Nemtsev, Iosif

Nemtsev, Iosif Vasil’evich 

Born 1885 in the village of Grachevka, in what is now Petrovsk Raion, Saratov Oblast; died June 14, 1939, in Leningrad. Soviet choral conductor and teacher. Honored Artist of the RSFSR (1939).

Nemtsev studied at the Moscow Synod School (1902–04) and the Court Chapel Choir in St. Petersburg. He was an outstanding organizer of music education. After the Great October Socialist Revolution, when he became director of amateur music events, he became involved in a broad range of activities. At his initiative, competitions in the amateur arts were held in Leningrad beginning in 1927 (he was principal choral conductor of combined choruses). Taking part in the 1937 competition were 100,000 singers, whom Nemtsev directed with the assistance of 30 choral conductors. From 1925 to 1939 he taught choral literature and directed the choral class at the Leningrad Conservatory, where he became a docent in 1929.

REFERENCE

Lokshin, D. Zamechatel’nye russkie khory i ikh dirizhery. Moscow, 1963.