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General notes about
Elgar.
Not
since Henry Purcell in the 17th century had a native Englishman risen to
such prominence in classical music, and Elgar wore this distinction with
much pride. Music critic Harold Schonberg described Elgar as "an
inflated provincial.Edwardian, stuffy." But whether he meant to
or not, Elgar was responsible for the music revolution that hit the
British Isles.
The
English music scene pre-Elgar was almost the exclusive domain of two
imported geniuses - Handel and Mendelssohn. Mendelssohn, the polite
and well-mannered composer that he was, soon became a favorite of the
equally polite and well-mannered Queen Victoria, and soon the
Mendelssohn style came to dominate merry old England. Ten years after
the death of Mendelssohn, Edward Elgar was born (the "Sir"
came much later) in 1857 in Broadheath, outside of Worcester. Small town
England would act as Elgar's nemesis and his sanctuary throughout his
life. His father was an organist, violinist, and piano tuner who ran a
small music shop who wanted Elgar to be a lawyer. But by age ten, Elgar
was fixated on music, teaching himself the basics of music composition
and already churning out his first pieces. Much later in his life, Elgar
would say of music that it "is in the air, you simply take as much
as you require." The fourth of seven children, Elgar went to work
in a lawyer's office when he was just 15, but within a year he had
quit and was making his way as a freelance musician. He no formal music
training, except for some violin lessons, which made finding a music
post difficult so he worked as a violinist, giving lessons, and writing
music.
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Alice Roberts |
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In
1889, Elgar finally struck gold with the release of his first
successful piece, the "Froissart Overture", and his
marriage to Alice Roberts. Eight years his senior, Alice had been
one of Elgar's students, one of his wealthy students. She was
also quite distinguished apart from her pedigree. She had
published a novel, could speak German, and was a choral singer.
There was a sharp contrast between this daughter of privilege and
the son of a country tradesman, but one could not help but notice
the benefits of this union for Elgar. By the time the Elgars moved
their household to London, Elgar was already becoming famous.
Elgar wanted to establish himself quickly on the heels of his
smaller successes, but, aside from the sale of his smaller works
for violin, such as his "Salut d'amour", London was
disappointing. Polite London society was not ready for the upstart
son of a rural shopkeeper who married up and into high society.
Elgar was not offered a conducting post, and no students were sent
his way, and the proud and shy Elgar retreated to Worcester with
Alice. The two took some wonderful journeys abroad, giving Elgar
the opportunity to hear the music of Wagner, Weber, and Gounod
while gearing up for their some-day return to London. |
In
1899, Elgar hit his stride, writing several blockbuster pieces,
including his famous Enigma Variations, a series of musical sketches of
family and friends, beginning with Alice and ending with a self-portrait
of Elgar. During the winter of 1899-1900, Elgar worked on his oratorio
"The Dream of Gerontius", which, after a rather rocky premiere
performance, became a favorite with the public. Fortunately, his Pomp
and Circumstance Marches from 1901 would not take so long to cast their
spell over the audience. During the premiere of the first two marches,
the audience was so enthusiastic that Elgar had to have the orchestra
repeat them 3 times. When music from one of the marches was used for
Edward VII's Coronation Ode and made the rounds as the song "Land
of Hope and Glory." Elgar, who had striven to divorce himself from
the nationalistic zeal weaving through Europe, had become a nationalist
composer, but the marches had also set something else in motion - the
end of his reputation as a serious composer.
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In
1904, Elgar received a series of honors: his knighthood, dinner
with the king, a three-day festival of his music at the Royal
Opera House, Covent Garden, and the installation of a telephone in
his private home. A year later began the first of a series of
visits to the United States where he conducted performances and in
1905 was granted a doctorate from Yale. He completed his first
symphony in 1908 and a couple of years added the second symphony
and the violin concerto to his list of works. |
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He and Alice
finally made their triumphant return to London in 1912 when the world
was too preoccupied with the conflict brewing to much care. The end of
World War I in 1918 also saw an end to Elgar's dominance in
England's musical life. Elgar found himself drying up creatively, and
in what would be called the last gasps of genius, composed his soulful
Cello Concerto of 1919. Alice died in 1920 and by 1920 Elgar again
packed up and left London for Worcester. He forgot the world and the
world forgot him. Elgar spent his days driving around in his car or with
his dogs, refusing to even discuss music. From Elgar: "My whole
past is wiped out and I am quite alone." With his death in 1934,
Elgar left England in the hands of Ralph Vaughan-Williams. Elgar had not
set out to become England's national messenger. Of his music, he had
this to say: "It's a man's attitude to life."
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