Edward Elgar and His World (28 page)

With its premiere,
The Apostles
passed from the domain of its composer—who to some extent could dictate how the piece should be perceived—to that of its audiences, whose views, though mostly positive, were certainly more varied. This fact has been obscured by the existing Elgar literature, which has concentrated on critiques of the work at its premiere but not at subsequent performances. Such neglect is unfortunate, for the early reception history of
The Apostles
suggests that though most critics generally admired the piece, their admiration was often tempered with reservations—about Elgar's use of leitmotif, his style of word setting, the subject matter of the oratorio, and possible shortcomings compared with other similar works. These reservations are an uncomfortable reminder that Elgar's music did not meet with universal approval, even in Britain, but as part of the early “post-history” of the work they should not be ignored.

The articles below attempt to remedy this state of affairs. These documents are a series of reviews of particular performances of
The Apostles
between 1903 and 1905: the Birmingham premiere, the performance in Manchester shortly before the Elgar Festival at Covent Garden in March 1904, the Elgar Festival presentation, the performance at the Three Choirs Festival in Gloucester in September 1904, and the London Choral Society's rendition at Queen's Hall in February 1905. (These were by no means the only performances of the work in the sixteen months that followed its premiere; for reasons of space, reviews of concerts in such venues as Leeds and York have been omitted, along with performances that took place later in 1905, notably at Worcester and Norwich.) The reviews appear in four British music periodicals:
Monthly Musical Record, Musical News, Musical Opinion and Musical Trades Review
(hereafter
Musical Opinion)
, and
The Musical Standard
. These journals are less widely available to scholars than
The Musical Times
, thus the reviews below serve a practical purpose. A more important reason for their inclusion, however, is that all four periodicals could claim to be genuinely disinterested about Elgar: unlike
The Musical Times
, none were published by Novello, who, as publisher of
The Apostles
, had a vested interest in promoting the oratorio.

The oldest of the four,
The Musical Standard
, was founded in 1862 as the “only independent representative of music in the London weekly press”—an allusion to the contemporary power not only of Novello's
The Musical Times
but of the Davison publishing house's journal,
The Musical World.
⁴
Originally appearing twice monthly (though by the period of
The Apostles
it ran weekly), the
Standard
specialized particularly in “applying itself to church music and musical literature in some degree … [because] there is little or no musical literature, and none of a kind at all adapted for the churchman or the advanced amateur.” This emphasis on religious music manifested itself in, for instance, regular columns on organ building or correspondence about organists' positions, but the periodical also offered reviews of new music, concerts, and operas (in London, the provinces, and, from 1868 onward, abroad), news of particular artists and events, and occasional humorous numbers.
⁵
A new series of the
Standard
began in 1871 and was replaced in turn by an illustrated series in 1894, which ran until 1912. The focus of the periodical changed somewhat over the years, but interest in church music was never entirely eradicated. It is perhaps no coincidence that the first biographical sketch of Elgar appeared in the
Standard
in 1896, shortly after the premiere of his early oratorio,
Lux Christi
(premiered as
The Light of Life)
, op. 29.
⁶

The year 1871 saw not only the new series of the
Standard
but the first volume of
Monthly Musical Record
, a periodical published by Augener that survived until 1960 under the editorship of such figures as Ebenezer Prout, J. S. Shedlock, Richard Capell, Sir Jack Westrup, and, later, Gerald Abraham. The raison d'être of the
Record
was aesthetic, not commercial. As Prout explained in his opening editorial, it was aimed

solely at the advancement of the science to which they are specially devoted, [by those who] strongly desire that it should be understood by the public, and particularly by those more immediately interested in the publication of music, that works issued by any other house will be reviewed with the same independent appreciation and impartiality as those issued by themselves. It is their earnest desire that this Journal shall not degenerate into a mere trade advertisement.
⁷

Within this aesthetic sphere, Prout explained, the
Record
existed “in the first place to furnish ample intelligence on musical matters, both British and Foreign,” through reviews, scholarly writing on historical, analytical, and critical matters, and translations of leading French and German scholars. This interest in Continental music making and criticism may reflect the inferiority complex felt by musical figures in mid-Victorian Britain and the perceived need to improve the level of public discourse on music. Certainly, the prevailing tone of the
Record
is scholarly, in the reviews of new music as much as in the historical essays.

