Bloch: Piano Quintets

Serenity and meditation contrast with melancholy and savagery; primitive passions yield to poignancy, nobility and tenderness in Bloch’s accomplished chamber music. Five substantial pieces are recorded here, dating from different stages of the composer’s career and demonstrating both the programmatic elements of his writing and his Impressionistic side. Bloch’s deep affinity for string instruments and the piano is also given ample expression in these works, all of which deserve a permanent place in the chamber music repertoire. They are given performances of great vitality and sensitivity by the Goldner String Quartet and Piers Lane.

CDA67638  69 minutes 37 seconds
GRAMOPHONE EDITOR'S CHOICE
BBC MUSIC MAGAZINE DISC OF THE MONTH
PIANIST'S CHOICE (PIANIST MAGAZINE)
‘A fabulous CD this, easily the best recording of Bloch's chamber music I've heard in years … the first Quintet, a product of the early 1920s, seems to combine the acerbic drive of middle-period ...
‘This new beautifully balanced recording in which Piers Lane partners the Australian-based Goldner Quartet has the edge in almost every respect … in the First Quintet Lane and the Goldners manage ...
‘The performances are superb! The Goldners and pianist Lane play with complete technical command and an emotional commitment to the works’ (American Record Guide)