Concerto for Harmonica, Percussion and Strings (1966)

The Concerto for Harmonica, Percussion and Strings (1966) occupies a distinctive place in the composer's output. Before moving to the UK in 1962, the largely self-taught Sohal was an accomplished harmonica player in Punjab, frequently performing popular songs on the instrument during his student days. Composed shortly after his arrival in London, this fifteen-minute concerto bridges his early musical experiences with the modern Western classical language he was beginning to explore while working as a copyist for Boosey & Hawkes. It also remains one of the few concert works for the chromatic harmonica composed in the twentieth century.

Written for the legendary virtuoso Larry Adler, the concerto is cast in a single continuous span of around fifteen minutes, unfolding through a series of contrasting episodes without interruption. It sets the solo instrument against a colourful ensemble of four percussionists, two harps, mandolin, piano (doubling celesta), and string orchestra. Long, lyrical lines for the harmonica unfold against a constantly changing orchestral backdrop: at times static, luminous string textures, at others rhythmic ostinati or sweeping string glissandi, while the harmonica remains anchored in its melodic world. The mandolin contributes an occasional timbral colour, adding a distinctive resonance to the orchestral palette. Although episodic in construction, the concerto is unified by Sohal's instinctive command of colour and texture, moving seamlessly between contrasting musical ideas while maintaining a clear sense of continuity.

Utsyo Chakravorty

Naresh wrote the Harmonica Concerto in 1966 for Larry Adler, one of the greatest harmonica stars in the world. The work is listed in Larry Adler’s Wikipedia biography, but he never actually performed it, and it still hasn't been premiered. It is a unique and outstanding piece written by one of the foremost composers of his generation, and even today, it sounds fresh, innovative, and remarkably modern.

Naresh was himself a harmonica player, so he understood the instrument exceptionally well. I have performed concertos by Heitor Villa-Lobos, Alexander Tcherepnin, Malcolm Arnold, Arthur Benjamin, Michael Spivakovsky, Frank Lewin, and others, but I have never played a harmonica concerto written by a composer who was also a harmonica player.

The concerto explores virtually every important harmonica technique, including quarter-tone bends, double stops, chords, harmonies, a variety of tonguing techniques, and a beautiful cadenza. It is a truly comprehensive and idiomatic work for the instrument. The orchestral writing is very manageable and should not be overly difficult for an orchestra to prepare.

Jiayi He, virtuoso harmonica player