Around the year 1930, Martinu, having written several recent works in a style evocative of Czech folk music, came under the spell of the concerti grossi of Baroque-era composers like Handel and, especially, Arcangelo Corelli. He started incorporating elements of that style into his own music; the initial manifestation of this was the first of the three versions of the Cello Concerto No. 1, scored with chamber orchestra accompaniment. The concerto was written in Martinu's hometown of Policka between August and September 1930. Gaspar Cassadó, the work's dedicatee, premiered this version of the work in Berlin on December 13, 1931. In 1939 Martinu revisited it, rescoring it for a full symphony orchestra. This version was dedicated to, and premiered by, Pierre Fournier, who presented the work often over the ensuing 15 years. But in 1955 Martinu, then living in Nice, Italy, happened on a radio broadcast of the concerto from Paris and, dismayed by what he heard, decided to rescore it once again, thinning out the orchestration. Once again Fournier was the dedicatee; he continued to perform the work often and revised the concerto's third movement cadenza. This final version of the concerto has gone on to become one of Martinu's most popular works.

The first movement, Allegro moderato, opens with a bold, striding, confident main theme. A more lyrical second theme of a Czech hue ensues, in which the cellist interacts with various solo woodwinds. These two themes are developed, with the cellist kept constantly busy. A lonely clarinet introduces the second movement, Andante moderato, joined by bassoon, trumpet and other winds. The cellist enters with a gently melancholy melody that sets the tone for the entire movement, one of Martinu's most lovely inspirations. The finale begins with a lively and propulsive, rhythmically playful Allegro. The tempo slows to an Andantino briefly with a return of the ambience of the slow second movement; this leads into a brief cadenza for the soloist and a brilliant conclusion.

© All Music Guide