If I am honest, I am not an Elgar
enthusiast. Do no get me wrong: I enjoy his music, and regard many of his works
as masterpieces. My life would be much the poorer if I could not listen to the
Violin Concerto, the Second Symphony and the sun-drenched Overture: In the
South. Perhaps I ought to have said that I am not an Elgar ‘groupie’. By this I
mean that there are huge tracts of the composer’s music that I do not particularly
enjoy or appreciate. This includes (heresy to many, no doubt) the great
oratorios, Gerontius, The Kingdom and The Apostles. I do recognise
these works as great music: it is just that they do not ‘do’ for me. And I have to admit that the same goes for
the two important works presented on this CD. My initial thought is that ‘King
Olaf’ outstays his welcome and The Banner
of St George is a period piece that, in spite some gorgeous melodies, is
very much a ‘child of its time’.
Elgarians will no doubt roundly disagree.
The excellent liner notes by
Andrew Neill give the listener all the historical and analytical information
that they will require. The texts of both works are also included with scores
freely available on the Internet. However a few brief notes about each work may
be of some interest.
The cantata Scenes from the Saga of King Olaf, op.30 is a long work, lasting
for more than eighty minutes, making it almost ‘operatic’ in length. The work
is based on a poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-82) which was made into
a libretto consisting of a prologue, nine scenes and a concluding
epilogue. The work was completed in 1896
and was first performed in the Victoria Hall, Hanley during that year’s North
Staffordshire Music Festival. The basic ‘plot’ of the cantata is the life, wars,
loves and death of the great King Olaf, who was a Norse warrior turned
Christian. In a rather politically incorrect manner, he used his sword to make converts
to his new found faith.
The various sections include ‘The
Challenge of Thor’, ‘King Olaf’s Return’, ‘The Conversion’, ‘Gudrun’, ‘The
Wrath of Odin’, ‘Sigrid’, ‘Thyri’, ‘The Death of Olaf’ and the epilogue. The whole proceedings are written from the
point of view of the skalds or poets recalling the history at second-hand – a
kind of Longfellow-ian version of the Canterbury
Tales.
Even the Elgar Society’s own webpages note that the work has been
criticised for the ‘banality of its lyrics and storyline’. Yet the story is full of fascinating Norse
mythology and legend.
I enjoyed listening to King Olaf, in spite of my reservations
noted above. The performance is excellent with many beautiful and often deeply
moving moments. Elgar has provided an internally consistent score that includes
much fine music. My criticism is that it is over long and sometimes slow-moving.
All that said, enthusiasts of this work will find it ideal.
The Banner of St
George was composed the following year (1897) which was Queen Victoria’s
Jubilee. It is a ‘ballad in two scenes and epilogue for chorus and orchestra’.
The text was provided by the Bristolian poet Shapcott Wensley (Henry Shapcott)
(1854-1917). The cantata’s premiere was
at the St Cuthbert’s Hall Choral Society event in London on 18 May of that
year. The story tells simply of the
saving of the King of Sylenë’s daughter, Sabra from the wiles of the dragon by
St. George of Cappadocia. The concluding epilogue (not written to be particularly
complimentary to the valour of the Scots, Welsh or Irish) is a bit of
jingoistic bombast: ‘Three crosses in concord blended/ The banner of Britain’s
might!/ But the central gem of the ensign fair/ Is the cross of the dauntless
knight!’
In spite of the work’s banality,
it was warmly received by critics and audiences alike. And don’t get me wrong,
I can do tub-thumping, sentimentality and vapidity with the best of them…at the
bottom line, it is a ‘right good sing…’
Both works are stunningly
performed. It is good that Andrew Davis has drawn on the excellent Bergen Philharmonic
Orchestra and that great city’s excellent choral forces to present this story
of Norse and Cappadocian derring-do. The soloists Emily Birsan, Barry Banks and Alan Opie take this music
seriously and bring an operatic feel the the progress of King Olaf. The singing of
the choir is beyond reproach. As mentioned above, the liner notes are superb.
As far as I understand there is
only one other recording of each work in the catalogues, both from EMI. King Olaf was recorded by Vernon Handley
with the London Philharmonic Choir and Orchestra (EX 270553-3)
and The Banner of St George was also
issued by EMI with Richard Hickox and the Northern
Sinfonia of England. (EL 270555-1)
I do not know the former
recording, but I do have a soft spot for the latter, which I think has the edge
on this new CD. Hickox seems to be able to imbue the work with more drama and
intensity – especially in the ‘dragon and arrival of St George scenes.’ However, it is churlish to compare these
recordings: all three are clearly produced by leading recording companies and
performed by world class forces.
Elgar’s Cantatas (Olaf, Caractacus, Black Knight
etc.) will never be my first choice of music. Having heard the two works on
this CD, I cannot fail to be impressed with the composer’s ability to write
engaging music for these prosaic texts. Some of the passages in both works are
sublime and constitute miniature masterpieces within the entire work. Listeners
who like to hunt latent potential in a composer’s early works will have great
scope for their activities in King Olaf
in particular.
Track Listing:
Scenes from the Saga of King Olaf, op.30 (1896)
The Banner of St George (1897)
Emily Birsan (soprano) Barry Banks (tenor) and Alan Opie
(baritone)
Bergen Philharmonic Choir, Choir of Collegiûm Mûsicûm, Edvard
Grieg Kor, Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra/Andrew Davis
CHANDOS CHSA5149 (2)
With thanks to MusicWeb International where this review was first published.
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