Toscha Seidel (November 17, 1899 – November 15, 1962) was a Russian violinist
Seidel was born in Odessa on November 17, 1899, to a Jewish family.[1] A student of Leopold Auer in St. Petersburg, Seidel became known for a lush, romantic tone and unique and free rubato. In the 1930s he emigrated to the United States. Before making his way to Hollywood where he made a career in the studios of motion pictures, he had a show on CBS radio called The Toscha Seidel Program; he was also that radio network's musical director.[2] He was featured (as soloist) in several Hollywood productions, including the movies Intermezzo, Melody for Three, and even The Wizard of Oz.[3][4] He was also an avid chess player (like Mischa Elman). In 1922, George Gershwin wrote a song about him and his fellow Russian-Jewish virtuoso violinists called, "Mischa, Jascha, Toscha, Sascha."[2]
Seidel had a weekly broadcast on the CBS radio network in the 1930s.[3]
In 1934 Seidel gave violin instruction to Albert Einstein, and received a sketch in return, reportedly diagramming length contraction of his theory of relativity.[5][6]
He died on November 15, 1962.
Seidel performed on several well-known violins including:
