ELGAR BARENBOIM WYN-ROGERS · STAPLES · HAMPSON STAATSKAPELLE BERLIN STAATSOPERNCHOR BERLIN · RIAS KAMMERCHOR 1857–1934 The Dream of Gerontius by Cardinal Newman set to music for mezzo-soprano, and soli, chorus and orchestra (op.38)

CD 1 Part I 35.39 Catherine Wyn-Rogers mezzo-soprano (Angel) 1 Prelude 9.20 Andrew Staples tenor (Gerontius) 2 Jesu Maria — I am near to death Gerontius 3.36 Thomas Hampson (The Priest / Angel of the Agony) 3 Kyrie eleïson Assistants 2.12 Staatsopernchor Berlin Chorus master: Martin Wright 4 Rouse thee, my fainting soul Gerontius 0.49 RIAS Kammerchor Chorus master: Justin Doyle (Assistants, Demons, Choir of Angelicals, Souls in Purgatory) 5 Be merciful, be gracious; spare him, Lord Assistants 2.37 Staatskapelle Berlin 6 Sanctus fortis, Sanctus Deus Gerontius 5.47 DANIEL BARENBOIM 7 I can no more; for now it comes again Gerontius 2.11 8 Rescue him, O Lord, in this his evil hour Assistants 1.57 Daniel Barenboim 9 Novissima hora est Gerontius 1.10 bu Proficiscere, anima Christiana, de hoc mundo!The Priest 1.53 bl Go, in the name of Angels and Archangels Assistants, the Priest 4.07

CD 2 Part II 58.18 1 Introduction 1.37 2 I went to sleep; and now I am refresh’d Soul of Gerontius 3.35 3 My work is done, my task is o’er Angel, Soul of Gerontius 9.16 4 Low-born clods of brute earth Demons, Angel 2.40 5 The mind bold and independent Demons 2.29 6 I see not those false spirits Soul of Gerontius, Angel 3.40 7 Praise to the Holiest in the height Choir of Angelicals, 3.05 Angel, Soul of Gerontius 8 Glory to Him, who evermore by truth and justice reigns 1.16 Choir of Angelicals, Angel, Soul of Gerontius 9 But hark! a grand mysterious harmony Soul of Gerontius 0.47 bu And now the threshold, as we traverse it Angel 0.36 bl Praise to the Holiest in the height Choir of Angelicals 7.50 bm Thy judgment now is near Angel, Soul of Gerontius 2.31 bn Jesu! by that shuddering dread which fell on Thee 5.20 Angel of the Agony, Soul of Gerontius, Voices on Earth bo Praise to His Name! O happy, suffering soul! Angel 1.22 bp Take me away, and in the lowest deep there let me be 3.38 Soul of Gerontius bq Lord, Thou hast been our refuge Souls in Purgatory 1.06 br Softly and gently, dearly-ransom’d soul 7.30 Angel, Souls in Purgatory, Choir of Angelicals JOURNEY TO THE HEREAFTER Elgar’s The Dream of Gerontius Edward Elgar was instrumental in restoring British music to international standing around the turn of the twentieth century. Having found his individual voice, he was composing vocal and orchestral works of great originality, and his reputation soon spread beyond Britain to the Continent and North America. Works like the “Enigma” Variations, the two monumental Symphonies, the and the earned him a secure place in international musical life, though only gradually has the full range and diversity of his output become generally appreciated: not only magnificent choral and orchestral works but also compositions for piano, organ and various chamber combinations. The self- taught Elgar, who achieved his mastery through practical means — “learning by doing” — became the most significant English composer between Henry Purcell and .

Along with the orchestral works already cited, it was with The Dream of Gerontius that Elgar most thoroughly demonstrated his sovereignty as a composer. It firmly belongs to the tradition of Handelian , most notably , which enjoys the status of a national treasure. This unique English culture had been continued by Mendelssohn, Dvorák,ˇ Gounod and Saint-Saëns, and Elgar was their heir. As a young man he got to know the repertoire at first hand as a violinist in the great choral festivals of his native Worcester. Like other late Victorian composers — Alexander Campbell Mackenzie, Charles Villiers Stanford and Hubert Parry — Elgar dedicated himself to injecting new vitality into the English oratorio. The Dream of Gerontius represented a new departure within this tradition, both in the choice of subject — not taken from the Bible — and in the music. It was commissioned by the renowned Festival, a centre of oratorio cultivation, which asked Elgar to write a large choral work for 1900. He picked the Gerontius poem by Cardinal , with which he had long been familiar. Although he finished his vast composition on time, the allotted rehearsal period was plainly too short for the performers to master its considerable technical difficulties. Elgar’s innovations in style and sonorities made enormous — at times, excessive — demands on the choir and orchestra, and the premiere on 3 October 1900 in was a fiasco. The serious deficiencies in the performance cast an unfavourable light on the “sacred cantata” itself, and Elgar was not yet part of the musical “establishment”, the circle of artists whose prominence ensured courtesy and esteem in the reception of new works.

