Edward Elgar
Edward Elgar, one of the pre-eminent musical figures of his time, bridged the 19th and 20th centuries as the finest English composer since the days of Handel and Purcell. His compositions have been recorded countless times, and many have become mainstays in the classical repertoire throughout the world.
Elgar was born in Broadheath, England, on June 2, 1857. His father owned a music shop and was a church organist who taught his son piano, organ, and violin; apart from this instruction, Elgar was practically self-taught as a musician. At the age of 16, the composer became a freelance musician, and for the remainder of his life, he never took a permanent job. He conducted locally, performed, taught, and composed, scraping by until his marriage to Caroline Alice Roberts, a published novelist of some wealth, in 1889. Elgar had by this time achieved only limited recognition. He and his wife moved to London, where he scarcely fared better in advancing his career. The couple eventually retreated to Worcester, Elgar suffering from bitter self-doubt and depression. Alice stood by him the entire time, her unfailing confidence restoring his spirits. He was further buoyed by the success of his Imperial March, Op. 32, which earned him a publisher and a vital friendship with August Jaeger, his editor and confidant. In 1899, Elgar composed one of his best-known works, the "Enigma" Variations, Op. 36, which catapulted him to fame. The work is a cryptic tribute to Alice and to the many friends who stood behind the composer in the shaky early days of his career. Conductor Hans Richter proclaimed it a masterpiece, and his performances of the work in Britain and Germany established the composer's lasting success.
Elgar's most fruitful period was the first decade of the 20th century, during which he wrote some of his noblest, most expressive music, including the Symphony No. 1 in A flat major, Op. 55 (1907-1908), and the Violin Concerto in B minor, Op. 61 (1909-1910). His best-known works from this period, however, are the first four of his Pomp and Circumstance Marches (1901-1907); the first of these, subtitled "Land of Hope and Glory," became an unofficial second national anthem for the British Empire.
Elgar suffered a blow when Jaeger (the "Nimrod" of the "Enigma" Variations) died in 1909. The composer's productivity dropped, and the horrors of World War I deepened his melancholy outlook. His music became more intimate, even anguished. Still, he wrote some of his best chamber music during this period, as well as the masterly Cello Concerto in E minor, Op. 85 (1919), whose deep feeling of sadness and impending loss surely relates to the final illness of his faithful Alice, who died in 1920.
For some time after her death, Elgar wrote little of significance, but he made a historical foray into the recording studios when new electrical recording processes were developed. The fortunate result was a number of masterly interpretations of his orchestral music that have survived for posterity. In the early 1930s, Elgar set to work on a third symphony, left unfinished at his death in Worcester on February 23, 1934. The work was brought to a generally well-received realization by Anthony Payne in the late 1990s and was subsequently recorded.
© Rovi Staff /TiVo
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Elgar: Enigma Variations / Vaughan-Williams: Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis
Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, William Steinberg
Classical - Released by OBX Records on 16 Feb 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Music for Weddings, Vol. 2
Classical - Released by Piros - ISdigital on 30 Apr 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Elgar: In the South
Edward Elgar, Sir Neville Marriner, Academy of St. Martin in the Fields
Classical - Released by PMI Collins Classics on 16 Nov 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart/Beethoven/Brahms: „Requiem/Missa solemnis"A German -Vol.3
Classical - Released by Documents on 1 Sep 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Elgar: Enigma Variations - Von Weber: Konzertstuck - Sibelius: Violin Concerto
Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Jan Damen, Lili Kraus
Classical - Released by Intermusic S.A. on 12 Aug 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Sir Edward Elgar: Symphony No.2 in E Flat, Op.63
B.B.C. Symphony Orchestra, Sir Malcolm Sargent
Classical - Released by The Digital Gramophone on 25 Jun 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
World War I - The only known sound recording of action in the First World War / Sir Edward Elgar: The Fringes of The Fleet
Edward Elgar, Royal Garrison Artillery, Charles Mott
Classical - Released by The Digital Gramophone on 1 Jan 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Elgar: Violin Concerto in B minor, Op.61 - Yehudi Menuhin (violin) with the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by John Pritchard
London Symphony Orchestra, Yehudi Menuhin
Classical - Released by The Digital Gramophone on 18 Oct 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Best Of The Classics Volume 4
Philharmonic Wind Orchestra, Marc Reift
Classical - Released by Marcophon on 11 Jul 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Festival Concert 22
Philharmonic Wind Orchestra, Marc Reift Orchestra, Marc Reift
Classical - Released by Marcophon on 20 Feb 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Classical Greats Series, Vol.23: Elgar
Classical - Released by Global Journey on 4 Jul 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Edward Elgar: Symphony No. 1 In E Flat Major, Op.55
Symphonic Music - Released by RHI on 2 Nov 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Pomp and Circumstance
Ambient/New Age - Released by derp bros. on 10 Jan 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Prince of Sleep
Classical - Released by Laika Records on 6 Sep 2019
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Firebird and Other 20th Century Masterpieces
US Army Concert Band, Colonel Thomas Rotondi, Jr., Igor Stravinsky, Edward Elgar, Ottorino Respighi
Classical - Released by Altissimo on 1 Sep 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Pomp and Circumstance, March No. 2
Jazz - Released by Vintage Vinyl on 6 May 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Elgar & Beethoven: Sonatas For Violin and Piano
Chamber Music - Released by Arabesque Recordings on 22 Jan 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Types of synthetic (Electronic Version)
Electronic - Released by Electro Roma on 27 Feb 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Elgar: Enigma Variations & Introduction and Allegro for Strings
London Philharmonic Orchestra, Sir Adrian Boult
Classical - Released by Sunday Club Records on 2 Jun 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Fringes Of The Fleet
Classical - Released by SINETONE AMR on 27 Apr 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Sir Adrian Boult Conducts Elgar's Enigma Variations & Introduction and Allegro for Strings
Sir Adrian Boult, London Philharmonic Orchestra
Classical - Released by Sunday Club Records on 20 Jan 2014
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo