(1874-1951)
American con-ductor, of Russian origin. Born in Tver, Russia, he moved to Moscow at the age of 14 where he was baptized. He studied double bass at the Musico-Dramatic Institute in Moscow and later joined the Bolshoi Opera. He subsequently settled in Germany where he continued to perform on the double bass and began conducting with the Berlin Philharmonic. He organized his own symphony orchestra in Moscow and went on various tours. After the 1917 revolution he became director of the State Symphony Orchestra. In 1920 he went to Berlin and Rome, finally residing in Paris. In 1924 he became conductor of the Boston Symphony.
Dictionary of Jewish Biography. Dan Cohn-Sherbok.