Sarah Gurowitsch

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Sarah Gurowitsch
A young white woman holding a cello and bow.
Sarah Gurowitsch, from a 1914 publication
Born(1889-02-17)February 17, 1889
Russia
DiedApril 24, 1981(1981-04-24) (aged 92)
New York
NationalityAmerican
Other namesSara Gurowitsch, Sara Gurovitch, Sara Gurowitch, Sara Leight, S. Gurowitsch
Occupation(s)Cellist and composer

Sara Gurowitsch (February 17, 1889 – April 24, 1981) was a Russian Empire-born American cellist and composer.

Early life[edit]

Sarah Gurowitsch was born in the Russian Empire, the daughter of Harry and Esther Goldenberg Gurowitsch, and raised in New York.[1] Her brother Frank and her sister Esther were also musicians.[2] She studied in New York at the National Conservatory of Music and with cellists Hans Kronold and Leo Schulz,[3][4] then went to Germany for further musical studies with Robert Hausmann.[5] In 1906, she won the Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdi Prize in Berlin.[6][7]

Career[edit]

While in Europe, Gurowitsch played Eugen d'Albert's cello concerto, with the composer himself accompanying her on piano.[6] She made her American debut in 1910, with the New York Symphony Orchestra, under conductor Walter Damrosch.[2][8][9] In 1913 she made a recording of the Kol Nidre,[10] and headlined a "Russian Music Carnival" at Carnegie Hall.[11]

In 1914, she toured on the lyceum circuit with baritone Marcus A. Kellerman.[6] In 1916, she played at a concert of Jewish music at Columbia University.[12] She played a concert at Bushwick High School in 1917.[13] "She has a splendid command of her instrument," commented one reviewer in 1919, "gets a beautiful tone, and plays with sureness and soulful interpretation."[14]

Gurowitsch left the professional stage after marriage in 1919, but she occasionally played at Jewish women's events in Bergen County, New Jersey. For example, in 1931 she played at a women's meeting of the YMHA,[15] and in 1939 she performed at a local meeting of the National Council of Jewish Women.[16]

Personal life[edit]

Sarah Gurowitsch married a fellow Russian immigrant, Samuel Benjamin Leight, in 1919. Their sons Lawrence and Donald became musicians;[17] another son, Edward, became an illustrator.[2] Playwright and television producer Warren Leight is Sarah Gurowitsch's grandson.[17] Her husband died in 1970.[18] Sarah Gurowitsch Leight died in 1981, aged 92 years.[2][19]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "A Young Cellist". The Violinist. 6: 37. February 1909.
  2. ^ a b c d "Sarah Gurowitsch". Composers Classical Music. Retrieved December 16, 2019.
  3. ^ "National Conservatory of Music". Musical Courier. 44: 24. March 5, 1902.
  4. ^ Tonkünstler Society of New York (1901). Programmes, Names of Members and Officers pp. 12, 14, 17.
  5. ^ "Sara Gurovitch". The Etude. 25: 124. February 1907.
  6. ^ a b c "Marcus A. Kellerman, Noted Dramatic Baritone". The Lyceum News: 4. March 1914.
  7. ^ "Stipendien (1879-1934) | Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy Hochschulwettbewerb" (in German). Retrieved December 16, 2019.
  8. ^ "1910 Dec 09, 11 (Subscription Season) SSO". New York Philharmonic, Leon Levy Digital Archives. Retrieved December 16, 2019.
  9. ^ "THE NEW YORK SYMPHONY.: New Pieces by Hugo Kaun -- Miss Guro- witsch Plays d'Albert's 'Cello Concerto". The New York Times. December 2, 1910. p. 9 – via ProQuest.
  10. ^ "Sarah Gurowitsch (instrumentalist : cello)". Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved December 16, 2019.
  11. ^ "Russian Music Carnival". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. April 22, 1913. p. 20. Retrieved December 16, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "Columbia Menorah Concert of Jewish Music". The Menorah Journal. 3: 190. June 1917.
  13. ^ "S. Gurowitch, Russian 'cellist at Bushwick High School". The Chat. February 10, 1917. p. 1. Retrieved December 16, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Fine Concert". Star-Gazette. April 3, 1919. p. 4. Retrieved December 16, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ "Women's Division to Meet on Monday". The Record. May 17, 1930. p. 18. Retrieved December 16, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "Administration is Re-Elected by Jewish Women's Council". The Record. May 3, 1939. p. 15. Retrieved December 16, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ a b Keepnews, Peter (January 18, 2004). "Donald Leight, 80, Musician Who Inspired Play 'Side Man'". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved December 16, 2019.
  18. ^ "Deaths". The New York Times. May 31, 1970. p. 57 – via ProQuest.
  19. ^ "Deaths". The New York Times. April 30, 1981. p. B12 – via ProQuest.

External links[edit]

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