Swiss-American composer Ernest Bloch seems to be registering a renewal of interest: this is the third new CD entirely devoted to his music released within a month. It is also the most successful. Violinist Miriam Kramer displays a good balance between intensity of expression and textural precision. Her tone is both agreeable and profound, and her intonation adequately matches Bloch’s frequent modal inflections and double-string chords. Pianist Simon Over plays with similar affection and care. Unfortunately, the comfortable recording puts him a bit too far in the background, and precious details are lost in the process. The program includes Bloch’s two Sonatas for violin and piano. Both were composed in the 1920s and count among the composer’s most successful inspirations. The First opens with a violent, desperate Agitato movement whose dark mood is pacified in the subsequent mysterious Molto quieto and is finally healed by a folksy, buoyant Moderato. You can’t but wonder why such a powerful masterpiece hasn’t become part of every violinist’s repertoire. The Second Sonata, subtitled Poème mystique, wanders through the same spiritual regions as the First, concentrating various moods and atmospheres in one continuous movement. The less ambitious Suite hébraïque and the two shorter works that complete the program are just as intensely played. Let’s hope that the same performers will give us Baal Shem and Bloch’s remaining works for violin and piano and violin solo. [1/12/2000]
