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We are deeply sorry to share the news of the recent passing of Ruth Ravina and invite you to continue her and Oscar's legacy with a gift to the Ruth and Oscar Ravina Talent Award Scholarship.
Ruth and Oscar Ravina surrounded themselves with music and used music as a way to inspire and help. In Montclair, everyone knew the Ravina home: Oscar gave music lessons and Ruth would provide a listening ear and a shoulder to cry on, for students, who for one reason or another were in various degrees of distress.
In a 2019 interview she gave to Michael Yashinsky for the Wexler Oral History Project, Ruth describes her reaction at the first time she heard Oscar play violin: “I melted like butter; my jaw dropped; I had never heard playing like that before. He had the most gorgeous sound – that what he was known for, the sound”.
Oscar’s stellar career spanned four decades as member of the NY Philharmonic, concertmaster of the Philharmonia Virtuosi of New York and several other prestigious chamber music ensembles, and solo concert performances under the direction of major conductors.
Oscar’s passion for music also made him a beloved and sought-after teacher. He wanted to inspire future generations of musicians. For 25 years, Montclair students had the benefit of being taught by Oscar. After his passing, students and colleagues honored his memory by establishing the Ruth and Oscar Ravina Talent Award at Montclair State University.
Ruth and Oscar were a team. For Ruth’s 85th birthday in 2022, her strength and all the love and support she brought to the Ravina family was honored with a special screening of the award-winning documentary “An Inconvenient Time” by director Denny Klein. It features Ruth sharing, in her own words, her resilience in surviving the Holocaust. Her message of hope and persistence through adversity strongly aligns with the mission of the Ruth and Oscar Ravina Talent Award.
The Ruth and Oscar Ravina Talent Award enables student musicians, sometimes first in their families to attend college, to breathe just a little easier and dedicate themselves fully to their craft, instead of worrying about the student debt they would face upon graduation.
The Ravina family is committed to continuing and expanding the legacy in honor of Ruth and Oscar. Please consider a gift to grow the Ruth and Oscar Ravina Talent Award and give generously to ensure that future generations of music students will know the “gorgeous sound” that defined Oscar Ravina. Thank you.