Passionate Notes,
Sacred Music

ELIZABETH APPLEBAUM ASSOCIATE EDITOR

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of "feelings of Nature," of a "Cos-
mic Element, the Unity of God,
of man, and of the universe." He
writes of the "mystical" and the
"philosophical." He wanted his
work "to be performed without
interruption," with no respon-
sive readings and "muttering of
the crowd." He hoped the work
inspired listeners to "sink deeply
in silent meditation and
prayers."
The 11 pages of notes are filled
with almost rapturous remarks
often underlined, in capital let-
ters, followed by exclamation
points. Mr. Bloch is positively ex-
uberant as he writes what he en-
visions when, in the Sacred
Service, the Sefer Torah is taken
from the ark:

PHOTO BY DAVID M. DEUTSCH

I

n 1970, a woman walked into
the office of Cantor Norman
Rose and gave him a handful
of papers, which she offered as
a gift. A friend named Ernest
Bloch had given them to her years
before.
Twenty-six years later, Cantor
Rose is preparing for a Temple
Emanu-El concert, to be held 8:15
p.m Friday, March 22, that will
feature Mr. Bloch's Sacred Ser-
vice. Throughout, he has been
guided by that handful of papers
— Mr. Bloch's original notes on
his masterpiece.
"I was working in Buffalo at the
time," Cantor Rose recalled. A
member of the congregation, a
musician and friend of the cantor,
had studied with Bloch in Port-
land, Ore. Many years earlier
Bloch had given her a gift, his
notes on Sacred Service. She was
certain Cantor Rose would like to
have them.
The piece is based on liturgy
from the Union Prayer Book (Re-
form).
"These texts embody, in con-
centrated form, the quintessence
of the soul of Israel, of its aspira-
tions and its message to the
world," Mr. Bloch wrote. `Though
intensely Jewish in its roots, this
message seems to me above all a
gift of Israel to the whole world of
mankind. It symbolizes, for me,
far more than a 'Jewish Service'
but, in its quiet simplicity and va-
riety, it embodies a whole con-
ception of life, a philosophy,
addressed to all men."
Born in Geneva in 1880, Ernest
Bloch was 10 years old when he
decided he would become a com-
poser. Six years later he was still
determined, and left home after
his parents expressed displeasure
at his chosen career. Mr. Bloch
studied violin and composition in
France and Germany, writing his
first major work, Symphony in C
Sharp Minor, when he was 24.
In 1910, Bloch saw the first per-
formance of one of his works, Mac-
beth, at the Opera-Comique in
Paris. Six years later he came to
America, where he served as
founder of the Cleveland Institute
of Music and director of the San
Francisco Conservatory of Music.
He later settled in Agate Beach,
Ore. where he spent the rest of
his life.
Much of Bloch's music centers
on Jewish themes, including his
Trois Poems Juifs, Shlomo and
Israel Symphony. His most fa-
mous work was the Sacred Ser-
vice, written for baritone, mixed
chorus and orchestra.
In his notes, now brown and
withered with age, Bloch spoke

Cantor Norman Rose: "The exultation
of mankind."

"Light bursts out, clear, mysti-
cal, almost too intense for men's
eyes — it abates, and mysteri-
ously the cantor, once more, pro-
claims the act of Faith: `Shema
Yisroel — Our God is ONE - ! -"'
In the past, Cantor Rose has
conducted the Sacred Service.
This time he will perform.
"In the music, one has a feeling
of the unity of God, of man and
the universe, the exultation of hu-
mankind, their joy in life and their
faith," he said.
The March 22 service will be
presented by the Temple adult
augmented choir, directed by
Davis Gloff and accompanied, on
organ, by Father Edward Per-
one.
The cantor and priest met
years ago, seated next to one an-
other at a Detroit Symphony Or-
chestra concert.
When the temple's organist
could not perform in the concert,
Cantor Rose's wife suggested he
call Father Perone for names of a
substitute. The priest asked,
"Well, what about me?" ❑