Thanks to an unforeseeable development, Gerontius experienced a dramatic reversal of fortune in the decade following its first performance, eventually becoming the best-loved of all English oratorios — except for the Messiah. (1851–1920), a protégé of and director of the Lower Rhine Music Festival, was so taken with Elgar’s work that he determined to have it performed in Düsseldorf. In December 1901 Buths conducted it there (sung in his own German translation) in the presence of the composer, who now witnessed a real success, indeed a triumph. A repeat performance was immediately scheduled for the following year, and it too was enthusiastically acclaimed.

The oratorio’s extraordinary reception on the Continent in turn radiated back to Britain, where The Dream of Gerontius now aroused enormous interest and led to several new commissions for Elgar. For the Birmingham Festival, he composed two further ambitious oratorios: in 1903 and in 1906; another panel in a projected triptych, The Last Judgement, was never completed. Gerontius has remained the epitome of Elgar and the modern English oratorio. The initial persistent opposition to the work by the Anglican Church, which found Newman’s text and Elgar’s music too Catholic and incompatible with prevailing religious doctrines, soon gave way to nearly universal approbation, in London and beyond. Formally, the work consists of two through-composed parts, clearly differentiated as belonging to “this world” and “the next” by changing role names for the soloists and large choruses. In Part I, the tenor embodies the dying Gerontius, in Part II, his Soul. Casting a tenor in the title role may suggest a classic “operatic hero”, but he first must lose his struggle against death before embarking on his journey to the hereafter. He is accompanied there by an Angel (mezzo-soprano) who guards and guides him. The Priest in the first part becomes the Angel of the Agony in the second, and Elgar’s employment of a deep male voice creates a satisfying balance among the soloists.

Musically, Gerontius is clearly indebted to the so-called English musical renaissance, which embraced earlier traditions — particularly the sacred music of preceding centuries — as well as bolstering relations with the prevailing late-Romantic aesthetic. Echoes of Mahler and Richard Strauss in the work are obvious, and above all the reverberations of Wagner’s Parsifal, which inspired Elgar when he first heard it at the 1892 Bayreuth Festival. He was immensely fascinated by the opera’s musical idiom. Not only did he integrate its leitmotivic technique into the oratorio: many passages sound conspicuously like quotes. His deeply expressive and deeply impressive Dream of Gerontius can fairly be called the “English Parsifal”. Detlef Giese Translation Richard Evidon Le Songe de Gerontius d’Elgar, UN VOYAGE DANS L’AU-DELÀ Edward Elgar, dont le talent est apparu au grand jour au tournant du XXe siècle, a permis à la musique britannique de revenir sur le devant de la scène internationale après une longue traversée du désert. La réputation de ce compositeur, qui a su enrichir de manière originale autant les genres vocaux qu’instrumentaux et trouvé de bonne heure un langage personnel, a vite dépassé les frontières du Royaume-Uni. Des pages comme les Variations Enigma, ses deux symphonies, monumentales, mais aussi ses deux concertos instrumentaux, pour violon et pour violoncelle, ont conquis une place plus que respectable au répertoire international. Cependant, l’ensemble de sa production, vaste et diverse, qui comprend aussi bien de remarquables œuvres chorales que de la musique orchestrale, des partitions pour piano, pour orgue et pour diverses formations de chambre, ne s’est imposé que petit à petit dans la conscience collective. Musicien autodidacte ayant acquis son superbe métier “sur le tas”, Elgar est considéré à juste titre comme le compositeur anglais le plus important entre Henry Purcell et Benjamin Britten.

