Eric Blom
Eric Walter Blom arrived in Bern, Switzerland on the 20th of August 1888. His father carried Danish and British blood while his mother was Swiss. He learned music largely by himself without formal conservatory training. This background led him to assist Rosa Newmarch with program notes for Sir Henry J. Wood's Prom Concerts. Those notes became famous for their abundance of accurate information. From 1923 until 1931 he served as the London music correspondent for the Manchester Guardian. He then moved to the Birmingham Post where he worked from 1931 until 1946. A man named A J Sheldon had held that post before him.
Blom took over editing duties for the fifth edition of Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians in 1954. Previous editor H. C. Colles had limited earlier editions to five or six volumes. Blom expanded this work into nine distinct volumes published in 1954. He personally wrote hundreds of entries including a piece about Arthur Sullivan. He also translated many contributions from foreign writers who spoke German, Danish, Italian or French. A Supplementary Volume appeared in 1961 after his death but contained most of his own work. Denis Stevens served as associate editor on that final volume. The dictionary remained the standard reference until the New Grove arrived in 1980.
He could be almost gushing about his favorites like Mozart and especially his operas. Yet he did not shrink from criticizing composers he thought less worthy. He introduced some of his own prejudices into his writing. He claimed the solo part of the Sibelius Violin Concerto was closely interwoven with symphonic tissue. This view meant it was often neglected by average virtuosos despite being one of the most recorded concertos. Even more notoriously he stated Rachmaninoff lacked individuality compared to Taneyev or Medtner. Harold C. Schonberg later called such statements outrageously snobbish and stupid. Blom believed the popular success of Rakhmaninov's works would never last among musicians.
In 1941 Eric Blom wrote a detective novel titled Death on the Down Beat. He used the pseudonym Sebastian Farr for this work. The story concerns the shooting of a conductor during a performance of Strauss's Ein Heldenleben. The book received a republication in 2022 under the British Library Crime Classics imprint. Martin Edwards provided a preface for that modern edition. Beyond music criticism he also translated many documents for Otto Erich Deutsch's Mozart: A Documentary Biography published in 1965. He assisted Gervase Hughes in writing The Music of Arthur Sullivan. In 1956 he published some letters from Mozart translated by Emily Anderson for the bicentenary.
Blom married Marjory Spencer in 1923 and she died in 1952. They had one son named Michael who designed Massey Ferguson tractors. Their daughter Celia married author Paul Jennings and illustrated his books. Once back in London at the end of the 1940s his address was 10 Alma Terrace, Allen Street in Kensington. He died on the 11th of April 1959. He requested that an organist play J.S. Bach's final chorale prelude Vor Deinen Thron tret' ich zu Dir. The phrase 'Bach chorale' was misunderstood by those organizing the service. Instead they played the laughably incongruous Barcarolle from Offenbach's The Tales of Hoffmann.
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Common questions
When and where was Eric Blom born?
Eric Walter Blom arrived in Bern, Switzerland on the 20th of August 1888. His father carried Danish and British blood while his mother was Swiss.
What major reference work did Eric Blom edit starting in 1954?
Blom took over editing duties for the fifth edition of Grove's Dictionary of Music and Musicians in 1954. He expanded this work into nine distinct volumes published that year after previous editor H. C. Colles had limited earlier editions to five or six volumes.
Under what pseudonym did Eric Blom write a detective novel?
In 1941 Eric Blom wrote a detective novel titled Death on the Down Beat using the pseudonym Sebastian Farr. The story concerns the shooting of a conductor during a performance of Strauss's Ein Heldenleben.
Who were the parents of Eric Blom and when did he die?
His father carried Danish and British blood while his mother was Swiss. He died on the 11th of April 1959.
How did Eric Blom view the music of Rachmaninoff compared to other composers?
He stated Rachmaninoff lacked individuality compared to Taneyev or Medtner. Blom believed the popular success of Rakhmaninov's works would never last among musicians.