major awards at the International Light Opera Festival in Waterford, Ireland.[16][19]

Publications

Ravosa's first published work was "Johnny Appleseed - A Musical Play for Children", which was published by G. Schirmer, Inc. and Associated Music Publishers, Inc. in 1958. Two of Ravosa's songs were included in HBO's 2011 Independence Day documentary, Citizen USA, directed by Emmy Award-winning film journalist Alexandra Pelosi. The documentary focuses on the stories of new citizens across every US state. The film, Ravosa's national television debut, included a clip of him singing and playing "It's a Whole Other Country, Texas Is" and others singing a segment of his song "Let's Hear it for America".

Selected works

See also

References

  1. ↑ Charles, Eleanor (December 14, 1997). "Westchester Guide". The New York Times. Retrieved January 26, 2014.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 "Carmino Ravosa". The Hartt School, University of Hartford. Retrieved January 26, 2014.
  3. ↑ "Dalton Alumni Blast". The Dalton School. December 2010. Retrieved January 26, 2014.
  4. ↑ "Music To Their Ears N "Wild" Musical, Hot Meals Entertain at Senior Celebration at River Festival Concert". The Wichita Eagle. May 12, 1999. Retrieved July 21, 2012.
  5. ↑ Hudson, Edward (May 10, 1981). "Westchester Journal". The New York Times. Retrieved July 21, 2012.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Norris, Patricia (June 1, 2002). "Suess things are loose!". The Republican. Retrieved January 26, 2014.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Wolff, Margo. Margo Wolff Collection 1904-1990 (WEB). p. 60. Retrieved February 13, 2014.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 "A Passion For History Leads a Hartt Alumnus Down the Path to Historic Preservation". The Hartford Observer. Archived from the original on February 11, 2012. Retrieved July 20, 2012.
  9. ↑ Briarcliff Manor: The First 100 Years - The Centennial Variety Show. Village of Briarcliff Manor. 2002.
  10. ↑ "Local Composer Carmino Ravosa to be Honored at Todd Concert". Briarcliff Manor School District. June 5, 2013. Retrieved January 28, 2014.
  11. ↑ Grimm, Becky (June 5, 2009). "Young authors light up the evening at VES". Kaiserslautern American. Retrieved January 26, 2014.
  12. ↑ "Knapp's Tavern by Candlelight is Sunday". Greenwich Post. December 9, 2004. Retrieved July 21, 2012.
  13. ↑ "Washington's Headquarters starts three-day celebration today". Times Herald. February 17, 2007. Retrieved January 26, 2014.
  14. ↑ "The Daily Diary of President Jimmy Carter" (PDF). The Jimmy Carter Library. October 30, 1978. Retrieved July 21, 2012.
  15. ↑ Beals, Kathie (November 2, 1978). "Ravosa's 'Command' Concert". Ossining Citizen Register.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 "Alumni to be Honored at Commencement". UNotes Daily. May 1, 2009. Retrieved January 26, 2014.
  17. ↑ Wolff, Margo. Margo Wolff Collection 1904-1990 (WEB). p. 62. Retrieved February 13, 2014.
  18. ↑ Anderson, Susan Heller (April 9, 1984). "New York Day By Day; 'Seneca Falls,' Dalton-Style". The New York Times. Retrieved January 26, 2014.
  19. ↑ "White Plains Troupe Gets 4 Festival Prizes". The New York Times. Retrieved July 21, 2012.

External links

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