Virginia Tichenor has been consumed by ragtime her entire life, as the daughter of Trebor Tichenor, the noted ragtime scholar, pianist, collector and founder of the St. Louis Ragtimers. She studied music at the St. Louis Community Association for the Arts, and took advanced training from concert pianist John Phillips. Always at the crossroads of the ragtime revival, her parental home houses the world's largest library of ragtime sheet music and piano rolls. Virginia grew up with legends like Eubie Blake, Max Morath and Butch Thompson chatting in her own living room. Her father is advisor-confidant for most of the ragtime community, so Virginia often heard new rags when they were forming in the minds of their composers. The topic of her college research project? The ragtime revival, of course!
Virginia is very highly regarded as a performer, and is one of the few women playing ragtime professionally in the country. Her repertoire features mostly folk and classic ragtime which she performs in an energetic style. Her recent performances include the Scott Joplin Ragtime Festival in Sedalia, Missouri; the St. Louis Ragtime and Traditional Jazz Festival in St. Louis, Missouri, the James Scott International Ragtime Festival in Carthage, Missouri, and the West Coast Ragtime Festival in Sacramento, California.
In 1998, Virginia released her first solo recording, a CD entitled "Virginia's Favorites". It contains 22 tracks, including four two-piano duets with her father, Trebor. Virginia also performs both with her husband, Marty Eggers, a talented bassist and pianist, and her father, Trebor. She recently recorded an album with both of them, featuring piano solos and duets.