Biography
Sol Hurok — impresario with roots in the Russian Empire
Sol Hurok (born Solomon Izrailevich Gurkov) was an American impresario, born in the Russian Empire, who presented Anna Pavlova, Marian Anderson, Artur Rubinstein, Isaac Stern and, in 1959, the first United States tour of the Bolshoi Ballet.
Russian Connection
Tracing the roots — Pogar
Born on 9 April 1888 in Pogar, Chernigov Governorate, Russian Empire; his father, Israel Hurok, was a hardware merchant. He emigrated to the United States in 1906. In 1959, after 35 years of effort, he brought the Bolshoi Ballet to the United States.
Family Tree
Subject
Sol Hurok🇺🇸 USA
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Self (Born there)
Israel Hurok
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Origin
Pogar🇷🇺 Russian Empire
Historical context
Russian Empire · c. 1721–1917
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Pogar. At the time, this region lay within the Russian Empire, which spanned from Poland to the Pacific.
Map: Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA)
Key Achievements
A career defined by ambition
01
Impresario from the early 1920s to 1974
02
Presented Marian Anderson, Anna Pavlova, Artur Rubinstein, Isaac Stern
03
Brought the Bolshoi Ballet on its first United States tour (1959)
04
University of Pennsylvania Glee Club Award of Merit (1971)
Sources