The third music periodical founded during this period was
Musical Opinion
, whose first issue appeared in October 1877. A monthly publication until as recently as 1994, the
Opinion
was in some ways the opposite of
Monthly Musical Record
. A typical issue would consist largely of current musical news, including perhaps an article on a featured composer and concert reviews. A regular feature was “Musical Gossip of the Month,” a column by the pseudonymous “Common Time” (it is unclear whether “Common Time” was one author or many, although the consistency of the writer's views would suggest the former). This column took an overview of a particular issue (such as the state and perception of music in Britain), often in a manner that was far more nuanced than its somewhat frivolous title might suggest. Despite this perceptive columnist,
Musical Opinion
was noted primarily not for its weighty musicological scholarship but for its coverage of church music—like
The Musical Standard
, a feature of the magazine was coverage of organists' vacancies and other organ-related matters—and, above all, the quotidian concerns of the music business. Around a third of the periodical was concerned with the sale of musical instruments and music publishing: a practical antidote to the more esoteric aesthetic concerns covered in the
Record.

The youngest of the four periodicals was
Musical News
, a weekly founded in 1891 in response to the “distinct call for a new journal which shall, at the popular newspaper price of ‘One Penny,' furnish news from all parts of the civilised world and supply original articles, not only upon current topics but upon those subjects of permanent interest upon which new light may be thrown from time to time.”
⁸
Indeed, when necessary it became a campaigning newspaper, notably (according to the critic Charles Maclean) under its first editor, T. L. Southgate, who “led some excellent crusades against charlatanries in the teaching world.”
⁹
The format of the periodical followed the pattern established in
Musical Opinion
and
The Musical Standard
of editorial comment, reviews of concerts in London and the provinces, “Foreign Intelligence,” correspondence, and miscellaneous items of interest—again with an emphasis on church music, for the syndicateowned
Musical News
was the organ of the Royal College of Organists.
¹⁰
Its style was consciously journalistic rather than academic, and this populist tone was reflected in a price that, its editors hoped, would “interest not only the few, but the many.”
¹¹
It also aimed to fill the gap in the market caused by the demise, in 1891, of
The Musical World
, one of whose former journalists, F. Gilbert Webb, became sub-editor of the new periodical.

The articles that follow are divided into four parts: the Birmingham premiere, the Manchester and Covent Garden concerts, the Gloucester performance, and the London Choral Society concert. They have been transcribed directly from the printed sources, and so reflect the usage of each publication, including an inconsistent use of small capitals that was common practice during this period. Within each section the articles appear in chronological order of publication.

 

Part I: The Premiere (October 14, 1903)

One of the most important musical events in Britain outside London, the Birmingham Musical Festival was held triennially from 1784 until 1829 and then from 1834 to 1912. The repertoire of the festival was predominantly choral; notable commissions included Mendelssohn's
Elijah
(1846), Gounod's
Redemption
(1882), Dvo . rák's Requiem (1891), and all four of Elgar's mature choral works:
The Dream of Gerontius
(1900)
, The Apostles
(1903)
, The Kingdom
(1906), and
The Music Makers
(1912). The 1903 festival, which took place in Birmingham Town Hall from October 13 to 16, consisted of eight concerts, among which were performances of
Elijah,
Handel's
Messiah,
and Bach's B-Minor Mass. Most of these concerts were conducted by Hans Richter, who since 1885 had been the principal conductor at the festival, though Elgar directed
The Apostles—
the only new work presented in 1903—himself.
¹²

As the reviews below indicate, the critics' views of the piece were mixed, but the performance itself was a success (unlike the disastrous premiere of
Gerontius
under Richter three years earlier). Contributing to this success was the singing of the six soloists, all of whom were highly regarded in oratorio and all of whom would perform the work at least once more during the course of the following year. Emma Albani sang the Blessed Virgin and the Angel Gabriel;
¹³
Muriel Foster (who had already impressed Düsseldorf audiences as the Angel in
Gerontius)
sang Mary Magdalene;
¹⁴
John Coates sang St. John;
¹⁵
Kennerley Rumford sang St. Peter;
¹⁶
David Ffranggon Davies sang Jesus;
¹⁷
and Andrew Black sang Judas.
¹⁸

The Birmingham Festival.

Musical News
25, no. 659 (17 October 1903): 316–17

The author of this article,”O. I.,” has not been identified.

