Gilda Ruta

Gilda Ruta
(b Naples, 13 Oct 1856; d New York, 27 Oct 1932). Italian pianist, composer and singer. She studied with her father, then with Liszt in Rome and became one of the most distinguished pianists of the 19th-century Neapolitan school.

Francesco Florimo mentions her as a singer in 1876. After an early début in Naples, she embarked on a period of intense activity as a concert pianist, eventually performing in New York where she settled in 1896 and devoted herself to teaching the piano and composing. Her works include a Piano Concerto, Bolero and Andante rondò for piano and strings, a Violin Sonata, pieces for solo piano and songs. Some instrumental compositions show the influence of Classical style; in others the melodic vein is reminiscent of Chopin (in the Allegro appassionato for piano; Milan, 1884) and in keeping with the trend followed by pianists of the Neapolitan school. The simpler style of the late 19th-century Italian romanza and canzone is apparent in songs such as Alle stelle, Canzone marinaresca and Voglio guarire. Ruta was awarded a gold medal at the 1890 international exhibition of Florence for her vocal and orchestral works. Some of her piano pieces were published by Lucca and Ricordi and were favourably reviewed by Filippo Filippi, music critic of La perseveranza in Milan.