Ellen Cockerham Riccio has served as Principal Second Violinist of the Richmond Symphony since 2009. She won the job while completing her Master’s degree at the Cleveland Institute of Music, where she also received her Bachelor’s degree, as a student of William Preucil. Prior to moving to Richmond, Ellen served as Principal Second Violinist of the Canton Symphony and was a member of the Akron Symphony.

Ellen is the founder of Classical Revolution RVA, the Richmond chapter of a worldwide movement to bring live classical music into non-traditional venues, and served as the organization’s Executive Director from 2012 to 2018. In April of 2020, Ellen began giving private solo violin concerts as A Violinist in Your Backyard, as a way of bringing live music to people during a time of isolation, uncertainty, and digital overload. During the summer of 2020, she gave more than 150 such concerts throughout the Richmond area. Ellen is also a member of Rosette, a string quartet based in Richmond. In 2021, Rosette launched a new concert series called So Hot Right Now which brings the music of living composers to a variety of venues in Richmond.