Search - Bloch, Porter, Barra :: Concerti Grossi 1 & 2 / Ukrainian Suite

Ernest Bloch's Concerto Grosso No. 1 for String Ochestra with Piano Obbligato (of 1924-25) is a genuine masterpiece, and outside of his other masterpiece Schelomo for cello and orchestra (written in 1916), it is probably the work he's best known by. Though neo-classical in structure, the Concerto Grosso No. 1, is intensely emotional. It partakes, as so much of Bloch's music, of his Jewish roots, with the strings carrying the melodies and themes throughout. Concerto Grosso No. 2 (1953) is more controlled, stately, a product of the composer's later years. The Quincy Porter companion, the Ukrainian Suite (1920) is an understated student piece that fits the Bloch works nicely. --Paul Cook