Elgar Symphony No.1: A Quandary

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

Elgar's Organ Sonata is, to me, a very ordinary work, but in Gordon Jacob's orchestration, it deserves to be known as Symphony no. 0.

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

I get "Bad error request 400" when I click...? anyone else getting this?

I get:

The webpage cannot be found

HTTP 400
Most likely causes:
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What you can try:

Retype the address.
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[Thropplenoggin]

Here's a working link to Cheapskater's script of the Elgar 1 BaL: http://bit.ly/YeJEij

[BBMmk2]

Elgar's Organ Sonata is, to me, a very ordinary work, but in Gordon Jacob's orchestration, it deserves to be known as Symphony no. 0.

Really? I think that is not so. The oM and AssistDoM, I work with at the school, think otherwise but, hmm they are organists themselves!

[Cheapskater]

Elgar's Organ Sonata is, to me, a very ordinary work, but in Gordon Jacob's orchestration, it deserves to be known as Symphony no. 0.

Seconded! I have the Tod Handley recording.

May I also put in a good word for the Elgar Piano Concerto (reconstructed by Robert Walker & David Owen Norris). I heard a BBC clip on the reconstruction work - there's a lot of original Elgar there & the linking and Orchestration is most expertly achieved. To my ears, it sounds like genuine Elgar throughout - and I don't even like the blinkin' piano normally!

[Cheapskater]

Here's a working link to Cheapskater's script of the Elgar 1 BaL: http://bit.ly/YeJEij

Very well done for finding an alternative link. I just found it whilst googling for background to the Symphony (fair bit of bumbling around though!). I also have a link to the BaL script for 'In the South' if anyone's interested. I could listen to David Owen Norris's analysis all day! Most interesting and sound, I think.

[Karafan]

Yes please for the In the South script link, Cheapskater.

PS also check your PMs.

Karafan

[Cheapskater]

The Boult is a small miracle because Sir Adrian was very elderly by the time of this performance and yet the orchestra plays as if possessed and the roar from the Proms audience is entirely justified. Not for every day listening, I'd suggest - save it for special occasions.

I think I'm right in saying that the Davis/Staatskapelle was a BaL choice a while back.

Sir Colin is controversial principally because he likes to sing along and sometimes the mics catch this - I love it but others are appalled

I auditioned this Boult Proms performance on Qobuz and entirely agree with you. It's on my to acquire list.

[Cheapskater]

Yes please for the In the South script link, Cheapskater.

PS also check your PMs.

Karafan

BaL 'In the South' Script link -

https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:5-dav7uY2IYJ:eprints.soton.ac.uk/184921/1/In_the_South_Script.doc+david+owen+norris+elgar+cd+review&hl=en&gl=uk&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESg_iCP1eQLhSqOntuKuabdSOdpxQLoA3Uvd1Fz7RYjRCc5rhY2W_CsTP2m4Wpw--KSizkbehgccklL9QegVpMQftUkU7C4JZbopHn1FZe_cUBjF6RPl8wmZkbKgice659KJ9r-O&sig=AHIEtbTW8zGU_-RgQh0kVpFVQg2hXYsWVQ

Lets hope that works!

[Thropplenoggin]

Yes please for the In the South script link, Cheapskater.

PS also check your PMs.

Karafan

Seconded. I just auditioned the winner on Qobuz. I won't say which, in case Karafan doesn't know!

The Boult performance is indeed miraculous. Something very unique seems to happen from the off. The 'nobilmente' theme sends chills down the spine. It just feels so right, as if everything was in perfect synch. There's just this ineffable spark about the performance.

For very different reasons, Davis achieves something similar with the Dresden players.

[Cheapskater]

For my money the chief advantages of the Hickox are the SACD recording and the orchestrated Organ Sonata coupling.

The performance of the symphony is average or just above IMHO.

Alison, I entirely agree with this and don't have this SACD for that reason. I prefer the orchestrated Organ Sonata in the Tod Handley recording.

[HighlandDougie]

BaL 'In the South' Script link -

https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:5-dav7uY2IYJ:eprints.soton.ac.uk/184921/1/In_the_South_Script.doc+david+owen+norris+elgar+cd+review&hl=en&gl=uk&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESg_iCP1eQLhSqOntuKuabdSOdpxQLoA3Uvd1Fz7RYjRCc5rhY2W_CsTP2m4Wpw--KSizkbehgccklL9QegVpMQftUkU7C4JZbopHn1FZe_cUBjF6RPl8wmZkbKgice659KJ9r-O&sig=AHIEtbTW8zGU_-RgQh0kVpFVQg2hXYsWVQ

Lets hope that works!

I can only presume that it wasn't mentioned because it wasn't available at the time - and apologies for straying off-topic - but Silvestri's famous Bournemouth recording of 'In the South' is one of the joys of the recent EMI Icon Silvestri box. Worth the cost of it for it alone.

[mathias broucek]

Am pretty thrilled with the Sinopoli recordings of the 1st and In The South. (The 2nd is considerably more eccentric...)

[Alison]

Am pretty thrilled with the Sinopoli recordings of the 1st and In The South. (The 2nd is considerably more eccentric...)

Timpani to die for

[Thropplenoggin]

Am pretty thrilled with the Sinopoli recordings of the 1st and In The South. (The 2nd is considerably more eccentric...)

Interesting. Sinopoli seems to be something of a whipping boy on BaL. He gets soundly thrashed in the two Elgar BaLs by David Owen Norris (see the scripts linked to by Cheapskater above). And, IIRC, I think Sinopoli got bashed in today's Mahler BaL, too!