- Ernest Bloch
Ernest Bloch (July 24, 1880 – July 15, 1959) was a Swiss-born American
composer .Life
Bloch was born in
Geneva and began playing the violin at age 9. He began composing soon afterwards. He studied music at the conservatory inBrussels , where his teachers included the celebrated violinistEugène Ysaÿe . He then travelled around Europe, moving toGermany (where he studied at theHoch Conservatory inFrankfurt ), on toParis in 1903 and back to Geneva before settling in theUnited States of America in 1916, taking American citizenship in 1924. He held several teaching appointments in the U.S., withGeorge Antheil ,Frederick Jacobi ,Bernard Rogers , andRoger Sessions among his pupils. In December 1920 he was appointed the first Musical Director of the newly formedCleveland Institute of Music , a post he held until 1925. Following this he was director of theSan Francisco Conservatory of Music until 1930.In 1941 Bloch moved to the small coastal community of
Agate Beach, Oregon [http://www.ocean18.net/Ernest%20Bloch/BlochFestivalProgram.pdf Bloch Festival Program] ] and lived there the rest of his life. He died in 1959 inPortland, Oregon , ofcancer at the age of 78. The Bloch Memorial has been moved from near his house in Agate Beach to a more prominent location at the Newport Performing Arts Center inNewport, Oregon cite web|url=http://www.ocean18.net/Ernest%20Bloch/Enest%20Bloch%20Project.htm|title=Ernest Bloch Project] .Music
Bloch's early works, including his opera "Macbeth" (1910) show the influence of both the Germanic school of
Richard Strauss and the impressionism ofClaude Debussy . Mature works, including his best-known pieces, often draw on Jewish liturgical and folk music. These works include "Schelomo " (1916) forcello andorchestra , which he dedicated to the cellist Alexandre Barjansky (Barjansky Stradivarius ) the "Israel Symphony" (1916), "Baal Shem" forviolin andpiano (1923, later version for violin and orchestra), The "Jewish Life" Suite for Cello and Piano and "Avodath Hakodesh" (Sacred Service, 1933) forbaritone ,choir and orchestra. Other pieces from this period include aviolin concerto written forJoseph Szigeti and the rhapsody "America" for chorus and orchestra.Leopold Stokowski and theSymphony of the Air made the first stereo recording of "America" forVanguard Records and included a short speech by Bloch that explained why he wrote the piece; years later, theSeattle Symphony Orchestra recorded the work forDelos .Pieces written after World War II are a little more varied in style, though Bloch's essentially Romantic idiom remains. Some, such as the "Suite hébraïque" (1950) continue the Jewish theme; others, such as the second
concerto grosso (1952), display an interest inneo-classicism (though here too the harmonic language is basically Romantic, even though the form is Baroque); and others, including the latestring quartet s, include elements ofatonality .Works
tage
Macbeth : Opera in 3 Acts 1909 Geneva-Paris
Orchestral
*Symphony in C-sharp minor 1902
*Hiver-Printemps 1905 Paris-Geneva
*Trois Poèmes Juifs pour Grand Orchestre 1913 Satigny
*Israel : Symphony for Orchestra 1916 Geneva
*In The Night : A Love Poem for Orchestra 1922 Cleveland
*Poems of The Sea for Orchestra 1922 Cleveland
*Concerto Grosso No.1, for String Orchestra with Piano Obbligato 1925 Santa Fe - Cleveland
*Four Episodes for Chamber Orchestra 1926 San Francisco
*Helvetia Symphonic Poem 1929 Frankfurt - San Francisco
*Evocations : Symphonic Suite for Orchestra 1937 Châtel,Haute Savoie
*Suite Symphonique 1944 Agate Beach
*In Memoriam 1952 Agate Beach
*Concerto Grosso No.2 for Strings 1952 Agate Beach
*Sinfonia Breve 1953 Agate Beach
*Symphony in E-flat 1955 Agate BeachConcertante
*"
Schelomo ", Rhapsodie Hébraïque pour Violoncelle solo et Grand Orchestre (1916 Geneva-New York)
*Suite for Viola and Orchestra 1919 New York
*Voice In The Wilderness, Symphonic Poem for Orchestra with Violoncello Obbligato 1936 Châtel,Haute Savoie
*Concerto for Violin and Orchestra 1938 Châtel,Haute Savoie
*Baal Shem for Violin and Orchestra 1939
*Concerto Symphonique for Piano and Orchestra 1948 Agate Beach
*Scherzo Fantasque for Piano and Orchestra 1948 Agate Beach
*Concertino for Flute,Viola and String Orchestra 1950 Agate Beach
*Suite Hébraïque, for Viola (or Violin) and Orchestra 1951 Agate Beach
*Symphony for Trombone and Orchestra 1954 Agate Beach
*Proclamation for Trumpet and Orchestra 1955 Agate Beach
*Suite Modale for Flute & String Orchestra 1956 Agate Beach
*Two Last Poems for Flute Solo and Orchestra 1958 Agate BeachVocal/Choral Orchestral
*Historiettes au Crépuseule for Mezzo-soprano and piano 1904 Paris
*Poèmes d'Automne for Mezzo-soprano and Orchestra 1906 Geneva
*Psaume 22 1913 Satigny
