Isaac Hirshow
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Isaac Hirshow | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Yitzak Gershov  1883 Russian Empire |
| Died | 1956 (aged 72–73) |
| Alma mater | |
| Occupation | Cantor, composer |
Isaac Hirshow (born Yitzak Gershov, 1883; died 1956) was a Russian-born, naturalised British, cantor who in 1939 became the first person to obtain a Bachelor of Music degree at the University of Glasgow. He served at Garnethill Synagogue for thirty years.
Yitzak Gershov was born in Velizh, Russia in 1883, the son of a merchant named Simon.[1][2][3] At the age of fifteen, following his mother's death,[4] he moved to Warsaw, where he was choirmaster at Adas Yeshurunhe Synagogue, and from 1905 a cantor there.[3] In 1918, he became chief cantor at the Great Synagogue of Łomża.[3]
He and his family migrated to Scotland in 1922,[1][2] and he became a British citizen in 1931.[3][5]
Career
On arrival in Glasgow, Hirshow took up the position of cantor at the Chevra Kadisha synagogue in the Gorbals area of Glasgow. In 1925, he moved to Garnethill Synagogue, where he served for the next thirty years.[2]
He also gave public concerts in Glasgow during the 1920s.[3] The BBC have said that these concerts "helped define Scottish-Jewish identity".[1]
Hirshow graduated with an MA from the University of Glasgow in 1929,[3] and obtained the degree of Bachelor of Music from the same institution in October 1939 (at the same time, his son was also a student there, studying medicine).[1][3] As he was the first person to do so, he was asked to choose the academic colours for the new qualification, settling on blue and white.[6]
Hirshow also worked as a composer.[1] His compositions include settings of Hebrew poetry.[3] A number of his works are lost.[4]