Schelomo Archives

A Brief History and Analysis of Ernest Bloch’s Schelomo

Introduction At the tender age of ten, Ernest Bloch wrote a vow that he would become a composer. He then built a mound of stones in the shape of an altar and burned the paper over the stones in ritual fashion. Before age 15, he made good on his vow, having composed both a string quartet and an Oriental Symphony. However, it was with the composition of his epic Schelomo: Rhapsody for Violoncello and Large Orchestra, that he proved to the world that he had indeed become a composer of world class ability. After a performance in November of 1923, the San Francisco Chronicle review affirmed the accomplishment, reporting: "Schelomo is a magnificent work by one of the greatest living composers. Splendid as it is in brilliant coloration, it is not in the vivid pictures that [...]

By Tracie Price|2024-07-05T19:51:13-04:00September 16th, 2023|Categories: Historical, Internet Cello Society Archive|Tags: Cello Repertoire, Ernest Bloch, Historical Analysis, The Jewish Cycle, Internet Cello Society Archive, Schelomo|

Cello Concerto Overview: The Should Haves (Part II)

Reprinted with permission from Interlude. Rostropovich Here are six more cello concertos a cellist should have in their repertoire. Robert Schumann studied the cello as a youngster and although he was unable to continue due to an injury to his right hand he developed a deep affinity to the instrument. Schumann’s Cello Concerto departs from traditional structure. Initially intended as a “Conzertstück”, each of the three movements meld seamlessly into the next. Perhaps the structure is due to Schumann’s aversion to interruptions from the audience. In any case the work breaks with tradition. Written late in his life, it is deeply lyrical, almost enigmatic and mystical in its sparse use of thematic material, which returns throughout the piece. It is best regarded as a one large-movement work. Two unusual features [...]

By Janet Horvath|2024-07-05T20:10:22-04:00April 24th, 2022|Categories: Repertoire|Tags: Maria Kliegel, prokofiev, Schelomo, Don Quixote, Richard Strauss, Leonard Rose, Schumann, Janos Starker, Ernest Bloch, Saint-Saëns, Shostakovich, Sol Gabetta, Rostropovich, Alban Gerhardt|

Conversation with Steven Isserlis (May, 1998)

Interview by Tim Janof British cellist Steven Isserlis performs regularly with the world's leading orchestras, including the London Symphony and the Philharmonia, the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Cleveland Orchestra, Chicago and San Francisco Symphonies, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, and Japan's NHK Orchestra, collaborating with conductors such as Ashkenazy, Eschenbach, Gardiner, Norrington, Slatkin, Solti, and Tilson Thomas. He has enjoyed working with authentic instrument orchestras such as the English Baroque Soloists, the London Classical Players, and l'Orchestre Revolutionnaire et Romantique, and he has also been an inspiration for composer John Tavener, who as a result has written many works for cello. Admired for his expertise in the chamber music repertoire, Isserlis has been responsible for programming and participating in successful chamber music festivals both at London's Wigmore Hall and at the Salzburg Festival, [...]

By Tim Janof|2023-09-16T03:04:15-04:00September 27th, 2021|Categories: Internet Cello Society Archive, Artistic Vision, Interviews, Performance, Repertoire, Self Discovery|Tags: Schelomo, Zara Nelsova, Bach, Jane Cowan, vibrato, Ornamentation, Interpreation, gut strings, trills|

Conversation with Zara Nelsova (June, 2000)

Interview by Tim Janof The second generation of a distinguished Russian musical family, Ms. Nelsova was born in Canada, educated in England, and is a citizen of the USA. She made her debut with the London Symphony at age 12, and since that time has regularly toured every continent, including her triumphant tour of the Soviet Union in 1966 as the first to be made by an American soloist. Zara Nelsova has appeared with virtually every major orchestra in North America including those of New York, Boston, Chicago, and Philadelphia. She has appeared with numerous European orchestras including the Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam, Royal, Berlin, and London Philharmonics, the BBC and London symphony orchestras, and in Warsaw and Poznan with the Amadeus Chamber Orchestra. She has collaborated with such [...]

By Tim Janof|2022-05-09T13:53:00-04:00October 27th, 2019|Categories: Internet Cello Society Archive, Interviews, Performance|Tags: Pablo Casals, Concerto, Pierre Fournier, soloist, Barber, Bloch, Schelomo, Zara Nelsova|