Ernest Bloch

 

Ernest Bloch
1880-1959

Ernest Bloch was a composer who was born in Switzerland, but eventually ended up in the United States, specifically Oregon. While I assumed Bloch moved across the Atlantic due to WWI, it was actually conducting jobs which allowed him to settle in North America.

Today, it seems Bloch is mainly remembered for his musical compositions which relate to his Jewish religion and culture. Schelomo and Baal Shem are concertante works I come across often, but there is also the Suite Hébraïque and Israel Symphony as additional examples. Plus, there are plenty of non-Jewish influenced pieces; I suspect music history has pigeonholed Bloch to some degree.

From memory, I remember Gerard Schwarz popping up on record club mailings in music of Bloch, but I don't know how extensively he recorded him in Seattle. For my perusing, I will mainly be listening to Dalia Atlas leading the music of Bloch on Naxos and ASV, an Israeli conductor who has championed the composer over multiple recording with multiple ensembles.

Because I only know a couple of Bloch's works, again the more common Jewish-tinged ones, I thought I would take up some more recordings of his music. He seems to have a sturdy amount of compositions to his name, ones which touch upon most of the major classical music genres, yet there is not an insurmountable number of pieces to intimidate those interested in exploring more from the composer, as I am.

Recordings and reviews currently on hand
(Click orange links to visit a musing)
(Green links are reviews yet to come)

Recordings

1992: Sacred Service
2001: Concerto Grosso 1 & 2
2004: String Quartets
2005: America
2007: Four Episodes
2007: Piano Quintets
2007: Violin Concerto
2013: Symphony in C-sharp minor
2014: Israel Symphony & Viola Suite
2014: Symphony in E-flat Major



Bits 'n Bobs
Here I will stream individual pieces by the composer I no longer have in my collection, or I haven't fully reviewed as of yet. Often I will mix other genres than those titled in the posts links below.


    •  Orchestral Music

    •  Concertante Music