In the 1930s Jacob, along with several other young composers, wrote for the Sadler's Wells Ballet Company (now The Royal Ballet). His one original ballet (other than a student work, The Jew in the Bush (1928)),"Royal College of Music", The Times, 13 March 1928, p. 14 was Uncle Remus (1934), written for them. During the Second World War, Jacob wrote music for several propaganda films, and after the war he provided the score for the feature film Esther Waters (1948)."Gordon Jacob", British Film Institute. Retrieved 2 November 2018 A more personal take on the war is evident in the austere Symphony for Strings (1943), written for the Boyd Neel Orchestra.'British Music for Strings, Volume 1', CPO 555 382-2 (2020), reviewed by MusicWeb International
