David koussevitzky biography

He studied at the Vilna Academy of Music and became a choir master at the age of eighteen.
David Kusevitsky was the youngest of four world-renowned cantorial brothers; the other three were Moshe, Jacob, and Simcha.
Moshe Koussevitzky was a cantor and vocalist.

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http://www.uscj.org/njersey/w-orange/Cantor/Cantor2003feb.htm

......Moshe Koussevitzky was born on June 9th 1899 at Smargon and came from a background of Cantors. He was the oldest of four brothers, Jacob, Simcha and David; each of whom went on to become famous Chazanim in their own right. Moshe began his singing career at the age of eight as an alto in the choir of Chazan Shlepak. Like many artistic people, he could not only sing, but he was also gifted with his hands. As he grew up he toyed with the idea of becoming an artist or a sculptor. Fortunately, however, he accepted a position as Chazan at the Vilna 'Savel's Shul' and in 1927 he auditioned for the plum position in Poland at the 'Tlomazke Shul' in Warsaw where, against the finest opposition, he was awarded the post. He took the opportunity to study voice and music, and throughout his life he always learned Torah.

Being in such an illustrious Cantorial postion, his fame spread around Europe very rapidly and soon Moshe traveled to Brussels, Antwerp, Vienna and London to give concerts. During World War II, Moshe

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Moshe Koussevitzky

Moshe Koussevitzky (Hebrew: משה קוסביצקי, Polish: Mosze Kusewicki; June 9, 1899 in Smarhoń, Russian Empire – August 23, 1966 in New York City) was a cantor and vocalist. A relative of noted conductor Sergei Koussevitzky, he made many recordings in Poland and the United States.^[1]^[2]

Moshe Koussevitzky was a lyric tenor with a spectacular and perhaps unparalleled upper register among cantors. Koussevitzky is regarded as among the greatest cantors of the 20th century. Some would place him first among peers, though that distinction is more often given to Yossele Rosenblatt or Gershon Sirota, both of whom were a generation older than Koussevitzky.

Early life and career

Koussevitzky was born in Smarhoń, now located in Belarus, on June 9, 1899; his father, Avigdor, was a music teacher and his mother, Alta, a pianist. He moved to Vilna in 1920, and served there as cantor at the Sawel Synagogue, and, starting in 1924, at the Great Synagogue of Vilna. In 1927 or 1928 he became cantor of the Tlomackie Synagogue in Warsaw, succeed

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David Koussevitzky

Chazzanut Online - Articles

1912 - 1985

By Rabbi Geoffrey Shisler

It would be a very brave person who would unequivocally state that any one of the four Koussevitzky brothers, Moshe, David, Jacob and Simcha, was the best. They were all known for individual qualities and, in truth, each was an outstanding Chazan in his own right.

David certainly had a most unusual voice, and was able to maintain long phrases on very high notes. Others have tried to copy him, but few have succeeded in coming anywhere near the excitement that he could generate by his extraordinary singing - which I once heard him attribute to the particular bone-structure of his face.

I often felt that listening to David sing, was akin to watching a tight-rope walker high above the Victoria Falls. The excitement is generated by the possibility that he might actually fall off. The attraction of listening to David Koussevitzky was the possibility that his voice might crack. To the best of my knowledge it never did, of course, even in his advancing years - but nevertheless, the possibility