Symphony No. 2 (Elgar)

The Symphony No. 2 in E-Flat Major, Op 63, of Edward Elgar is the second of two symphonies that he completed. He wrote it in 1909–1911, though a few sketches date from 1903.

The symphony is scored for thirteen woodwinds (three flutes, one doubling piccolo; two oboes and English horn; Eb clarinet, two Bb clarinets, and bass clarinet; two bassoons and contrabassoon), four horns, three trumpets, three trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion (including snare drum, bass drum, tambourine, and cymbals), two harps, and strings.

It is in four movements:
*I. "Allegro vivace e nobilmente"
*II. "Larghetto"
*III. "Rondo": "Presto"
*IV. "Moderato e maestoso"

Just as in his first symphony, there is no explicit programme, although the model, or inspiration, for the work appears to be Beethoven's "Eroica" symphony: the same key (E flat major), and the second movement a funeral march in C minor. Elgar wrote afterwards about the work: "It ... represents the 'passionate pilgrimage' of a soul; ... the last movement represents the final issue of his 'passion' in noble action, and ... the last two pages [are] the apotheosis and the eternal issue of the soul's pilgrimage." Parts of the symphony he sketched in Venice, during a visit in 1910, and originally he characterized the second and third movements as representing the contrast between the dark interior of the Cathedral of San Marco di Venezia, and the sunlit piazza outside: however by the time of its completion he had crafted the second movement into a funereal elegy for King Edward VII, who had just died. Los Angeles music critic Jim Svejda described it as "the tender "Götterdämmerung" of the entire Edwardian era," and indeed the entire symphony has an elegiac quality, exceeded perhaps only by his later Cello Concerto (1919).

On the title page he included the following dedication:

cquote|Dedicated to the Memory of His late Majesty King Edward VII.This Symphony designed early in 1910 to be a loyal tribute, bears its present dedication with the gracious approval of His Majesty the King [George V]
March 16th, 1911.

The score of the symphony is prefaced by a quotation from Shelley, from his poem "Invocation":

cquote|Rarely, rarely comest thou,Spirit of delight!

The première, on 24 May 1911, at one of the concerts of the London Festival, was a disappointment to Elgar. The concert was not well attended, despite the tremendous success of the Violin Concerto the previous autumn. His friend the violinist W. H. Reed noted that though Elgar was called to the platform several times, he "missed that unmistakable note produced when the audience, even an English audience, is thoroughly roused." Reed records Elgar as saying to him, "What is the matter with them, Billy? They sit there like a lot of stuffed pigs." This may have been due to the mood of the piece; unlike the First Symphony and the Violin Concerto it ends not in a blaze of orchestral splendour but quietly and wistfully. Despite this the symphony has long since come to rival its predecessor in popularity, and is no less frequently programmed or recorded.

Sources

* David Cox, "Edward Elgar", in "The Symphony", ed. Robert Simpson. Penguin Books Ltd., Middlesex, England, 1967. Vol. 1 ISBN 0-14-020772-4 Vol 2. ISBN 0-14-020773-2 (Cox specifically mentions General Gordon as being the possible inspiration for the symphony.)
* Diana McVeagh, "Edward Elgar", in "The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians", ed. Stanley Sadie. 20 vol. London, Macmillan Publishers Ltd., 1980. ISBN 1-56159-174-2
* Diana McVeagh: "Edward Elgar", Grove Music Online ed. L. Macy (Accessed May 8, 2005), [http://www.grovemusic.com (subscription access)]
* Reed, W H: "Elgar", London, J M Dent & Sons, 1939

References

External links

* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/classical/elgar/notes/note_symph2.shtml Symphony No. 2 in E flat major, Op. 63 (1910–11)]