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Edward Elgar: the story on HearLore | HearLore
Edward Elgar
Edward Elgar was born on the 2nd of June 1857 in the small village of Lower Broadheath, near Worcester, England, into a family that would define his lifelong sense of being an outsider. His father, William Henry Elgar, was a piano tuner and violinist who ran a music shop, while his mother, Ann Greening, had converted to Roman Catholicism shortly before his birth. This religious background placed young Edward in a precarious position within the predominantly Protestant society of Victorian Britain, where his faith was viewed with suspicion by many. Despite his humble origins and lack of formal conservatory training, Elgar would eventually become the most celebrated English composer of his generation, yet he never fully escaped the feeling of being an intruder in the musical establishment. He was self-taught, learning music theory from books borrowed from the library and studying manuals on organ playing, a path that allowed him to develop a unique voice free from the dogmatism of the schools. His early years were marked by a deep connection to the English countryside and a voracious appetite for literature, which would later permeate his compositions with a subtle but sturdy English quality. The failure to attend the Leipzig Conservatory, due to his father's inability to afford the fees, proved to be a fortunate accident that preserved his individuality, allowing him to escape the rigid academic structures that might have stifled his genius.
The Enigma and The Dream
At the age of forty-two, in 1899, Elgar produced the work that would catapult him to international fame, the Enigma Variations, a set of fourteen variations on an original theme dedicated to his friends. The piece was a sensation, receiving general acclaim for its originality and craftsmanship, yet it carried a secret that Elgar never revealed: a hidden theme that runs through the entire set but is never heard. This enigma has puzzled musicologists for over a century, adding a layer of intrigue to a work that already stood as a testament to his mastery of orchestration. The variation depicting his friend August Jaeger, titled Nimrod, became one of the most beloved pieces in the repertoire, while the omission of variations for figures like Arthur Sullivan and Hubert Parry highlighted Elgar's struggle to incorporate styles he did not fully embrace. Following this triumph, Elgar composed The Dream of Gerontius in 1900, a choral work based on a Roman Catholic text by Cardinal John Henry Newman. The piece was so powerful that it caused disquiet among the Anglican establishment, with some banning it from their cathedrals and others demanding expurgations before allowing performances. Despite these obstacles, The Dream of Gerontius became a core repertory work, opening a new chapter in the English choral tradition and liberating it from the preoccupation with Handel. The German press was enthusiastic, with Richard Strauss proposing a toast to Elgar as the first English progressive musician, a recognition that validated Elgar's belief that his true influences lay in continental Europe rather than his native land.
Edward Elgar was born on the 2nd of June 1857 in the small village of Lower Broadheath, near Worcester, England. He was born into a family that defined his lifelong sense of being an outsider within the predominantly Protestant society of Victorian Britain.
What is the hidden theme in Edward Elgar's Enigma Variations?
Edward Elgar produced the Enigma Variations in 1899, a set of fourteen variations on an original theme that carries a hidden theme running through the entire set but is never heard. This enigma has puzzled musicologists for over a century and adds a layer of intrigue to a work that stands as a testament to his mastery of orchestration.
When was Edward Elgar knighted and what happened at the Three Choirs Festival in 1904?
Edward Elgar was knighted at Buckingham Palace on the 5th of July 1904. The Three Choirs Festival in 1904 featured a three-day celebration of his works, an honor never before given to any English composer, with the King and Queen in attendance.
Why did the Cello Concerto by Edward Elgar suffer a disastrous premiere?
The Cello Concerto composed by Edward Elgar in 1919 suffered a disastrous premiere due to inadequate rehearsal time, with the orchestra making a lamentable exhibition of itself. Despite the poor performance, the work was recognized by critics as lovely stuff with profound wisdom and beauty underlying its simplicity.
When did Alice Elgar die and how did her death affect Edward Elgar?
Alice Elgar, the composer's wife, died of lung cancer on the 7th of April 1920, at the age of seventy-two. Her death devastated Edward Elgar, who was deprived of her constant support and inspiration, and he allowed himself to be deflected from composition.
When did Edward Elgar die and when was his Third Symphony completed?
Edward Elgar died on the 23rd of February 1934 at the age of seventy-six and was buried next to his wife at St Wulstan's Roman Catholic Church in Little Malvern. The Third Symphony sketches were elaborated by the composer Anthony Payne into a complete score in 1997.