C’est non seulement avec les œuvres citées mais aussi et surtout avec un grand oratorio, The Dream of Gerontius (Le Songe de Gerontius), qu’Elgar fit la preuve de son éminent talent de compositeur, s’inscrivant dans la tradition de l’oratorio haendélien, notamment du Messie, qui a en Grande-Bretagne l’aura d’un objet sacré. Cette tradition s’est perpétuée dans le pays grâce à Haydn, Mendelssohn, Dvorák,ˇ Gounod et Saint-Saëns, et Elgar en a recueilli l’héritage. De bonne heure, il avait découvert les grandes œuvres chorales dans les festivals de renom consacrés à ce répertoire, notamment dans sa ville natale de Worcester. Comme d’autres compositeurs de la fin de l’ère victorienne — notamment Alexander Campbell Mackenzie, Charles Villiers Stanford et Charles Hubert Parry —, il s’efforça ensuite de donner un nouvel élan à l’oratorio de langue anglaise. Le Songe de Gerontius marque à cet égard un nouveau départ. Elgar emprunte ici une nouvelle voie, autant du point de vue du sujet, qui n’est pas biblique, que sur le plan musical. C’est le renommé Festival de Birmingham, haut lieu de l’oratorio, qui l’avait chargé d’écrire une grande œuvre chorale pour l’édition 1900 de la manifestation. Le compositeur avait décidé de mettre en musique Le Songe de Gerontius du cardinal Newman, un poème qu’il connaissait depuis un certain temps. S’il termine à temps sa vaste partition, trop peu de répétitions sont prévues pour permettre aux exécutants de maîtriser les difficultés techniques, non des moindres. Les innovations compositionnelles et sonores représentent un énorme défi, parfois insurmontable, pour le chœur et l’orchestre, si bien que le succès n’est pas au rendez-vous. Les insuffisances de l’interprétation jettent un jour défavorable sur l’œuvre, annoncée comme une “cantate sacrée” par le compositeur. Celui-ci pâtit en outre de ne pas appartenir encore à l’establishment, c’est-à-dire au cercle des musiciens qui, de par leur importance, bénéficient automatiquement de l’attention et de l’estime générales.

Cependant, après la première audition du 3 octobre 1900, à l’hôtel de ville de Birmingham, Le Songe de Gerontius devient l’oratorio anglais le plus prisé en dehors du Messie de Haendel au cours de la première décennie du siècle, ce que l’on n’était pas forcément en droit d’attendre. Julius Buths (1851–1920), un protégé de Richard Strauss à la tête du festival rhénan Niederrheinisches Musikfest, a une telle admiration pour l’œuvre d’Elgar qu’il décide de la présenter à Düsseldorf. Il la dirige en concert en décembre 1901, s’étant lui-même chargé de traduire le texte en allemand, en présence du compositeur. Celui-ci assiste à un brillant succès, un triomphe même. On projette immédiatement une reprise l’année suivante qui sera accueillie avec le même enthousiasme.

Le succès extraordinaire rencontré sur le continent européen se répercute ensuite en Grande-Bretagne où Le Songe de Gerontius suscite désormais un immense intérêt. Du coup, Elgar reçoit de nouvelles commandes. Il compose deux autres oratorios opulents pour le Festival de Birmingham, The Apostles, en 1903, et The Kingdom, en 1906. Une troisième œuvre intitulée The Last Judgement devait compléter la série, mais elle ne dépassera pas le stade des esquisses. Le Songe de Gerontius demeurera la carte de visite d’Elgar et le modèle de l’oratorio anglais moderne. Les critiques tout d’abord formulées par l’Église anglicane, qui trouve le texte de Newman et la musique d’Elgar trop catholiques et pas forcément compatibles avec le dogme dominant, font bientôt place à une adhésion pratiquement unanime aussi bien dans la métropole londonienne qu’ailleurs. D’un point de vue structurel, l’œuvre s’articule en deux parties de forme non répétitive, les solistes et le double chœur changeant de rôle en passant de la première, qui se déroule dans l’ici-bas, à la deuxième, située dans l’au-delà. Ainsi le ténor incarne-t-il tout d’abord Gerontius mourant puis son âme. Si l’attribution du rôle principal à un ténor fait certes penser au héros de l’opéra romantique, ici le protagoniste commence par perdre son combat contre la mort avant de pouvoir entreprendre son voyage dans l’au-delà où il est accompagné par un ange (mezzo-soprano) qui se tient à ses côtés pour l’aider. Le rôle du prêtre dans la première partie et celui de l’ange de la mort dans la deuxième sont confiés à une basse, ce qui permet d’assurer un équilibre entre les solistes. D’un point de vue musical, l’œuvre est clairement ancrée dans ce qu’on a appelé la “renaissance musicale anglaise”, mouvement national de la fin du XIXe s’inspirant des traditions des siècles passés, notamment en matière de musique religieuse, et en même temps jetant des ponts vers l’esthétique postromantique. On entend des échos manifestes de Mahler et de Strauss, et surtout du Parsifal de Wagner dont le langage exerçait une fascination extraordinaire sur Elgar. Cet opéra, qu’il avait découvert au Festival de Bayreuth en 1892, fut certainement une source d’inspiration du Songe de Gerontius. L’utilisation à grande échelle de la technique du leitmotiv, d’une part, et de nombreux passages s’apparentant à des citations, d’autre part, sont révélateurs à cet égard. Hautement expressif et impressionnant, Le Songe de Gerontius est pour ainsi dire le Parsifal anglais. Detlef Giese Traduction Daniel Fesquet REISE INS JENSEITS Edward Elgars The Dream of Gerontius Edward Elgar hat der britischen Musik nach langer Durststrecke wieder zu Weltgeltung verholfen. In den Jahren um 1900 erkannte man, was für ein großes Talent herangewachsen war — ein Komponist, der sowohl die vokalen als auch die instrumentalen Genres auf originelle Art zu bereichern wusste und zudem beizeiten seinen eigenen Ton gefunden hatte. Sehr bald schon strahlte sein Ruf über das Vereinigte Königreich hinaus, auf den Kontinent und nach Übersee. Werke wie die Enigma-Variationen, die beiden monumentalen Sinfonien oder auch die beiden Instrumentalkonzerte für Violine bzw. Violoncello haben im internationalen Musikleben einen mehr als respektablen Platz erobern können. Die gesamte Breite und Vielfalt seines Schaffens, das herausragende chorsinfonische Werke ebenso umfasst wie Orchestermusik sowie Kompositionen für Klavier, Orgel und verschiedene kammermusikalische Besetzungen, drang jedoch erst nach und nach ins allgemeine Bewusstsein — Edward Elgar, der musikalische Autodidakt, der durch ein praxisnahes “learning by doing” große Souveränität gewann, gilt zu Recht als der bedeutendste englische Komponist nach Henry Purcell und vor Benjamin Britten.

Neben den genannten Werken war es vor allem ein großes Oratorium, mit dem Elgar sein eminentes kompositorisches Vermögen unter Beweis stellte: The Dream of Gerontius. Letztlich steht es in der Tradition der Händelschen Oratorien, insbesondere des Messiah, der den Status eines britischen Nationalheiligtums besitzt. Durch Haydn und Mendelssohn, Dvorák,ˇ Gounod oder Saint-Saëns wurde diese spezielle Oratorienkultur auf der Insel fortgeschrieben — und Elgar wiederum war deren Erbe. Früh hatte er auf den großen, öffentlichkeitswirksamen Chorfestivals, u. a. auch in seiner Heimatstadt Worcester, die einschlägigen Werke kennengelernt. Wie andere Komponisten der spätviktorianischen Zeit — zu nennen wären etwa Alexander Campbell Mackenzie, Charles Villiers Stanford oder Charles Hubert Parry — bemühte sich Elgar intensiv darum, dem englischsprachigen Oratorium innovative Impulse zu verleihen. The Dream of Gerontius markiert hierbei einen gewissen Neubeginn: Sowohl thematisch — im Verzicht auf ein biblisches Sujet — als auch musikalisch hat sich Elgar spürbar neu orientiert. Auftraggeber war das renommierte Birmingham Festival, ein zentraler Ort der Oratorienpflege. Für das Jahr 1900 sollte Elgar ein großes Chorwerk komponieren, wobei seine Wahl auf die Vertonung von Kardinal Newmans Gerontius-Text fiel, der ihm bereits seit einiger Zeit bekannt war. Die umfangreiche Komposition lag zwar rechtzeitig vor, jedoch war die Einstudierungsphase offenbar zu knapp bemessen, um die keineswegs geringen aufführungstechnischen Schwierigkeiten zu meistern. Die Neuerungen kompositorischer wie klanglicher Art bedeuteten eine enorme Herausforderung, teils sogar Überforderung für den Chor und das Orchester, sodass dem Werk ein Erfolg versagt blieb — die Mängel der Darbietung ließen Elgars als “Sacred Cantata” angekündigtes Opus in nicht allzu günstigem Licht erscheinen. Auch gehörte der Komponist damals noch nicht zum musikalischen “Establishment”, zum Kreis jener Künstler, denen schon aufgrund ihrer Prominenz erhöhte Aufmerksamkeit und Wertschätzung sicher waren.

Dass The Dream of Gerontius jedoch noch innerhalb des ersten Jahrzehnts nach der Uraufführung am 3. Oktober 1900 in der Town Hall Birmingham zum beliebtesten englischsprachigen Oratorium — gleich nach Händels Messiah — avancierte, ist einer nicht unbedingt erwartbaren Entwicklung zu danken. Julius Buths (1851–1920), der Direktor des Niederrheinischen Musikfestes, einer der Protegés von Richard Strauss, zeigte sich von Elgars Werk überaus angetan, so dass er sich dazu entschloss, es in Düsseldorf zur Aufführung zu bringen. Im Dezember 1901 erklang es unter der Leitung von Buths (er selbst hatte die deutsche Übersetzung des gesungenen Textes angefertigt) in Anwesenheit des Komponisten. Dieser wurde zum Zeugen eines glänzenden Erfolges, der einem Triumph gleichkam. Für das kommende Jahr wurde sofort eine Reprise angesetzt, die ein ebenso begeistertes Echo fand.

