Even on this poor-quality recording, I can tell that Ricci is a magnificent violinist. I remember his recordings in the 1960s and 1970s; then it seemed almost like he disappeared from the public stage. I wonder why.
Sorcerer2K, you are correct that Ricci was no matinee idol (neither was Paganini), but Lord, what a violinist! Don't forget that Ricci made a habit of playing all 24 Paganini Caprices on one recital program!
Ricci gave over 5,000 concerts during his career and his discography is enormous (more than 500 recordings), rivaled only by Kaufman, Heifetz, and Staryk. Contemporary fiddlers are lucky if they do 50 recordings. Ricci retired in October of 2003. (He recorded the Caprices four times.)
