The Rice Brothers

MENOMINEE — River Cities Concert Association (RCCA) presents the Rice Brothers on Friday, May 1, at Blesch Auditorium (a barrier-free venue) at the Menominee Elementary School in Menominee at 7 p.m. Central. This final concert of the 2025-2026 season is sponsored by Akins Pianocraft and Field & Forest Products.

Single tickets will be available at the door — cash or check only. For more information, contact Barb Akins by calling 906-863-7387 or visit www.rcconcerts.com.

Despite not having “a whit of musical skill,” the parents of Johnny and Chris Rice recognized their sons were both drawn to music from a very young age. It was during a trip from their hometown of Phoenix, Ariz., to Disneyland that three-year-old Johnny was mesmerized by pianist Johnny Hodges who was playing Ragtime and Boogie Woogie on Main Street.

When asked by his dad if he wanted to learn to play the piano, young Johnny responded with a heartfelt “Yes!” Johnny’s lessons began when he was four-years-old. Little brother Chris, not wanting to be left out, started piano lessons at the age of two.

Before long, they both began learning cello, as well. The Rice brothers were then being invited to play music at family gatherings, church events, schools and retirement communities.

In addition to igniting their early passion for music, Hodges would be the first among several world-class teachers to mentor the two brothers, including having the boys perform at Disneyland as part of their training. On piano, they were both accepted into the studio of internationally renowned pianist and Arizona State University Professor Robert Hamilton.

Studies with Johannes Kropfitsch, director of piano at the Vienna Conservatory, contributed to their deep exploration into the nuances that allow the highest levels of musicality to blossom. On cello, they received more than a decade of rigorous training from Taki Atsumi, long-time president of the American Cello Congress and professor at Arizona State University.

The Rice Brothers also received coaching from international and Grammy-winning cellist icons Eugene Friesen and Mstislav Rostropovich, the latter who once said to their father, “You need to understand … your sons are massively talented!”

The Rice Brothers also won gold medals in an international Chopin competition. Additionally, they were invited to perform their debut concert in New York City’s Carnegie Hall, where their performance thrilled the audience and elicited multiple standing ovations. Since then, they have toured extensively across the United States and Europe, performing in multiple settings — from large performing arts centers and house concerts to churches, elder care facilities and classrooms.

They have also recorded three CDs and are both private music teachers in Phoenix, where they enjoy sharing with both children and adult students what they have learned in their years of making music, including the connection that is possible between people through the arts.

Virginia Carlson, president of Sunday Afternoon Live in Raymond, Wash., described the Rice Brothers and their performance.

“From the minute Chris and Johnny entered our community’s city limits, the goodwill emanated from them like a magnetic pull,” Carlson said. “Of course, the musicianship on the piano and the cello was stellar! One can read the rave reviews and awards of the Rice Brothers, but to actually sit back and feel the folks in the auditorium being pulled into the musical experience with the fascinating stories about the composers, the culture, hear the personal connection of the brothers’ Polish family history, and feel a lifting of one’s spirits is an experience to be treasured.”