Die außergewöhnliche Resonanz auf dem Kontinent strahlte wiederum nach Großbritannien aus: The Dream of Gerontius stieß fortan auf immenses Interesse und führte zu mehreren Nachfolgeaufträgen für Elgar, der 1903 und 1906 mit The Apostles und The Kingdom zwei weitere opulente oratorische Werke für das Birmingham Festival komponierte. Eine Komposition mit dem Titel The Last Judgement, die diese Serie beschließen sollte, kam indes über Entwürfe nicht hinaus. The Dream of Gerontius blieb das eigentliche “Aushängeschild” für Elgar und das moderne englische Oratorium. Die zunächst noch existierenden Widerstände gegen das Werk von Seiten der anglikanischen Staatskirche, die Newmans Text und Elgars Musik als zu katholisch und als nicht unbedingt kompatibel mit den herrschenden religiösen Lehren empfand, wichen bald einer nahezu flächendeckenden Zustimmung, sowohl in der Metropole London als auch darüber hinaus. Formal besteht das Werk aus zwei jeweils durchkomponierten Teilen, die sich durch wechselnde Rollenverteilungen der Solisten und der groß besetzten Chöre deutlich als “Diesseits” und “Jenseits” voneinander abgrenzen. So verkörpert der Tenor im ersten Teil den sterbenden Gerontius, im zweiten Teil dann die Seele des Gerontius. Die Besetzung der Titelrolle mit einem Tenor lässt zwar Assoziationen mit einem klassischen “Opernhelden” aufkommen, der jedoch erst den Kampf gegen den Tod verlieren muss, bevor es ihm möglich wird, die Reise ins Jenseits anzutreten. Begleitet wird er dabei von einem Engel (Mezzosopran), der ihm fürsorglich helfend zur Seite steht. Die Rollen des Priesters im ersten und des Todesengels im zweiten Teil sind hingegen mit einer tiefen Männerstimme besetzt, um eine ausgewogene Balance der Solisten herzustellen. Musikalisch ist Elgar deutlich der sogenannten “English Musical Renaissance” verhaftet, die sowohl ältere Traditionen — insbesondere die Sakralmusik vergangener Jahrhunderte — aufgreift als auch Brückenschläge zur aktuellen spätromantischen Ästhetik vollführt. Anklänge an Mahler und Strauss sind offensichtlich, vor allem aber an Wagners Parsifal, dessen Klangsprache Elgar außerordentlich faszinierte. Inspirierend wirkte dieses Werk, das er 1892 bei den Bayreuther Festspielen kennengelernt hatte, in jedem Fall: Die Tatsache, dass er die Wagnersche Leitmotivtechnik integral mit einbezog, spricht ebenso dafür wie auffallend viele Passagen, die wie Zitate wirken. The Dream of Gerontius, hoch expressiv und hoch eindrucksvoll, ist gleichsam der “englische Parsifal”. Detlef Giese

