Lazare Saminsky, born Lazar Semyonovich Saminsky (russian: Лазарь (Элиэзер) Семенович Саминский; Valehotsulove (now Dolynske), near

Odessa Odesa (also spelled Odessa) is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea. The city is also the administrativ ...

, 27 October 1882 O.S. / 8 November N.S. –

Port Chester Port Chester is a village in the U.S. state of New York and the largest part of the town of Rye in Westchester County by population. At the 2010 U.S. census, the village of Port Chester had a population of 28,967 and was the fifth-most populou ...

, New York, 30 June 1959), was a performer, conductor and composer, especially of

Jewish music Jewish music is the music and melodies of the Jewish people. There exist both traditions of religious music, as sung at the synagogue and domestic prayers, and of secular music, such as klezmer. While some elements of Jewish music may originate ...

Life

Born to a merchant family, Saminsky received a broad education in the arts, sciences and languages. He studied music at the Odessa conservatoire from 1903–1905, and then went to

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

, where he studied mathematics and philosophy as well as music. Expelled for his participation in the student protests of 1905, he went to St.Petersburg, where he studied with

Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov . At the time, his name was spelled Николай Андреевичъ Римскій-Корсаковъ. la, Nicolaus Andreae filius Rimskij-Korsakov. The composer romanized his name as ''Nicolas Rimsk ...

Anatoly Lyadov Anatoly Konstantinovich Lyadov (russian: Анато́лий Константи́нович Ля́дов; ) was a Russian composer, teacher, and conductor (music), conductor. Biography Lyadov was born in 1855 in Saint Petersburg, St. Petersbur ...

, and

Nikolai Tcherepnin Nikolai Nikolayevich Tcherepnin (Russian: Николай Николаевич Черепнин; – 26 June 1945) was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. He was born in Saint Petersburg and studied under Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov at t ...

. While still a student he became a founder member, with

Mikhail Gnesin Mikhail Fabianovich Gnessin (russian: Михаил Фабианович Гнесин; sometimes transcribed ''Gnesin''; 2 February .S. 21 January18835 May 1957)Sitsky, Larry. (1994) ''Music of the Repressed Russian Avant-Garde, 1900–1929,'' pp.24 ...

Lyubov Streicher Lyubov Lvovna Streicher (3 March 1888 - 31 March 1958) was a Russian composer, teacher, and violinist, as well as a founding member of the Society for Jewish Folk Music. Streicher was born in Vladikavkaz Vladikavkaz (russian: Владикавк ...

, and others, of the '

Society for Jewish Folk Music The Jewish art music movement began at the end of the 19th century in Russia, with a group of Russian Jewish classical composers dedicated to preserving Jewish folk music and creating a new, characteristically Jewish genre of classical music. The ...

'. He wrote music for the Society and helped organise its earliest publication. He continued an active member, even though from 1911 to 1918 he lived in

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the Capital city, capital and the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia, lying on the ...

, where he also interested himself in

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

and

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...

n music, and from 1917 to 1918 he was head of the conservatory. During this period he also wrote an

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

''Tsar Yulian (Emperor Julian)'' (which he later destroyed), and researched Jewish music of the Caucasian region. He was particularly interested in styles of

cantillation Cantillation is the ritual chanting of prayers and responses. It often specifically refers to Jewish Hebrew cantillation. Cantillation sometimes refers to diacritics used in texts that are to be chanted in liturgy. Cantillation includes: * Chant ...

