CCMusic.com

2018 release. Romantic composer Max Bruch s two masterpieces have inspired Scottish Fantasy, the album from Grammy Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell. Bell performs and directs the Academy of St Martin in the Fields in his first-ever recording of the virtuosic Scottish Fantasy and offers a fresh take on Bruch's Violin Concerto No. 1 in G Minor, Op. 26 the first concerto Bell recorded thirty years ago with the Academy conducted then by Sir Neville Marriner. The Scottish Fantasy has become a great favorite of Bell's in the last decade. Bruch's unique fantasia bristles with the snap and lilt of Scottish folksongs, and has been a favorite of violin virtuosos since it's premiere. Though Scottish Fantasy is a newer addition to Bell's repertoire, his affection for the piece runs deep. Bell calls Bruch's Violin Concerto #1 the most seductive of violin concertos, saying "It's a piece that audiences go crazy over because it's so rich and lush, and it's easy to grasp. It's got excitement, power and passion."