Bloch completed composition of his String Quartet No. 1 in 1916. He did not complete another quartet till this one in 1946. Even for as careful and critical a worker as Bloch was, the six years that it took from conception to fruition is extraordinary. Much had happened during that period in the world. Bloch couldn't help but be deeply affected by the Second World War, since as a proud Jew his world was under attack.

From the opening violin solo, the listener is drawn into a sorrowful world that still is beautiful. No matter how vehement Bloch gets, no matter how plaintive his music becomes, it is never self pitying or arrogant. Rather, Bloch is like the writers of the Psalms, who always saw a flicker of hope in the darkness.

The ensuing Scherzo is far from lighthearted. It is driving and nervous. Usually the trio section of a scherzo is more lyrical than the energetic scherzo, but here Bloch takes it to extremes. The first of the two trios is spacious, even ethereal. The second trio is closer to what is expected.

The tragedy and despair of the war era is poignantly reflected in the slow movement of this emotionally charged work.

The finale is divided into two sections. The first is marked Allegro molto and is even more driven than the scherzo. This becomes a Passacaglia, which leads into a fugue. The work concludes with a slow "Epilogue," which once more recalls the tragedy of the time.

After it premiere, the British critic Ernest Newman called this quartet "the finest work of our time in this genre, one that is worthy to stand beside the last quartets of Beethoven." Whether or not this is an overstatement is up to the listener, who owes it to him or herself to make the acquaintance of this deeply felt and extremely moving masterwork.

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