*Deux Psaumes pour Soprano et Orchestre
*Précédés d'un Prélude Orchestral 1914 Satigny
*Avodath Hakodesh (Sacred Service) 1933 Roveredo-Ticino
*"America: An Epic Rhapsody", for chorus and orchestra (1926 San Francisco)Chamber
*Piano Quintet No. 1 (1923 Cleveland)
*Piano Quintet No. 2 (1957)
*String Quartet
**String Quartet No. 1 (1916 Geneva - New York)
**String Quartet No. 2 (1945 Agate Beach)
**String Quartet No. 3 (1952 Agate Beach)
**String Quartet No. 4 (1953 Agate Beach)
**String Quartet No. 5 (1956 Agate Beach)
**"In The Mountains" (1925 Cleveland)
**"Night" (1925 Cleveland)
**"Paysages" (1925 Cleveland; the first movement "Night" was inspired byRobert J. Flaherty 's "Nanook of the North ")
**"Prelude" (1925 Cleveland)
**Two Pieces (1938, 1950 Châtel, Haute Savoie - Agate Beach)
*Three Nocturnes, for piano trio (1924 Cleveland)Instrumental
*Violin
**Sonata for Violin and Piano No.1 1920 Cleveland
**Baal Shem 1923 Cleveland
**Poème Mystique : Sonata for Violin and Piano No.2 1924 Cleveland
**Nuit Exotique 1924 Cleveland
**Abodah 1929 San Francisco
**Mélodie 1929 San Francisco
**Suite Hébraïque, for Violin and Piano 1951 Agate Beach
**Suite No.1 for Violin solo 1958 Agate Beach
**Suite No.2 for Violin solo 1958 Agate Beach
*Viola
**Suite for Viola and Piano 1919 New York
**Suite Hébraïque 1951 Agate Beach
**Meditation and Processional 1951 Agate Beach
**Suite for Viola solo (unfinished) 1958 Agate Beach
*Cello
**Méditation Hébraïque 1924 Cleveland
**From Jewish Life 1925 Cleveland
**Suite No.1 for Violoncello solo 1956 Agate Beach
**Suite No.2 for Violoncello solo 1956 Agate Beach
**Suite No.3 for Violoncello solo 1957 Agate Beach
*Suite Modale for Flute & Piano 1956 Agate BeachPiano
*Ex-voto 1914 Geneva
*In The Night : A Love Poem for Piano 1922 Cleveland
*Poems of The Sea 1922 Cleveland
*Four Circus Pieces 1922 Cleveland
*Danse Sacrée 1923 Cleveland
*Enfantines (Ten piano pieces for children) 1923 Cleveland
*Nirvana : Poem for Piano 1923 Cleveland
*Five Sketches in Sepia 1923 Cleveland
*Sonata for Piano 1935 Châtel,Haute Savoie
*Visions et Prophéties 1936 Châtel,Haute SavoieOrgan
*6 Preludes 1949 Agate Beach
*4 Wedding Marches 1950 Agate BeachFamily
Ernest Bloch and his wife Marguerite Schneider had three children: Ivan, Suzanne and Lucienne. Ivan, born in 1905, became an engineer with the
Bonneville Power Administration inPortland, Oregon .Suzanne Bloch , born in 1907, was a musician particularly interested inRenaissance music who taughtharpsichord ,lute and composition at theJuilliard School inNew York .Lucienne Bloch , born in 1909, worked asDiego Rivera 's chief photographer on the Rockefeller Center mural project, became friends with Rivera's wife, the artistFrieda Kahlo , and took some key photos of Kahlo and the only photographs of Rivera's mural (which was destroyed becauseLenin was depicted in it).Photography
The [http://www.magnes.org/collections/wjhc.html Western Jewish History Center] , of the [http://www.magnes.org Judah L. Magnes Museum] , in
Berkeley, California has a small collection of photographs of Ernest Bloch which document his interest in photography.Many of the photographs Bloch took -- over 6,000 negatives and 2,000 prints -- are in the Ernest Bloch Archive at the
Center for Creative Photography at theUniversity of Arizona inTucson along with photographs by the likes ofAnsel Adams ,Edward Weston andRichard Avedon . [http://www.ocean18.net/Ernest%20Bloch/Enest%20Bloch%20Project.htm]ources
* [http://www.ocean18.net/Ernest%20Bloch/Enest%20Bloch%20Project.htm "Ernest Bloch: Composer in Nature's University"] by Nancy Steinberg. Oregon Coastal Council for the Arts. July, 2006
Bloch's photography was discovered by Eric B. Johnson in 1970. Johnson researched, edited and printed many of Bloch's photographs. 40 of these prints from Bloch's negatives are now in the Center for Creative Photography in Tucson AZ along with the entire collection of his negatives and prints. Johnson is currently Professor of Art and Design at Cal Poly State University, San Luis Obispo Ca. An account of his discovery can be found on his website.
http://ericbjohnson.net/Eric_Johnson-Photography_and_Digital_Imagery/Ernest_Bloch.html
"Voices in the Wilderness: Six American Neo-Romantic Composers," by Walter Simmons. (Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press, 2004) ISBN 0-8108-5728-6
Notes and references
External links
* [http://artofthestates.org/cgi-bin/composer.pl?comp=13 Art of the States: Ernest Bloch]
* [http://claudet.club.fr/Bloch/index.html Extensive discography (and work list), by Claude Torres]
* [http://www.tapuz.co.il/blog/ViewEntry.asp?EntryId=1130067 Ernest Bloch's maximum card from Israel]
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