Swiss-born American composer Ernest Bloch became well known for using the music of his traditional Jewish heritage in popular works such as Israel Symphony and Schelomo. This is not the case with the Concerto Symphonique, a huge, sweeping work for piano and full orchestra. It is patterned after the form espoused by the London-born composer Henry Litolff (1818-91) who wrote five of them. In using this term, Bloch hoped to elevate the traditional concerto to a symphonic scale, and make the piano a more integral part of the orchestra. Basically, the Concerto Symphonique is an episodic work of cinematic proportions. Colorfully orchestrated with imaginative scoring, it has three movements like the conventional concerto. The Pesante begins dramatically with solo piano followed by an imposing march-like orchestral entrance that dissolves into an impressionistic haze. The thematic characteristics alternate between the colossal romanticism of Sergey Rachmaninov and the sensuous ambiguity of Maurice Ravel. A terrifically challenging cadenza is the emotional climax of the movement. The Allegro vivace begins with a devilishly difficult scherzo accented by Ravelian outbursts and restatements of themes from the first movement. All of a sudden, tranquility materializes in a more lyrical theme amid echoes of earlier melodies. After an extended period of time, the scherzo returns with a vengeance and winds back to the previous serenity, ending with murmurs of the opening theme. Allegro deciso declares itself with confident brass bravado, and, as earlier, juxtaposes these imposing gestures with moments of meditative repose. In the end, the piano emerges not merely as a virtuosic curiosity, but as an essential character in an unfolding drama.

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