W
EDNESDAY.
—The much-anticipated production of “The Apostles” has at length taken place, before one of the most attentive audiences the writer has ever seen. It will be impossible to give more than a mere outline of its general effect in this brief account. We may, however, at once premise that its success as a rare and lofty work of art is assured, and that in most respects it is at least on an equal plane of merit with its predecessor, “The Dream of Gerontius,” and, in several, even an advance on that remarkable work. The same strongly-marked characteristics are prevalent in both works, mysticism and deep piety combined with strong dramatic suggestiveness, striking originality of orchestration and subtle use of the
leit-motif
system. These qualities may be said to typify Elgar at his best, and they suffice to produce from his pen a species of music like that of no one else. It is individual to the highest degree, and perhaps this is its greatest strength to-day, when originality in the musical art becomes more and more difficult.

In conformity with a custom which is seemingly becoming general, the composer has himself selected and arranged his libretto. This is mainly from Biblical sources, and is illustrative of the calling of the Apostles, culminating with the Passion, Ascension, and prophecy of the future work of the disciples. The whole libretto is most cunningly chosen for the purpose of displaying a series of vivid and dramatic pictures suggestive to the Christian mind of the most moving and important incidents in the history of the world. At the same time the sacred subject is treated with the utmost reverence, so that not the slightest shock can be produced in the religious feelings of the most sensitive listener. Rather must the reverse happen in the majority of instances, and the hearer comes away with a sense that he has assisted at an elevating act of worship. The whole work may be taken as the most modern representative of the old-time “Passion music” as typified by Bach in his St. John and St. Matthew's Passion [
sic
]. Whilst, however, the design of these earlier works was confined to certain recognised and clearly defined limits, here it is extended so as to embrace other ideas and incidents, all elaborated with the most modern methods of composition. As the composer tells us that the present work is only a portion of his projected design, it is evident that he sees the possibilities of great expansion in this particular form of creative art.

The note of mysticism is at once struck, in the Prologue of which the vocal portions are allotted to a chorus. In it a number of the most important leit-motives are announced, and later on these with many others are woven together with all the composer's inimitable subtlety. The methods prevalent in “Gerontius” are here again constantly in evidence. There are the same frequent subdivisions of muted strings, the same characteristic use of brass, especially of horns, the same large orchestra, and strong contrasts of light and shade, all compelling attention by their mystery. In the later work, however, there is more chromaticism, and in this respect a nearer approach to the continental schools. The motives named in the analytical programme, “Christ's Loneliness” and “Sin,” are both instances of this tendency.
¹⁹
Indeed, the former phrase is somewhat reminiscent of Wagner's “Parsifal.” Such a resemblance, however, is sufficiently rare in Elgar's case. The wonder is that, dealing with such a subject, and coming after such a dominating genius as the Bayreuth master, he is not drawn much more under his sway. Perhaps the most striking motif in its significance and simplicity is that of Christ. This consists merely of a melody of three notes moving by conjunct degrees, but it is harmonised in such a manner as to produce an acute dissonance, at once suggestive of the sufferings of our Lord.
²⁰
The dramatic suggestiveness of the work never flags, and herein perhaps lies its greatest strength. It is often all-absorbing in this respect, as for instance in Christ's delivery of the “Beatitudes,” with the running commentary of Mary, the disciples and a chorus, in Mary Magdalene's anguish as she looks out of a Tower by the Sea of Galilee, whilst a chorus suggests worldly pleasures to her, and afterwards when Peter is in danger of being drowned. Again, in the Betrayal of Christ, Judas' repentance is dramatically accentuated by the chorus of priests and singers in the Temple. Their words, by chance apparently, are strangely applicable to Judas' mood. It is in such passages as these that the composer suggests to the mind of the listener a scene, a living picture, without the aid of stage accessories, and certainly no one has hitherto displayed greater skill than he in this direction. His profound mastery of the technicalities of composition all heighten the effect. We have scarcely space here to dilate on Elgar's skill in this respect. If any example were needed, one need only turn to the closing section of this work, some portions of which are scored for two choruses, one semi-chorus, and four solo voices, all more or less simultaneous, and provided with an independent and significant orchestral accompaniment. The work could not have been launched under better auspices. The orchestra was superb, the chorus sang with great intelligence and verve, whilst the solo vocalists, Madame Albani, Miss Muriel Foster, Mr. John Coates, Mr. Ffranggpn Davies, Mr. Kennerley Rumford, and Mr. Andrew Black all showed most satisfactory mastery over the various difficulties they had to contend with.