Curtis Mourns the Death of Myron Bloom

Curtis mourns the death of Myron Bloom, distinguished horn virtuoso and member of the Curtis faculty from 1982 to 1999. Mr. Bloom, the celebrated principal horn of the Cleveland Orchestra under George Szell and of l’Orchestre de Paris under Daniel Barenboim, passed away on September 26 in Bloomington, Indiana.

Originally a cellist, Mr. Bloom learned the horn in order to play in a military band during World War II. He progressed quickly, and after the war he entered the Eastman School of Music as a horn major. After two years he won the principal horn position in the New Orleans Symphony, serving in that chair from 1949 to 1954. He then joined the Cleveland Orchestra and soon became its principal. His tenure in Cleveland coincided with the reign of the legendary George Szell, and Mr. Bloom played in the orchestra’s most celebrated recordings, including a solo turn in the Richard Strauss Horn Concerto No. 1. He remained with the orchestra until 1977, after Maestro Szell’s retirement, when Daniel Barenboim invited him to become principal horn of l’Orchestre de Paris. He remained in Paris until 1985, and joined the Curtis faculty during this period.

Mr. Bloom was a member of the Marlboro Music Festival from its inception and played solo horn at the Casals Festival in Puerto Rico for ten years. In addition to his teaching at Curtis. Mr. Bloom chaired the horn department of the Cleveland Institute of Music and served on the faculties of Indiana University, Carnegie Mellon University, Oberlin Conservatory, the Juilliard School, Boston University, and the Conservatoire National Superior de Musique de Paris.

The Curtis community extends heartfelt sympathy to the family, friends, and students of Mr. Bloom.