Josif Wainstein, a Jewish-Ukrainian composer and musician, was born in Belaja Cerkov (Ukraine), in 1918. He fled hunger and moved to Russia in 1931. Started playing trumpet when in Soviet Navy, as marine in St.Petersburg.In 1938 founded his own orchestra in hotel “Evropejskaja” in St.Petersburg.During WWII became conductor of Soviet Baltic Navy Orchestra in occupied Tallinn,Estonia.After the war returned back to his Orchestra in hotel “Evropejskaja” but soon was mobilized in army again – that time to become the conductor of Nachimov Marine school Orchestra in St.Petersburg.In 1952 has been sent to Soviet concentration camp (“Gulag”) for 2,5 years during regular antisemitism campaign in USSR. He was able to create a new orchestra after he returned to St.Petersburg. It became extremely popular. The Soviet Union was not a safe place to play “American” music. So the Communist Party made it a half-underground unit. The Orchestra began playing around the former Soviet Union in 1968 during “political heating” and released very few albums. In 1983, Josif (Joseph) Wainstein, along with his family, emigrated to Canada, where he died in 2001.