The first of the five Pomp and Circumstance Marches, composed between 1901 and 1930, contains a theme that has become familiar to millions of television viewers worldwide, particularly during the Last Night of the Proms. The slower middle section, known as the trio, was originally an instrumental piece that Elgar told his friend Dora Penny would knock the audience flat. When it was performed at a London Promenade Concert in 1901, the audience rose and yelled, giving the piece a double encore, an event that remains unique in the history of the concerts. The melody was later fitted with words by A. C. Benson to create Land of Hope and Glory, which became an unofficial British national anthem and is now performed at virtually all high school and university graduations in the United States. Elgar's popularity reached its zenith between 1902 and 1914, during which he made four visits to the United States and earned considerable fees from the performance of his music. He was knighted at Buckingham Palace on the 5th of July 1904, and his works were performed in major cities across Europe and America. The Three Choirs Festival in 1904 featured a three-day celebration of his works, an honor never before given to any English composer, with the King and Queen in attendance. This period marked the height of his public acclaim, yet it was also a time when he felt the weight of celebrity, often complaining to his friend August Jaeger about the constant giving up of the little things he loved.
Symphonies And Concertos
As Elgar approached his fiftieth birthday, he began work on his First Symphony, a project that had been in his mind for nearly ten years. The symphony was a national and international triumph, receiving over a hundred performances in Britain, America, and continental Europe within just over a year. The Violin Concerto, composed in 1910 and dedicated to Fritz Kreisler, was another complete triumph, with the concert described as a brilliant and unforgettable occasion. However, the subsequent Second Symphony, premiered in 1911, ended quietly and contemplatively rather than in a blaze of orchestral splendour, leading to a disappointment in its reception. Elgar asked his friend W. H. Reed, What is the matter with them, Billy? They sit there like a lot of stuffed pigs. The Cello Concerto, composed in 1919, suffered a disastrous premiere due to inadequate rehearsal time, with the orchestra making a lamentable exhibition of itself. Despite the poor performance, the work was recognized by critics as lovely stuff with profound wisdom and beauty underlying its simplicity. Unlike the First Symphony, the Cello Concerto did not have a second performance in London for more than a year, and it took many years to achieve a regular place in the concert repertory of British orchestras. These works, along with the symphonies, rank high not only in Elgar's output but in English musical history, yet they were often considered prolix and slackly constructed by some critics.
The Widower And The Recordist
Alice Elgar, the composer's wife and a perceptive musical critic, died of lung cancer on the 7th of April 1920, at the age of seventy-two. Her death devastated Elgar, who was deprived of her constant support and inspiration, and he allowed himself to be deflected from composition. For much of the rest of his life, he indulged himself in his several hobbies, including chemistry, football, and horseracing. He even patented the Elgar Sulphuretted Hydrogen Apparatus in 1908 and composed an anthem for the Wolverhampton Wanderers football club. In his later years, he frequently attended horseraces, and his protégés, the conductor Malcolm Sargent and violinist Yehudi Menuhin, recalled rehearsals at which he swiftly satisfied himself that all was well and then went off to the races. Elgar was also the first composer to take the gramophone seriously, making a series of recordings of his own works from 1914 onwards. The introduction of electrical microphones in 1925 transformed the gramophone into a realistic medium for reproducing orchestral and choral music, and Elgar was the first to take full advantage of this technological advance. His recordings, released on 78-rpm discs, caused surprise to many by their fast tempi, in contrast to the slower speeds adopted by many conductors in the years since his death. These recordings remain a vital link to the composer's own interpretations of his music.
Final Years And Legacy
In his final years, Elgar experienced a musical revival, with the BBC organizing a festival of his works to celebrate his seventy-fifth birthday in 1932. He flew to Paris in 1933 to conduct the Violin Concerto for Menuhin and visited his fellow composer Frederick Delius at his house at Grez-sur-Loing. He began work on an opera, The Spanish Lady, and accepted a commission from the BBC to compose a Third Symphony, but his final illness prevented their completion. Inoperable colorectal cancer was discovered during an operation on the 8th of October 1933, and he told his consulting doctor that he had no faith in an afterlife, believing there was nothing but complete oblivion. Elgar died on the 23rd of February 1934 at the age of seventy-six and was buried next to his wife at St Wulstan's Roman Catholic Church in Little Malvern. After his death, his music's stock remained low for a generation, but it began to revive significantly in the 1960s, helped by new recordings of his works. Some of his works have, in recent years, been taken up again internationally, but the music continues to be played more in Britain than elsewhere. The Third Symphony sketches were elaborated by the composer Anthony Payne into a complete score in 1997, and a performing version of the sketches for a sixth Pomp and Circumstance March was premiered at the Proms in August 2006. Elgar's legacy endures as a composer who, despite his English identity, drew heavily on continental European influences to create a unique and enduring body of work.