Myron Bloom

Myron Bloom, described by Michael Cooper in the New York Times as “one of the most distinguished French horn players of his generation and a force in molding the sound of the Cleveland Orchestra during its golden age under the demanding conductor George Szell,” died on Thursday, September 26, 2019, in Bloomington, Indiana. He was 93 years old. Myron Bloom was born in Cleveland, Ohio on April 18, 1926, and enjoyed one of his generation’s most distinguished musical careers. After one year of study at the Eastman School of Music, he was appointed principal horn of the New Orleans Symphony. In 1955, he was appointed principal solo horn of The Cleveland Orchestra under George Szell, where he remained until 1977. He served the longest tenure as principal horn in the history of the Orchestra, and upon his retirement, was named Principal Emeritus. Bloom was also solo horn of the Casals Festival Orchestra in Puerto Rico, and in 1977, at the invitation of Daniel Barenboim, he became principal solo horn of the Orchestre de Paris until 1985. He was a member of the Marlboro Music Festival from its inception and performed many times with the Budapest Quartet. Bloom was appointed professor of music in horn at the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music in 1985, retiring in 2016. He taught at the Curtis Institute of Music from 1982 to 2001 and at Carnegie Mellon University from 1993 to 2001. He was chairman of horn studies at the Cleveland Institute of Music from 1961 to 1977 and also taught at the Oberlin Conservatory, Juilliard School of Music, Boston University, and Conservatoire National Supérieur de Music de Paris. He performed under Claudio Abbado at the Lucerne Festival and with the Seattle Symphony Orchestra. In addition to representing the United States as a jury member in the International Geneva Horn Competition, he served on juries in Canada. Among the most important contributions in his vast career as a recording artist is Richard Strauss’s Horn Concerto No. 1 in E-flat Major with George Szell and The Cleveland Orchestra, which was selected by Sony Classical in 1997 for a special edition reissue in its Cleveland Orchestra Masterworks Heritage Series and for Marlboro Music with Rudolf Serkin. Landmark recordings also include Schubert’s Auf Dem Strom and Brahms’ Horn Trio, with Rudolf Serkin and Michael Tree, which was selected by Sony Classical for its Marlboro Festival 40th Anniversary series. Myron had never cared about music until the age of 12, when his parents took him to a concert by the cellist Emanuel Feuermann. He fell in love with the cello and decided a life of music was for him, but with the Second World War looming, he concentrated on the French horn so that he could join the Navy band. He continued to study and play the cello throughout his life; what he loved to listen to was string performances. His concept of sound was the cello sound even when he was playing the horn. Susan Moses, a cellist since the age of 5, had heard a concert on the radio when she was 12 and said to her musician father, “Daddy, I want to sound like that horn”; he said, “that’s Myron Bloom,” and from then on, her parents took her to Carnegie Hall every year to hear Myron in the Cleveland Orchestra. He was her musical hero from that time, but they had never met. In 1994, as she was wavering over an invitation to come from Italy to join the faculty at Indiana University for a one-year appointment, a single line from the dean, Charles Webb, asking if she would teach Myron Bloom, was what decided her. Susan and Myron then met at a faculty party, started talking, and never stopped. That was the beginning of what would be a 25-year marriage. Myron’s student David Renfro writes: “Lessons with Mr. Bloom could be intimidating. He was known to have a short temper, and would frequently speak in a booming voice, barking out all of the ways in which you were not doing something correctly. He spoke in absolutes; if something wasn’t perfect, it was ‘all wrong!’ It was not uncommon for a student to leave a lesson in tears. While this method may not be for everyone, it came from a genuine love of pursuing an ideal. What drove him was absolute beauty: beauty of sound, commitment to the musical line, and making art, not just playing notes. He pushed his students hard, but when they finally got a concept, committed to the sound and music, his booming voice would soften, he would sit back with a wry smile, and softly say ‘Yes! That had everything!’” Myron’s first two marriages, to Josephine Lopez and Julie Hamilton, ended in divorce. Myron is survived by wife Susan (now co-director, Indiana Jacobs School of Music String Academy), stepsons Bill Bloom Williams and David Amoyal, and granddaughter Elizabeth. Susan Moses Bloom,wishes to especially thank Rebecka Taft, Laura Pedersen, Bridget Parker and Tanya Abram, Myron’s caretakers for many years, for their tireless ,competent, loving care as well as the entire staff at IU Hospice house. Donations in his honor can be made to IU Hospice House and the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music scholarship fund. Allen Funeral Home and Crematory, 4155 S. Old State Road 37, have been entrusted with arrangements. Online Condolences, photos, and memories may be shared with family and friends at www.allencares.com

Tributes

Myron Bloom

April 18, 1926 - September 26, 2019