Classical composer edward elgars oratorio the apostles 1903 presents the mission of christ viewed primarily through the eyes of mary magdalene and judas iscariot is discussed. Elgar returned to the subject of the apostles, intending that it should be in three parts, the third of these covering the ground we now know as the kingdom. The tenors and basses represent the apostles on earth and are joined by the voices of john, peter, mary and mary magdalene. This short blog is just to let you know that our pax christi chorale video of elgars masterpiece the apostles is now live on youtube this was my swan song, april 29 and 30, 2017. Annotator michael kennedy describes elgars oratorio style as an offshoot of bachian oratorio, sprinkled with wagner dust, which is true enough. Edward elgars the apostles a major oratorio standing outside tradition thomas lloyd to impress as a composer. This grand sunrise opening leads directly into the calling of the apostles. In any case, the projected third part, the last judgement, 1 never got further than a few sketches which elgar produced sporadically until 1920. The first commercial recording of the apostles was that made by sir adrian boult for emi in 1974. It tells of the calling of the apostles, the beatitudes, jesuss work, the betrayal of jesus and its consequences judass suicide, the uncertainty before the resurrection, jesuss reassuring promise that i am with you always, even unto the end of the world. May 9, 2017 i am now plotting gigantic work, the british composer edward elgar. The apostles is a big work, for large orchestra, large choir and additional mystic chorus here the choir of downe house school. A greatniece of sir edward elgar, miss elgar was the last member of the composers immediate family who bore the elgar name and who could remember her uncle edward.
The title of the work itself is belied by featuring a woman who was not one of the twelve and a man who was the one apostle to defect from the rest. You can freely and lawfully download a printable score for this work. Chandos records is one of the worlds premier classical music record companies, best known for. Richard hickox london symphony orchestra london symphony chorus stephen roberts, alfreda hodgson, robert lloyd, alison hargan, david rendall, bryn terfel. Elgar the apostles canterbury choral society, richard.
The apostles elgar simple english wikipedia, the free. Born in the west of england in 1857, the son of a piano tuner and owner of a music shop, he earned his earlier living as. Elgar had been thinking for many years about writing a musical work about jesuss twelve apostles. The kingdom sir edward elgar 18571934 elgars first oratorio, the light of life, opus 29 1896, was an account of the blind beggar whose sight christ restored, and originally elgar intended to develop pursue new testament themes for his next. The music of the apostles has pervasive sadness but also elements of british affirmation, what mr. The spanish lady, suites from the unfinished opera op. A secondtier elgar oratorio might sound like a good definition of torture to the not elgarian inclined, but the apostles, composed in 1903, has its moments and is worth a listen in this fine performance even for general choral music fans. Though the apostles is usually regarded as inferior to the kingdom, elders performance has shown that, though the narrative thread is sometimes quite weak, the best of. Other vocal works include the choral cantata, caractacus 1898, and the song cycle for contralto, sea pictures 1900. Hearkening back to the words chosen for the prologue focused on christs primary mission to preach the gospel to the poor, elgar has the chorus emphasize pauls words from his first letter to the corinthians. Among his bestknown compositions are orchestral works including the enigma variations, the pomp and circumstance marches, concertos for violin and cello, and two symphonies. The apostles, an album by edward elgar, canterbury choral society, philharmonia orchestra, richard cooke on spotify. The apostles richard hickox, london symphony chorus, london symphony orchestra on allmusic 1990. We and our partners use cookies to personalize your experience, to show you ads based on your interests, and for measurement and analytics purposes.
Read more although often overshadowed by the dream of gerontius, written shortly before, it contains some of elgars most inspired music, particularly in the dramatic portrayal of. In these less successful works, representative themes are interwoven in the manner of the leitmotivs of wagner. Sir edward elgars 18571934 the spirit of the lord is probably the best known choral setting of this beautiful text. Elgars conception outgrew the confines of a single work. Dedicated to the greater glory of god the apostles is a largescale two part oratorio for soloists, choir and orchestra written in the english choral tradition. The apostles a study guide bucks county choral society. The apostles is about the beginning of christianity. Armstrong, watts, tear, luxon, grant, case 19731974. Until then, this largely selftaught catholic son of a provincial pianotuner had made his way as a freelance musician and littlerecognized. Edward elgar bio, albums, pictures naxos classical music. Here is the conclusion to the first studio recording with john carol case etc. Jesus, the queen and sir edward elgar holy communion. In 1903, the shofar made its debut on the concert stage in the oratorio the apostles by edward elgar 18571934.
Elgar selected his own texts from the bible and the apocrypha. Some of his letters and quoted remarks also suggest that he struggled with his own faith more than it may have seemed from his public persona. Edward elgars the apostles a major oratorio standing. Dont wait to play the favored composition by edward elgar for violin and piano. Elgar s conception outgrew the confines of a single work.
Edward elgar was arguably the leading english composer of his generation and a significant figure among lateromantic european musicians. The apostles hickox by alfreda hodgson, alison hargan, bryn terfel, rendall duration. Here is a clickable table of the available midi files for this work. Botstein will conduct edward elgars the apostles at carnegie hall on friday. It offers high quality pdf sheet music files with audio mp3 and mp3 accompaniment files as well as interactive sheet music for realtime transposition. Les apotres, oratorio for soloists, chorus and orchestra. The kingdom was first conceived as the last part of the apostles, but later elgar considered them as the first two parts of a trilogy. Elgar himself introduced the oratorio at the birmingham triennial festival in 1903.
Perhaps the most important of these is that neither, in themselves tell a complete story. This work was commissioned by the prestigious birmingham festival, just as mendelssohns biblical oratorio elijah in 1846. Elgars the apostles has never quite enjoyed the same renown as the dream of gerontius or the kingdom. Elgar chose the text from various parts of the new testament and the apocrypha adapted from the wikipedia article. By the age of 12 his son was deputising for him at the organ and had taught himself under his fathers guidance the violin so that he could join in the musicmaking of local ensembles. The spirit of the lord opening chorus prologue from the oratorio the apostles music by edward elgar 18571935 text. A rare performance of elgars gigantic work the new.
Members and friends of the elgar society were saddened to learn of the death of margaret elgar, 82, who died suddenly on 30 september. Sir mark elder and his halle forces continue to set stellar standards in largescale elgar and this new recording of the frequently inspired 1903 oratorio the apostles fully matches the qualities of their gramophone awardwinning account of its successor, the kingdom. Elgars father was at the centre of worcesters musical life, on friendly terms with the local gentry and clergy connected with the anglican cathedral. Composed as the first part of a putative trilogy, it was only when elgar reached the kingdom that elgar had honed the skill of retelling passages from the gospel. Edward elgar sheet music to download top quality pdfs. An expansive oratorio, the apostles calls for six soloists, lavish orchestration, and large chorus. When edward elgar began composing the apostles around the year 1900 at the age of 43 see photo, he had just recently received his first public acclaim for his masterful enigma variations for orchestra. Paperback october 11, 2012 by edward elgar author see all 2 formats and editions hide other formats and editions.
The apostles and the kingdom a suggestion for a performance edition elgars two major oratorios the apostles and the kingdom have never enjoyed the same popularity as the dream of gerontius and there are some obvious reasons for this. Listen to music from sir edward elgar like cello concerto in e minor, op. This was a followup to his magnificent set of the kingdom made five years before, when a stellar cast including margaret price and john shirleyquirk had successfully proved that there was life in the elgar oratorios beyond gerontius. It is a movement from his oratorio the apostles, op. Botstein described as elgars language of communal, national, imperial majesty in a.
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