Koussevitsky, Serge

Serge Koussevitsky was born in Russia in 1871 and was a virtuoso double bassist before becoming the revered conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. He studied double bass with Josef Rambousek, joined the Bolshoi Theatre Orchestra at the age of 20 and succeeded his teacher as Principal Bass in 1901.He studied conducting in Berlin with Arthur Nikisch, subsequently founding his own orchestra in Moscow and a publishing company to promote and perform the music of many fellow Russian composers. In 1924 Koussevitsky succeeded Pierre Monteux as conductor of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, retiring in 1949. He was one of the most important champions of new music during his tenure in Boston, commissioning music from Aaron Copland, Serge Prokofiev, Paul Hindemith, Igor Stravinsky, Albert Roussel, Bohuslav Martinů, Béla Bartók and many more, and in 1922 he commissioned Maurice Ravel to create an orchestration of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition. Serge Koussevitsky died in Boston in 1951.