('' nigun''). In 1919 Saminsky left the Soviet Union and travelled to France and England, where he gave recitals of Russian and Jewish music, and led a ballet season at the

Duke of York's Theatre The Duke of York's Theatre is a West End theatre in St Martin's Lane, in the City of Westminster, London. It was built for Frank Wyatt and his wife, Violet Melnotte, who retained ownership of the theatre until her death in 1935. Designed by th ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, where he married the poet Lillian Morgan (1893–1945). In December 1920 he left to settle in the United States, where he was active as a composer, conductor and organiser of musical events. In 1922 he became a board member of the International Composers Guild. In 1924 he was awarded a MacDowell fellowship, working in the Monday Music Studio. From 1924 he was music director of the Temple Emanu-El Synagogue in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. For the synagogue he composed music for the Sabbath and Holiday services, also commissioning work from other Jewish composers including

Joseph Achron Joseph Yulyevich Achron, also seen as Akhron (Russian: Иосиф Юльевич Ахрон, Hebrew: יוסף אחרון) (May 1, 1886April 29, 1943) was a Russian-born Jewish composer and violinist, who settled in the United States. His preoccu ...

and

Isidor Freed Isidore ( ; also spelled Isador, Isadore and Isidor) is an English and French masculine given name. The name is derived from the Greek name ''Isídōros'' (Ἰσίδωρος) and can literally be translated to "gift of Isis." The name has survived ...

. Saminsky's major compositions include the ''First and Second Hebrew

Song Cycle A song cycle (german: Liederkreis or Liederzyklus) is a group, or cycle (music), cycle, of individually complete Art song, songs designed to be performed in a sequence as a unit.Susan Youens, ''Grove online'' The songs are either for solo voice ...

s'' opp. 12 and 13 (written in 1914, published New York, 1922, text in

Yiddish Yiddish (, or , ''yidish'' or ''idish'', , ; , ''Yidish-Taytsh'', ) is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated during the 9th century in Central Europe, providing the nascent Ashkenazi community with a ver ...

), songs, choral works, and piano pieces. Saminsky wrote numerous books on Jewish music, contemporary music, and conducting.

Works

*Operas: The Vision of Ariel (1916), Gagliarda of a Merry Plague (1925), The Daughter of Jepta (1929), Julian, the Apostate Caesar (1933–38), *Symphonies: No. 1, Of the Great Rivers (1914); No. 2, Symphonie des Sommets (1918); No. 3, Symphony of the Seas (1924); No. 4 (1927); No. 5, Jerusalem, City of Solomon and Christ, for chorus and orchestra (1932) *Orchestra: Vigiliae; Lament of Rachel; Venice; Ausonia; Three Shadows, Poems for Orchestra; Pueblo, A Moon Epic; Stilled Pageants *Solo with Orchestra: The Vow - Rhapsodic Variations for Piano and Orchestra (1917 ; rev. 1943); East and West, Suite for Violin and Orchestra *Vocal/Choral: To Zion, a Choral Fantasy; 4 Sacred Choruses; 10 Hebrew Folksongs and Folk Dances; 3 Hebrew Song Cycles; 6 Songs of the Russian Orient; Requiem, in memory of Lillian Saminsky; Sabbath Morning Service; Holiday Service; By the Rivers of Babylon

Sound

''Shir hashirim (Song of songs)''
by Saminsky, sung by Emma Schaver

Recording

''The Vow'' - Rhapsodic Variations for Piano and Orchestra (Barry Goldsmith/Royal Scottish National Orchestra/David Amos), CD, Kleos Classics (2005)

References

Sources

Grove Music Online ''The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians'' is an encyclopedic dictionary of music and musicians. Along with the German-language ''Die Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart'', it is one of the largest reference works on the history and theo ...

, ''Saminsky, Lazare'' * Beate Schröder-Nauenburg, ''Der Eintritt des Jüdischen in die Welt der Kunstmusik'', Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 2007, pp. 151–208. * Baker's Biographical Dictionary of Musicians (Revised by Nicolas Slonimsky), G. Schirmer, NY, 1958, ''Saminsky, Lazare''

External links

Musica Judaica
page on Saminsky {{DEFAULTSORT:Saminsky, Lazare 1882 births 1959 deaths Russian opera composers Male opera composers Odesa Jews Russian male classical composers Jewish classical composers Musicians from Odesa Emigrants from the Russian Empire to the United States Emigrants from the Russian Empire to the United Kingdom 20th-century Russian male musicians