Andrew Staples CD 1 By Thy rising from the tomb, 1 By Thy mounting up above, Prelude By the Spirit’s gracious love, Part I Save him in the day of doom. Gerontius Gerontius 6 2 Jesu, Maria — I am near to death, Sanctus fortis, Sanctus Deus, And Thou art calling me; I know it now. De profundis oro te, Not by the token of this faltering breath, Miserere, Judex meus, This chill at heart, this dampness on my brow,— Parce mihi, Domine. (Jesu, have mercy! Mary, pray for me!) Firmly I believe and truly ‘Tis this new feeling, never felt before, God is Three, and God is One; (Be with me, Lord, in my extremity!) And I next acknowledge duly That I am going, that I am no more. Manhood taken by the Son. ‘Tis this strange innermost abandonment, And l trust and hope most fully (Lover of souls! great God! I look to Thee) In that Manhood crucified; This emptying out of each constituent And each thought and deed unruly And natural force, by which I come to be. Do to death, as He has died. Pray for me, O my friends; a visitant Simply to His grace and wholly Is knocking his dire summons at my door, Light and life and strength belong, The like of whom, to scare me and to daunt, And I love, supremely, solely, Has never, never come to me before; Him the holy, Him the strong. So pray for me, my friends, who have not strength Sanctus fortis, Sanctus Deus, to pray. De profundis oro te, Miserere, Judex meus, Assistants Parce mihi, Domine. 3 Kyrie eleïson, Christe eleïson, Kyrie eleïson. And I hold in veneration, Holy Mary, pray for him. For the love of Him alone, All holy Angels, pray for him. Holy Church, as His creation, Choirs of the righteous, pray for him. And her teachings, as His own. All Apostles, all Evangelists, pray for him. And I take with joy whatever All holy Disciples of the Lord, pray for him. Now besets me, pain or fear, All holy Innocents, pray for him. And with a strong will I sever All holy Martyrs, all holy Confessors, All holy Hermits, all holy Virgins, All the ties which bind me here. All ye Saints of God, pray for him. Adoration aye be given, With and through the angelic host, Gerontius To the God of earth and heaven, 4 Rouse thee, my fainting soul, and play the man; Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. And through such waning span Sanctus fortis, Sanctus Deus, Of life and thought as still has to be trod, De profundis oro te, Prepare to meet thy God. Miserere, Judex meus, And while the storm of that bewilderment Mortis in discrimine. Is for a season spent, 7 And, ere afresh the ruin on me fall, I can no more; for now it comes again, Use well the interval. That sense of ruin, which is worse than pain, That masterful negation and collapse Assistants Of all that makes me man. 5 Be merciful, be gracious; spare him, Lord. And, crueller still, Be merciful, be gracious; Lord, deliver him. A fierce and restless fright begins to fill From the sins that are past; The mansion of my soul. And, worse and worse, From Thy frown and Thine ire; Some bodily form of ill From the perils of dying; Floats on the wind, with many a loathsome curse From any complying Tainting the hallowed air, and laughs, and flaps With sin, or denying Its hideous wings, His God, or relying And makes me wild with horror and dismay. On self, at the last; O Jesu, help! pray for me, Mary, pray! From the nethermost fire; Some Angel, Jesu! such as came to Thee From all that is evil; In Thine own agony… From power of the devil; Mary, pray for me. Joseph, pray for me. Thy servant deliver, Mary, pray for me. For once and for ever. By Thy birth, and by Thy Cross, Rescue him from endless loss; By Thy death and burial, Save him from a final fall; Assistants And hark! I hear a singing; yet in sooth Soul Triumphant still, 8 Rescue him, O Lord, in this his evil hour, I cannot of that music rightly say Dear Angel, say, And still unjust, As of old so many by Thy gracious power:— Whether I hear, or touch, or taste the tones. Why have I now no fear at meeting Him? Each forfeit crown Noe from the waters in a saving home; (Amen.) Oh, what a heartsubduing melody! Along my earthly life, the thought of death To psalmdroners, And judgement was to me most terrible. And canting groaners, Job from all his multiform and fell distress; (Amen.) Angel To every slave, Moses from the land of bondage and despair; (Amen.) 3 Angel My work is done, And pious cheat, David from Golia and the wrath of Saul; (Amen.) It is because My task is o’er, And crawling knave, — So, to show Thy power, Then thou didst fear, that now thou dost not fear, And so I come, Who licked the dust Rescue this Thy servant in his evil hour. Thou hast forestall’d the agony, and so Taking it home, Under his feet. Gerontius For the crown is won, For thee the bitterness of death is past. 9 Novissima hora est; and I fain would sleep, Alleluia, Also, because already in thy soul Angel The pain has wearied me… Into Thy hands, For evermore. The judgment is begun. It is the restless panting of their being; Like beasts of prey, who, caged within their bars, O Lord, into Thy hands… My Father gave A presage falls upon thee, as a ray In a deep hideous purring have their life, In charge to me Straight from the Judge, expressive of thy lot. The Priest and Assistants That calm and joy uprising in thy soul And an incessant pacing to and fro. bk This child of earth Proficiscere, anima Christiana, de hoc mundo! E’en from its birth, Is firstfruit to thee of thy recompense, Demons Go forth upon thy journey, Christian soul! To serve and save, And heaven begun. 