Piano Quintets

'Piers Lane and the Goldners convey both the frenzy and the languor of Bloch's music'
(BBC Music Magazine Disc of the Month Jan 2008)

"The brooding intensity and inventive originality of the Bloch quintets are a real revelation from a composer whose reputation rests almost entirely on the better-behaved Schelomo, and the performers put the music across with real passion and commitment."
(BBC Music Award Finalist 2009)

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.