Thomas Bloch

Thomas Bloch (born 1962 – http://www.thomasbloch.net ) is a french musician who lives in Paris. He is a worldwide prominent classical soloist specializing in the rare instruments (ondes Martenot, glass harmonica, cristal Baschet, waterphone…). His performances range from classical and contemporary music to songs, rock, theatre music, opera, improvisation, film music, world music, ballet music. He is also a composer and a producer.

Receiving a First Prize for ondes Martenot at the Paris Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique (with Jeanne Loriod) and a Masters Degree in Musicology at the University of Strasbourg, Thomas Bloch has performed over 3000 times in 40 countries and appeared on over 150 recordings, as well personal or as an invited performer.

Among numerous notable collaborations : Radiohead, John Cage, Gorillaz and Damon Albarn, Tom Waits, Marianne Faithfull, Bob Wilson, Emilie Simon / Luc Jacquet (The March of Penguins), Milos Forman (Amadeus), Daft Punk / Gaspar Noé (Enter the void), Valery Gergiev, Pierre Boulez, Michel Plasson, Myung-Whun Chung, Paul Sacher, Jean-François Zygel, Maurice Bourgue, Alexei Ogrintchouk, Patrick Gallois, Andras Adorjan, Pierre-Yves Artaud, Philippe Bernold, Vladimir Mendelssohn, Philippe Muller, Gil Sharon, Roger Muraro, Jay Gottlieb, Pauline Haas, quatuor Rosamonde, Balanescu quartet, Orlando quartet, Artis quartet, Michel Redolfi, Marcel Landowski, Jacques Chailley, Philippe Sarde, Isabelle Huppert, Charles Berling, -M-, Yvan Cassar, Manu Dibango, Arno, Marc Almond (Soft Cell), Fred Frith, Phil Minton, Lara Fabian, Jane Birkin, Vanessa Paradis…

In Milano Scala, Thomas Bloch was invited to give the very first audition ever of the original version with glass harmonica from the Mad Scene (Lucia di Lammermoor by Donizetti) and he has played ondes Martenot as a soloist for the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra centenary (cond. Antoni Wit). He often plays in all concerts hall in Paris (Theatre des Champs-Elysées, Opera, Olympia, Salle Pleyel…) and in Amsterdam Concertgebouw, in Zurich Tonhalle, in St Petersburg Mariinski, in Tokyo, New York, Mexico,  Los Angeles Sydney, San Francisco, Budapest, Bogota, Stockholm, Helsinki, Prag, Tel Aviv, Seattle, Reykjavik, Salzburg, Berlin, London, Philadelphia, Lisbon, Riga, Sofia, in Prades Pablo Casals Festival, in Luzern Festival, in Kuhmo Festival, in La Chaise Dieu Festival, in Presences Festival (Paris), in Maggio Musicale (Firenze), in Musica (Strasbourg), in Beethoven Festival (Bonn)… He has been part of more than 200 TV and radio programs.

He has awarded by the Classical Music Award 2002 given by European critics during Midem (Cannes) together with The Choice of Gramophon magazine, Best of the Year 2001 in Audiophile and Choc in Le Monde de la Musique for his interpretation of Olivier Messiaen’s Turangalîla-Symphonie (Naxos) with Antoni Wit (cond.) and François Weigel (piano), Victoires de la Musique, Prix de l’Académie Charles Cros and four times best soundtrack during the World Subaquatic Movies Festival in Antibes.

As a soloist of his rare instruments, Thomas Bloch performs almost the complete classical and modern repertoire but also premieres 10 to 15 new works each year. He is also the first musician who played alone and without stop the complete Erik Satie’s Vexations, a 24 hours piano piece.

He also gives numerous performances for specials events : 150th Luis Vuitton Cup – America’s Cup anniversary, Canal + (TV) 20th anniversary, BNP – Paribas Foundation 10th anniversary, for General Electric, Christofle, Corning Museum of Glass, Versailles castle…

Thomas Bloch has recorded for most of labels (Columbia, EMI, Erato, Deutsche Grammophon, Harmonia Mundi, Philips, RCA, Sony Classical, Toshiba, Naïve, D&G, K.617…). Since a few years, he appears in about 10 personal recordings on Naxos.

He teaches ondes Martenot at the Strasbourg Conservatoire, he is a musical director for the Evian Music Festival (France – http://www.musiquesraresevian.fr) and is responsible for presentations of his instruments at the Paris Music Museum.