5 The mind bold Go from this world! Go, in the Name of God Alleluia, And independent, The Omnipotent Father, who created thee! And saved is he. The purpose free, Go, in the Name of Jesus Christ, our Lord, Soul This child of clay So we are told, Son of the living God, who bled for thee! Now that the hour is come, my fear is fled; To me was given, Must not think Go in the Name of the Holy Spirit, who And at this balance of my destiny, To rear and train To have the ascendant. Hath been poured out on thee! Now close upon me, I can forward look What’s a saint? By sorrow and pain 2 bl Go, in the name With a serenest joy. In the narrow way, One whose breath Of Angels and Archangels; in the name Doth the air taint But hark! upon my sense Of Thrones and Dominations; in the name Alleluia, Comes a fierce hubbub, which would make me fear, Before his death; Of Princedoms and of Powers; and in the name From earth to heaven. Could I be frighted. A bundle of bones, Of Cherubim and Seraphim, go forth! Soul Which fools adore, Go, in the name of Patriarchs and Prophets; It is a member of that family Angel Ha! ha! And of Apostles and Evangelists, Of wondrous beings, who, ere the worlds were made, We are now arrived When life is o’er.3 Of Martyrs and Confessors; in the name Millions of ages back, have stood around Close on the judgmentcourt; that sullen howl Of holy Monks and Hermits; in the name The throne of God. Is from the demons who assemble there, Virtue and vice, Of holy Virgins; and all Saints of God, Hungry and wild, to claim their property, A knave’s pretence. I will address him. Mighty one, my Lord, Both men and women, go! Go on thy course; And gather souls for hell. Hist to their cry. ‘Tis all the same; My Guardian Spirit, all hail! And may thy place today be found in peace, Ha! ha! Soul And may thy dwelling be the Holy Mount Angel Dread of hellfire, 1 How sour and how uncouth a dissonance! Of Sion:— through the Same, through All hail, Of the venomous flame, A coward’s plea. Christ our Lord. Demons My child and brother, hail! what wouldest thou? Give him his price, 4 Lowborn clods Saint though he be, Soul Of brute earth From shrewd good sense CD 2 I would have nothing but to speak with thee They aspire He’ll slave for hire For speaking’s sake. I wish to hold with thee To become gods, Part II Ha! ha! Conscious communion; though I fain would know By a new birth, And does but aspire 1 Introduction A maze of things, were it but meet to ask, And an extra grace, To the heaven above And not a curiousness. And a score of merits, Soul of Gerontius With sordid aim, As if aught 2 Angel And not from love. I went to sleep; and now I am refresh’d, Could stand in place A strange refreshment: for I feel in me You cannot now Ha! ha! Cherish a wish which ought not to be wished. Of the high thought, An inexpressive lightness, and a sense And the glance of fire Soul Of freedom, as I were at length myself, Soul Of the great spirits, 6 I see not those false spirits; shall I see And ne’er had been before. How still it is! Then I will speak. I ever had believed The powers blest, My dearest Master, when I reach His throne? I hear no more the busy beat of time, That on the moment when the struggling soul The lords by right, No, nor my fluttering breath, nor struggling pulse; Quitted its mortal case, forthwith it fell The primal owners, Angel Nor does one moment differ from the next. Under the awful Presence of its God, Of the proud dwelling Yes,— for one moment thou shalt see thy Lord. This silence pours a solitariness There to be judged and sent to its own place. And realm of light, — One moment; but thou knowest not, my child, Into the very essence of my soul; What lets me now from going to my Lord? Dispossess’d, What thou dost ask: that sight of the Most Fair And the deep rest, so soothing and so sweet, Aside thrust, Will gladden thee, but it will pierce thee too. Angel Hath something too of sternness and of pain. Chuck’d down, Thou art not let; but with extremest speed Soul By the sheer might Another marvel: some one has me fast Art hurrying to the Just and Holy Judge. Thou speakest darkly, Angel; and an awe Within his ample palm; Of a despot’s will, Falls on me, and a fear lest I be rash. A uniform Of a tyrant’s frown, And gentle pressure tells me I am not Who expelling Selfmoving, but borne forward on my way. Their hosts, gave

