Thomas Bloch

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Thomas Bloch (born 1962) is a prominent classical musician specializing in the rare instruments Ondes Martenot, glass harmonica, and cristal Baschet. Receiving a Masters Degree in Musicology at the University of Strasbourg, Bloch has performed over 2500 times and appeared on over eighty recordings. Notable collaborations include Radiohead, John Cage, and Tom Waits.

Thomas Bloch (born 1962 in Colmar, France) is acknowledged as one of the best specialist in the rare instruments he plays : the glass harmonica, the ondes Martenot and the cristal Baschet. He has so far given over 2500 performances in 40 countries and taken part in more than 80 recordings all over the world. His performances range from classical and contemporary music to songs, jazz, rock, theatre music, film music and ballet music, sometimes as the interpreter, at other times as the composer. As a soloist of his rare instruments, he plays as well the complete classical and modern repertoire (Messiaen, Mozart...) but also10 to 15 premieres from contemporary music composers each year in concert and performs in many recording sessions.

Thomas Bloch has appeared in well known movies, with musicians of the greatest distinction in major musical centres and is a member of various ensembles. Among many others appearances and performances : Milos Forman "Amadeus" movie (long version 2001), "Vampires, the return", The March of Penguins (Oscar 2006), with english rock band Radiohead, on tour with Tom Waits, Bob Wilson and Marianne Faithfull in The Black Rider (200 concerts), with John Cage, Paul Sacher, Marcel Landowski, Michel Plasson, Myung-Whun Chung, Manfred Honeck, Arturo Tamayo, Dennis Russel-Davies, Jean Fournet, Antoni Wit, Fernand Quattrocchi, Marc Grauwels, Philippe Bernold, Pierre-Yves Artaud, Ramson Wilson, Adrian Spence, Maurice Bourgue, Ingo Goritzki, Alexei Ogrintchouk, Vladimir Mendelssohn, Jean Sulem, Jacques Dupriez, Paul Coletti, François Salque, Mark Drobinski, Jean-Francois Zygel, Manu Dibango, Fred Frith, Sally Potter, Lindsay Cooper, Philippe Sarde, Michel Redolfi, Isabelle Huppert, Lara Fabian, Vanessa Paradis, Arthur H, Zazie, Thomas Fersen, Sanseverino, Zoe, as a soloist in Milano Scala, Amsterdam Concertgebouw, for the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra centenary, in Paris, New York, Tokyo, London, Brussels, Budapest, Praga, Geneva, Mexico City, Bogota, Madrid, Bonn, Lisbon, Helsinki, Tel Aviv, Stockholm, Boston, Sydney, London, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Montreal. Los Angeles, Kuhmo Festival, Pablo Casals Prades Festival, Luzern Festival...

He teaches ondes Martenot at the Strasbourg Conservatoire since 1992, is responsible for presentations of instruments at the Paris Musee de la Musique and is a musical director for music publishers, for the Evian Music Festival (France), the Marbach Abbey Festival (France), for the Glass Music International Festival 2005 in Paris Cite de la Musique (France).

Thomas Bloch was the recipient of some fifteen Conservatoire awards, at Colmar, Strasbourg including a First Prize for ondes Martenot at the Paris Conservatoire National Superieur de Musique (with Jeanne Loriod). He obtained a Master’s Degree in Musicology at the University of Strasbourg, was awarded by critics in several music magazines and also in international composition competitions. Among others, he won : the "Classical Music Award 2002" given by European critics in Cannes Midem, "Victoire de la Musique" and "Prix de l'Académie Charles Cros", four times best soundtrack during "World subaquatic movies Festival " in Antibes, "The Choice" of Gramophon, “Best of the Year 2001” in Audiophile, "Choc" in "Monde de la Musique" for his Messiaen...

He has recorded for Columbia, EMI, Erato, Deutsche Grammophon, Harmonia Mundi, Philips, RCA, Sony Classical, Toshiba... Since 1998, he is in contract with Naxos and has recorded : Music for Glass Harmonica (8.555295), Music for Ondes Martenot (8.555779), Olivier Messiaen's Turangalîla-Symphonie (8.554478-79), Classical Chill (8.520101), Classical Heat (8.520102) and Mozart : Life and Works (8.558061-64). Naxos will soon publish two new CDs : his own composition, Missa Cantate for male soprano (Jörg Waschinski) and symphony orchestra which is already used in TV and radio programs and a best seller on his own label in several countries and Varese Ecuatorial.

THE NEW YORK TIMES Thomas Bloch is unquestionably a virtuoso.

Prof. PAUL BADURA-SKODA Nie hätte ich gedacht, dass man auf des Glasharmonika so nuanciert spielen könnte, mit Akzenten und ganz weichen Noten. Erstaunlich auch, wie Sie relativ schnelle Passagen meistern ! Höhepunkt ist natürlich Mozarts Adagio une Rondo - wahrlich ein Meisterwerk ! Nicht nur Sie, sondern auch Ihre Partner spielen auf höchstem Niveau.

EL NORTE (MEXICO) Thomas Bloch deslumbro literalmente a los asistentes al Sala Netzahualcoyotl con su "descubrimiento" musical. Las cuatro obras ejecutadas eran de estreno y en ellas lucio ampliamente su domino sobre el armonica de cristal. Sus mejores momentos los tuvo en la piezas de Mozart y Reichardt que plantearon un virtuosismo de mayor complejidad. Ademas logro dosificar el sonido, darle gracia y cierta expresividad. Debo admitir que el sonido es de una calidad tal que "embruja" al oyente. Uno no puede distraerse y lo mantiene simplemente absorto, quiza por ello algunos hipnotizadores lo utilizaron como preparacion a sus tratamientos. un gran momento de musica de camara.

Website : http://www.chez.com/thomasbloch - history and pictures of glass harmonica, ondes Martenot, cristal Baschet, biography...