Bloch: The Sonatas for Violin & Piano, Piano Sonata Nurit Stark & Cédric Pescia

• Ernest Bloch (1880 - 1959): Violin Sonata No. 1 in A Minor:
• 1 Violin Sonata No. 1 in A Minor: I. Agitato 10:53
• 2 Violin Sonata No. 1 in A Minor: II. Molto quieto 08:55
• 3 Violin Sonata No. 1 in A Minor: III. Moderato 08:57
• Violin Sonata No. 2 "Poème mystique":
• 4 Violin Sonata No. 2 "Poème mystique": I. Andante moderato / II. Animato / III. L'istesso tempo / IV. Animato 20:20
• Piano Sonata:
• 5 Piano Sonata: I. Maestoso ed energico - Animato 07:03
• 6 Piano Sonata: II. Pastorale. Andante 07:19
• 7 Piano Sonata: III. Moderato alla marcia 06:42
• Total Runtime 01:10:09

Info for Bloch: The Sonatas for Violin & Piano, Piano Sonata

Nigh on 60 years after his death, the Swiss composer, born in 1880 of Jewish origin, naturalized American in 1924, remains relatively little known by the general public and music lovers alike. Yet his music, full of lyricism, drama, virtuosity, poetry, has all it takes to please. A couple in life as well as on stage, Nurit Stark and Cédric Pescia are literally captivated by Bloch’s music and personality. Between them, they combine the composer’s origin and nationality in a programme that unites the two Violin and Piano Sonatas and the Piano Sonata. According to Bloch, the programme of both Violin and Piano Sonatas, composed in 1920 and 1924 respectively, is as simple as can be: the first shows the world “as it is, with the violent opposition of primordial and blind forces” and the second depicts it “as it should be, according to our dreams”. Indeed, as the recording had just been completed, Cédric Pescia chose words he is not accustomed to using to describe it: “This recording is pure dynamite!”

"Nurit Stark’s sound is raw and agitated in the violin sonatas, but strangely effective, while Pescia’s Piano Sonata is pure in tone with superb voicing." (BBC Music Magazine)

Nurit Stark, violin
Cédric Pescia, piano

Nurit Stark
The Israeli violinist and violist Nurit Stark studied in Israel with Haim Taub, at the Juilliard School, Musikhochschule Cologne (Alban Berg Quartet), Universität der Künste Berlin (Ilan Gronich).

She is a prizewinner in the G. Enescu Competition Bucharest, Chamber Music Competition “Premio Trio di Trieste”, L. Mozart Violin Competition Augsburg. She has made solo appearances with orchestras such as the Israeli Philharmonic (Z. Mehta), Münchner Radio Orchestra (D. Sitkovetsky). As a chamber musician she has performed in international festivals such as Lockenhaus Kammermusikfest, Schleswig Holstein Festival, Rheingau Festival, Mozart Festival Augsburg, Donaueschinger Musiktage, Pacific Music Festival Sapporo, Chekhov Festival. She has given concerts in Europe, Israel, Japan and in the USA in halls such as Carnegie Hall New York, Philharmonie Berlin, Konzerthaus Vienna, Birmingham Symphony Hall, Mozarteum Salzburg. Her love to contemporary music has led her to perform many world premieres and to collaborate with composers such as György Kurtag, Sofia Gubaidulina, Valentin Silvestrov, Viktor Suslin, Deirdre Gribbin and Georg Nussbaumer.

For many years she has been working in close collaboration with pianist Cédric Pescia. Their duo is support- ed by the Forberg-Schneider Foundation. Nurit Stark was supported by the Ernst von Siemens music foundation. She is taking part in avant-garde stage projects which combine music and theatre (Schaubühne Berlin, Bobigny Paris and Burgtheater Vienna). For Claves Records, BIS and Genuin, she has recorded works by Busoni, Enescu, Gubaidulina, Viktor Suslin, György Kurtag, Clara & Robert Schumann and Messiaen. Her recording of Kurtag’s “Kafka Fragmente” with soprano Caroline Melzer received the “Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik”. She is playing a Petrus Guarnerius di Mantua Violin (1710).

Cédric Pescia
pianist of dual French and Swiss nationality, was born in Lausanne. He studied with Christian Favre at the Conservatoire de Musique in Lausanne, later with Dominique Merlet at the Conservatoire de Musique in Geneva where he earned a Premier Prix de Virtuosité with honors and completed his studies with Klaus Hellwig at the Universität der Künste in Berlin.

In addition he has studied with Pierre-Laurent Aimard, Daniel Barenboim, Henri Barda, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Ivan Klansky, Christian Zacharias, Ilan Gronich and with the Alban Berg Quartet. From 2003 until 2006 he was invited to attend the famous International Piano Academy, Lake Como (Italy) where he worked with Dimitri Bashkirov, Leon Fleisher, William Grant Naboré, Menahem Pressler, Andreas Staier and Fou Ts´ong.

Cédric Pescia was the brilliant First Prize Winner (Gold Medalist) at the 2002 Gina Bachauer International Artists Piano Competition in Salt Lake City (USA).

Concert tours have taken him throughout Europe, China, South America, North Africa and in the USA. His orchestral appearances have been with the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, the Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, the Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano Giuseppe Verdi, the Utah Symphony, the Festival Strings of Luzern, the Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana, the Camerata Bern, the Basler Kammerorchester, the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern, the Göttinger Symphonie Orchester and the Orchestre National de Lille.

In addition to his activities as a soloist, his love for chamber music regularly leads to performances with other eminent musicians. For many years Cédric Pescia has been working in close collaboration with violinist Nurit Stark. He is founding member and artistic director of the Lausanne chamber music series Ensemble enScène. In 2005 and 2007 he served as a jury member in the Clara Haskil Competition in Vevey.

In 2007, Cédric Pescia was honoured with the Prix Musique de la Fondation Vaudoise pour la culture. He was also a prizewinner at the Bourse de la Fondation Leenaards in Lausanne. The duo Nurit Stark (violin) and Cédric Pescia is supported by the Forberg-Schneider Foundation. In 2012 he was appointed professor for piano at the Haute Ecole de Musique de Genève.

For Claves Records, AEON, La Dolce Volta, BIS, Genuin, he has recorded works by J. S. Bach, F. Couperin, Beethoven, Schubert, Schumann, Debussy, Busoni, Enescu, Messiaen, Cage, Suslin, Gubaidulina. These CDs have been acclaimed by the press.

This album contains no booklet.