1 Newman: in the name of 2 In Newman these four lines of text precede the Angel’s explanation. 3 Elgar transposes these two lines. Thomas Hampson Angel Angel There was a mortal, who is now above bk And now the threshold, as we traverse it, In the mid glory: he, when near to die, Utters aloud its glad responsive chant. Was giv’n communion with the Crucified,— Choir of Angelicals Such, that the Master’s very wounds bl Praise to the Holiest in the height, were stamped And in the depth be praise: Upon his flesh; and, from the agony In all His words most wonderful; Which thrill’d through body and soul in Most sure in all His ways! that embrace, Learn that the flame of the Everlasting Love O loving wisdom of our God! Doth burn ere it transform… When all was sin and shame A second Adam to the fight Choir of Angelicals And to the rescue came. 7 Praise to the Holiest in the height, And in the depth be praise: O wisest love! that flesh and blood In all His words most wonderful; Which did in Adam fail, Most sure in all His ways! Should strive afresh against the foe, Should strive and should prevail; Angel Hark to those sounds! And that a higher gift than grace They come of tender beings angelical, Should flesh and blood refine, Least and most childlike of the sons of God. God’s Presence and His very Self, And Essence all-divine. Choir of Angelicals O generous love! that He who smote To us His elder race He gave In man for man the foe, To battle and to win, The double agony in man Without the chastisement of pain, For man should undergo; Without the soil of sin. And in the garden secretly, The younger son He willed to be And on the cross on high, A marvel in His birth: Should teach His brethren and inspire Spirit and flesh His parents were; To suffer and to die. His home was heaven and earth. Praise to the Holiest in the height, The Eternal bless’d His child, and arm’d, And in the depth be praise: And sent Him hence afar, In all His words most wonderful; To serve as champion in the field Most sure in all His ways! Of elemental war. Angel To be His Viceroy in the world bm Of matter, and of sense; Thy judgment now is near, for we are come Upon the frontier, towards the foe Into the veilèd presence of our God. A resolute defence. Soul Angel I hear the voices that I left on earth. We now have passed the gate, and are within Angel The House of Judgment. It is the voice of friends around thy bed, Soul Who say the “Subvenite” with the priest. The sound is like the rushing of the wind — Hither the echoes come; before the Throne The summer wind among the lofty pines. Stands the great Angel of the Agony, The same who strengthen’d Him, what time He knelt Choir of Angelicals Lone in the garden shade, bedew’d with blood. 8 Glory to Him, who evermore That Angel best can plead with Him for all By truth and justice reigns; Tormented souls, the dying and the dead. Who tears the soul from out its case, And burns away its stains! Angel of the Agony bn Jesu! by that shuddering dread which fell Angel on Thee; They sing of thy approaching agony, Jesu! by that cold dismay which sickened Thee; Which thou so eagerly didst question of. Jesu! by that pang of heart which thrilled in Thee; Jesu! by that mount of sins which crippled Thee; Soul My soul is in my hand: I have no fear,— Jesu! by that sense of guilt which stifled Thee; Jesu! by that innocence which girdled Thee; 9 But hark! a grand mysterious harmony: Jesul by that sanctity which reigned in Thee; It floods me, like the deep and solemn sound Jesu! by that Godhead which was one with Thee; Of many waters. Jesu! spare these souls which are so dear to Thee; Souls, who in prison, calm and patient, wait for Thee; Hasten, Lord, their hour, and bid them come to Thee, To that glorious Home, where they shall ever gaze on Thee. Catherine Wyn-Rogers Soul Choir of Angelicals I go before my Judge. Praise to the Holiest in the height, etc. 7 Voices on Earth4 Amen. Be merciful, be gracious; spare him, Lord. Be merciful, be gracious; Lord, deliver him. Cardinal John Henry Newman (1801–1890) Angel bo … Praise to His Name! O happy, suffering soul! for it is safe, Consumed, yet quicken’d, by the glance of God. 5 Alleluia! Praise to His Name! 4 Elgar’s interpolation here. Soul 5 Line added by Elgar. bp Take me away, and in the lowest deep 6 bq There let me be, In Newman, text continues that of . And there in hope the long nightwatches keep, 7 Elgar’s repetition. Told out for me. There, motionless and happy in my pain, Lone, not forlorn,— There will I sing my sad perpetual strain, Until the morn, There will I sing, and soothe my stricken breast, Which ne’er can cease Executive Producer: To throb, and pine, and languish, till possest Of its Sole Peace. Dr Alexander Buhr There will I sing my absent Lord and Love:— Recording Producer: Take me away, That sooner I may rise, and go above, Friedemann Engelbrecht And see Him in the truth of everlasting day. Recording Engineer: Souls in Purgatory Sebastian Nattkemper bq Lord, Thou hast been our refuge: in every generation; Assistant Engineer: Before the hills were born, and the world was: Clémence Fabre from age to age Thou art God. Recording Editor & Mixing: Angel Sebastian Nattkemper br Softly and gently, dearlyransom’d soul, In my most loving arms I now enfold thee, Production Facilities: And, o’er the penal waters, as they roll, Teldex Studios, Berlin I poise thee, and I lower thee, and hold thee. And carefully I dip thee in the lake, Recording Location: And thou, without a sob or a resistance, Philharmonie, Berlin, Dost through the flood thy rapid passage take, 16, 17, 19 & 20 September 2016 Sinking deep, deeper, into the dim distance. Introductory Note & Translations Angels, to whom the willing task is given, Shall tend, and nurse, and lull thee, as thou liest; © 2017 Decca Music Group Limited And Masses on the earth, and prayers in heaven, Product Manager: Sam Le Roux Shall aid thee at the Throne of the Most Highest. Farewell, but not for ever! brother dear, Booklet Editing: Be brave and patient on thy bed of sorrow; WLP Ltd Swiftly shall pass thy night of trial here, And I will come and wake thee on the morrow. Photos of Daniel Barenboim: Paul Schirnhofer, Karina Schwarz (page 10) Souls Lord, Thou hast been our refuge, etc. Concert Photos: Bring us not, Lord, very low: for Thou hast said, Holger Kettner Come back again, ye sons of Adam. Come back, O Lord! how long: and be entreated Art Direction: for Thy servants. Matt Read @ Combustion Ltd Amen.6

Elgar: Symphony No.1 Elgar: Symphony No.2 Staatskapelle Berlin/Barenboim Staatskapelle Berlin/Barenboim CD 478 9353 CD 478 6677

Elgar · Carter: Cello Concertos Verdi: Requiem Weilerstein/Staatskapelle Berlin/Barenboim Harteros · Garanca · Kaufmann · Pape CD 478 2735 Orchestra e Coro del Teatro alla Scala/Barenboim 2 CDs 478 5245 DVD 074 3807 · Blu-Ray 074 3808 ˇ

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