RING, EMIL (21 Nov. 1863-1 Feb. 1922), oboe player, pianist, teacher, conductor, and composer, was born in Fetchen, Czechoslovakia, son of Alvin and Anna (Roth) Ring. He trained at the Prague Conservatory of Music, and played in orchestras in Leipzig, Berlin, Vienna, Holland, and England. He met Cleveland soprano Rita Elandi at a royal command performance for Queen Victoria, they became friends, and Ring came to Cleveland in 1888 as conductor of the PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA after playing in the Boston Symphony Orchestra for 1 year.
Ring immediately demonstrated his conducting ability through his knowledge of a range of music, including works by Liszt, Grieg, Berlioz, Wagner, Hartman, Massenet, and Volkman, in the Orchestra's summer concerts in HALTNORTH'S GARDENS and 14 regular programs. From 1888-95, Ring was a piano instructor at the Cleveland Conservatory of Music. In 1898, the FORTNIGHTLY CLUB under Ring united with the SINGERS CLUB in a performance of Rossini's Stabat Mater at TRINITY CATHEDRAL. In 1902, Ring and JOHANN BECK were selected to lead the Cleveland Grand Orchestra, with the two men alternating as conductor for 10 years. Ring was also a long-time director of the Gesangverein and festival conductor of the 27th Saengerfest in July 1893 (see SAENGERFESTS). The Gesangverein premiered his An die Tonkunst, a short oratorio work that was published in 1900. Ring left the Emil Ring Memorial Collection to the CLEVELAND PUBLIC LIBRARY; it is one of the largest collections of music in the area. Ring was a member of the Musicians' Club from its inception.
Ring was married twice. In 1897, he married Edith Bohm. His second marriage was to Elsbeth Pluemer on 1 July 1903. Ring had no children from these marriages. He died in Cleveland and was cremated.