Abstract
Oral history interview with Sasha Semenoff conducted by Claytee D. White on April 29, 2009 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. Semenoff begins the interview by discussing his early life in Latvia and learning to play the violin as a child before the Nazi invasion. He describes being a Jewish Holocaust survivor, surviving the ghettos and concentration camp where he was held, and explaining how he immigrated to the United States after he was liberated. Semenoff then discusses moving to New York City, New York, where he joined the musician's union before moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1959. He details his career as a prominent lounge and big band violinist in Las Vegas, where he played at several different casinos, including the Desert Inn Lounge, the Dunes Hotel and Casino, and the MGM Grand Hotel. Semenoff also talks about the musicians he has played with, such as Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin, his work at the time of the interview, and the presence of organized crime in Las Vegas.
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Scope and Contents Note
Oral history interview with Sasha Semenoff conducted by Claytee D. White on April 29, 2009 for the Boyer Early Las Vegas Oral History Project. Semenoff begins the interview by discussing his early life in Latvia and learning to play the violin as a child before the Nazi invasion. He describes being a Jewish Holocaust survivor, surviving the ghettos and concentration camp where he was held, and explaining how he immigrated to the United States after he was liberated. Semenoff then discusses moving to New York City, New York, where he joined the musician's union before moving to Las Vegas, Nevada in 1959. He details his career as a prominent lounge and big band violinist in Las Vegas, where he played at several different casinos, including the Desert Inn Lounge, the Dunes Hotel and Casino, and the MGM Grand Hotel. Semenoff also talks about the musicians he has played with, such as Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin, his work at the time of the interview, and the presence of organized crime in Las Vegas. Digital audio available; no transcript available. Digital photographs available.
Access Note
Collection is open for research. Where use copies do not exist, production of use copies is required before access will be granted; this may delay research requests. Advanced notice is required.
Publication Rights
Materials in this collection may be protected by copyrights and other rights. See Reproductions and Use on the UNLV Special Collections and Archives website for more information about reproductions and permissions to publish. Some transcripts do not exist in final form, therefore any editing marks in a transcript (deletions, additions, corrections) are to be quoted as marked.
Preferred Citation
Sasha Semenoff oral history interview, 2009 April 29. OH-02609. [Cite format consulted: Audio recording or Transcript.] Oral History Research Center, Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada.
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Acquisition Note
This interview was conducted by the Oral History Research Center (OHRC) which is part of the UNLV University Libraries Special Collections and Archives Division.
Processing Note
Interview materials were processed by UNLV Libraries Special Collections and Archives in 2016. Kyle Gagnon wrote the collection description. Access copies were created for born-digital audio and/or transcript files. The audio has been minimally reviewed and all readily available information has been included in the description.