People alluded to in Enigma Variations?
Bruce Tindall
of the movements of the Enigma Variations and the individuals
to whom each is supposed to refer? Thanks.
joseph louis rizzo
I don't know if this is true, it came out of my EMI CD booklet.
1. Theme
2. Caroline Alice Elgar
3. Hew David Steuart-Powell
4. Richard Baxter Townshend
5. William Meath Baker
6. Richard Penrose Arnold
7. Isabel Fitton
8. Arthur Troyte Griffith
9. Winifred Norbury
10. August Johannes Jaeger
11. Dora Penny
12. George Robertson Sinclair
13. Basil G. Nevinson
14. Lady Mary Lygon
15. Edward Elgar
The booklet also has a picture of each person.
[If you care to know, it is EMI's composers in person CD # CDC 7 54837 2
coupled with Holst performing his Planets.]
--
J.L.Rizzo, II
"You mean we can't play our game anymore?!?"
The birth of UNIX
David Brooks
>Could someone please post the list (or refer me to a source)
>of the movements of the Enigma Variations and the individuals
>to whom each is supposed to refer? Thanks.
"Hmmm... I'm sure there was a Web page, but I can't seem to find the URL"
-- the motto of the World Wide Web
Remember, at the first few performances there were two Enigmas: the meaning
of the theme (and that puzzle stays with us today) and the identities of
the subjects. Elgar provided the names and brief descriptions in notes he
wrote for the publication of a piano roll.
What I find remarkable is the threefold invention in each piece. Each is a
musical variation, of course. Each gives a general character portrait of
the subject and usually manages to combine a specific incident or
characteristic as well.
Theme, Enigma.
I (CAE): (Caroline) Alice Elgar, the composer's wife. The theme is
prolonged with "romantic and delicate additions" and includes a tune that
Elgar whistled to announce he had arrived home.
II (H.D.S-P.) Hew Steuart-Powell was the pianist in Elgar's trio (the
composer was a violinist). He appeared to have been a nervous character.
III (R.B.T.) Richard Baxter Townshend, something of an eccentric, was once
cajoled into playing an old man in amateur theatricals, which he
hated. Here we hear his low, gruff voice occasionally flying off into a
high, soprano timbre. I seem to remember he was related to...
IV (W.M.B.) William Meath Baker, an archetypal country squire, liked to
keep his house guests in order; here he had just announced the day's
arrangements, been teased by the guests, and inadvertently slammed the
door.
V (R.P.A.) Richard Arnold was the son of Matthew Arnold. He was by turns
serious and whimsical.
VI (Ysobel) is Isabel Fitton, who was a viola player. For her, the theme
is transformed into a violist's exercise which develops into a pensive,
romantic movement.
VII (Troyte) Arthur Troyte Griffith, an architect and lifelong friend of
Elgar, is remembered through a series of attempts to play the piano, which
clearly failed. There is a final "slam", which records the composer's
banging down the lid of the piano in frustration.
VIII (W.N.) Winifred Norbury and her sister Florence were music-lovers who
kept a country house near Malvern. The variation is about the house, as
well as Winifred's delicate laugh.
IX (Nimrod) August Jaeger, who was nicknamed Nimrod by the composer, was
his representative at his publisher's, his most consistent admirer and most
percipient critic. This Variation specifically records an afternoon spent
in the woods, discussing the slow movements of Beethoven's quartets.
X (Dorabella) represents Dora Penney, a gifted musician and one of Elgar's
closest confidantes (and WMB's step-niece). There is a light and ingenuous
touch to the movement and Dorabella's youthful stammer is affectionately
parodied by the woodwind instruments.
XI (G.R.S.) is not specifically about Dr. George Sinclair, organist of
Hereford Cathedral, but rather about his bulldog Dan. One day, Dan fell
into the river Wye, paddled back to dry land, and barked loudly on
landing. Sinclair said "Set that to music!" and Elgar did.
XII (B.G.N.) represents Basil Nevinson, cellist in Elgar's trio and a serious
and devoted friend.
XIII (***; Romanza) presents another enigma. We know that it is about a
lady, and that a sea voyage is depicted - the clarinet plays a quotation
from Mendelssohn's "Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage", and the music is
unmistakably that of the ocean. Probably the subject was Lady Mary Lygon,
although she was not at sea at the time (she was planning a voyage).
XIV (E.D.U.) is Edoo, the family's pet name for Elgar himself. The
composer presents himself as "bold and vigorous". He also pays tribute to
his two major influences, Alice and Jaeger, by recalling their themes.
--
David Brooks, Manager, Quality Engineering dbr...@x.org
X Consortium <URL:http://www.x.org/people/dbrooks/>
Commit planned giving and daily acts of compassion.
Matthew Rave
>Could someone please post the list (or refer me to a source)
>of the movements of the Enigma Variations and the individuals
>to whom each is supposed to refer? Thanks.
1. CAE: Caroline Alice, the wife of Elgar
2. HDSP: H.D.Stuart Powell, a pianist
3. RBT: Richard Baxter Townshend, a friend of Elgar
4. WMB: William M. Baker (?)
5. RPA: I don't know
6. Isobel: Isobel Fitton, a pupil of Elgar
7. Troyte: Arthur Troyte Griffith, a friend
8. WN:Winifred Norbury (?)
9. Nimrod: A.J. Jaeger, a friend (Nimrod=Biblical hunter; Jaeger="hunter"
in German)
10. Dorabella: Dora Penny, a friend
11. GRS: Either George R. Sinclair, an organist, or his bulldog Dan
12. BGN: Basil Nevison, a cellist
13. ***:Mary Trefusis (?)
14. EDU: Edward Elgar himself
Neil Tingley
cn3...@treasure.coastalnet.com "Matthew Rave" writes:
If ever you get a chance to see the Ashton choreography of the Enigmas,
all is miraculously revealed.
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ne...@music.demon.co.uk *http://www.cityscape.co.uk/users/dw34*
Edinburgh, SCOTLAND *cc job offers to 10057...@compuserve.com !*
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NE...@cunyvm.cuny.edu
showed Dan plunging into the river with an enormous splash to retrieve a
thrown stick, then vigorously swimming back out. The music also alludes to
G.R.Sinclair's organ pedal playing in the bass. Neil McKelvie