Rumshinsky, Joseph, 1881-1956

Rumshinsky was born in Vilna, Russia, on Apr. 9, 1881; attended Univ. of Warsaw, St. Petersburg Conservatory, and the Univ. of London; came to the US in 1904; taught piano and wrote specialty songs; in 1905, the noted actor Jacob Adler hired him to write incidental music for his biblical play Elisha Ben Elijah, which was a success; he modernized Jewish operetta by emphasizing folk and American idioms in his music for the Yiddish stage and introducing symphonic settings for his songs; wrote more than 100 operettas for the Yiddish stage over a period of 50 years; composed cantorial hymns and concert and specialty numbers; was a partner in production with Molly Picon and Menasha Skulnik, Yiddish theater stars; was a member of the Board of Directors of the Yiddish Theatrical Alliance and a president of the Society of Jewish Composers and Song Writers; his opera in Hebrew titled, Ruth, was to have been produced in Israel, but Rumshinsky died in Kew Gardens, NY, in Feb. 6, 1956.

From the description of Collection of musical compositions for the Yiddish theater and memorabilia, ca. 1917-1956. (University of California, Los Angeles). WorldCat record id: 39527319