Donald Riggio, or Rig, as his family and friends knew him, was an accomplished instrumentalist, conductor, teacher, award-winning composer, and published writer, who was as comfortable conducting an opera as he was playing sax in a big band or teaching music theory to a bunch of college kids. Clarinet was his main instrument (having studied at Oberlin Conservatory of Music), and he held degrees from Murray State University and Louisiana State University. He also did postgraduate work at West Virginia University and the University of Illinois, the completion of which was interrupted by life, aka, five children. Even so, his career was varied and exciting: He played with both the Artie Shaw and Glenn Miller big bands as well as the Ringling Brothers Circus. He wrote an original ballet (A King’s Dream - for which he was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize) and a musical comedy (A Lot O’ Taurus). He conducted The Messiah at Christmas and took his college jazz band to the New York World’s Fair in 1964. Indeed, he managed to accumulate quite an impressive list of accomplishments over his multi-decade musical journey, mostly in and around the state of West Virginia where the aforementioned five children were raised.
While music was his passion as well as his profession, art was his favorite hobby. If you were to take a walk through his home (or his children’s homes, for that matter), you would be treated to a gallery-like atmosphere, filled with many of his wonderful paintings. His family was his favorite subject, especially his beloved wife, Suzanne, whom he artistically immortalized for the more than 63 years they were married.
His creative side also manifested in the form of prose and poetry. He authored hundreds of writings (which he performed with regular dramatic readings) on subjects big or small, grand or humble, frequently interjecting his delightful wit. This same droll humor also found its way into his art where one might see his face show up on a famous painting.
The child of Italian Americans James Rosario Riggio and Rose Cangiamilla, he was born in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1926. (To put that in perspective, Calvin Coolidge was president then.) He had one younger brother, Richard (Dolores). In 1952, he was married to the love of his life, Suzanne (Mouton), and had 5 children: Paul (Lynn), Mark, Teresa (Paul), Anne (David), and John (Janet). He had five grandchildren and three great grandchildren. He lived to the age of 96, which was a surprise to even him. He had always joked with his kids that he often felt like he had one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel.
He enlisted in the army right out of high school and was sent to Europe to fight during World War II. By his own admission, he was not much of a soldier, just a scared kid. He wrote a few essays of his adventures there, and despite the horrifying circumstances, managed to recount moments of humor. (Like the time his squad was given leave in France and instead of seeking friendly female companionship like his buddies, he spent it looking for the Buffet Clarinet Factory).
Besides his affection for music and art (among so many other things), Rig was an old house aficionado. Or at least he became one when he and Suzanne found a wonderful house on a mountainside in Charleston, West Virginia, that had been built in 1890. It was nicknamed The Terraces and became the stuff of family lore, if not legend. Rig and Suzanne immersed themselves in restoring it, employing their combined DIY skills from previous houses as well as their creative sensibilities. What began as a real fixer upper became a grand home. During its heyday, it housed unforgettable family gatherings, especially at Christmas. And because of its size, it was not uncommon to have multiple rehearsals going on in the house at the same time, like opera singers in the dining room and a brass quintet in the library. It truly was a golden era.
But as all eras must, it ended when Rig and Suzanne retired and decided to move to Wisconsin where 4 of their 5 children were living by the mid 1990s. They built a new house this time though, right next door to their eldest daughter and her husband. It became the new gathering place for the family for the next 20+ years. Rig was happy to settle in after a lifetime of hard work. He particularly enjoyed watching old movies, British comedies, and reruns of Perry Mason. And though there were no regular rehearsals in the house, there was music. And art. And laughter. And lots of love.
Rig had a full and truly wonderful life. We will miss him terribly, but we know that he is happy now that he is with Suzanne again.
Visitation will be held at Schmidt and Bartelt Funeral Home (10121 W. North Ave., Wauwatosa) on Wednesday, December 21, 2022, from 4:00 PM until 7:00 PM. Further visitation will take place at St. Mary’s Visitation Parish (1260 Church St., Elm Grove), on Thursday, December 22 from 10:00 AM until the Mass of Christian Burial at 11:00 AM. Interment to follow at St. Mary’s Visitation Cemetery.