≥ ELGAR THE APOSTLES SIR MARK ELDER EDwARD ELGAR (1857-1934) THE APOSTLES, OP.49 CD1 Sir Mark Elder conductor PART 1 Rebecca Evans soprano The Angel Gabriel/The Blessed Virgin Mary 1. Prologue 6.59 Alice Coote mezzo-soprano Mary Magdalene/Narrator 2 2. I The Calling of the Apostles 7.28 Paul Groves tenor Narrator 1/John 3. The Dawn 5.05 Jacques Imbrailo baritone Jesus 4. ‘And when it was day’ 7.56 David Kempster baritone Peter 5. II By the wayside 6.42 Brindley Sherratt bass Judas 6. III By the Sea of Galilee 1.27 Chorus of Apostles * # 7. In the Tower of Magdala 5.37 Sean Boyes tenor 8. ‘This shall ye have of mine hand 7.44 Thomas Kelly tenor 9. In Caesarea Philippi 4.40 Timothy Langston tenor 10. In Capernaum 5.14 Thomas Morss tenor 11. ‘Turn you to the stronghold’ 6.08 Adam Player tenor TOTAL TIMING 65.08 Stefan Berkieta bass CD2 Matthew Kellett bass PART 2 Graham McCusker bass 1. Introduction 3.46 Daniel Shelvey bass 2. IV The Betrayal 1.51 Hallé Choir (Frances Cooke director) 3. ‘Then gathered the chief Priests and Pharisees’ ... 3.22 Hallé Youth Choir (Richard Wilberforce director) * 4. In Gethsemane 4.42 5. ‘Then Judas, which had betrayed Him’ 3.51 # with grateful thanks to the Royal Northern College of Music and University of Manchester 6. ‘Wither shall I go’ 5.42 7. ‘Mine end is come’ 2.29 8. V Golgotha 4.16 9. VI At the Sepulchre 3.46 10. VII The Ascension 3.41 11. ‘And when He had spoken these things’ 5.28 12. ‘They platted a crown of thorns’ 6.25 TOTAL TIMING 49.21 2 | ≥ THE APOSTLES EDwARD ELGAR (1857-1934) THE APOSTLES, OP.49 Since his boyhood Elgar had been fascinated by the characters of Christ’s 12 Apostles. As early as the 1880s he sketched some music for them, but went no further. In 1898 the Birmingham Festival asked him for a work for 1900. He toyed with the idea of The Apostles but by January 1900 had abandoned it for The Dream of Gerontius. Music intended for Judas became the Angel of the Agony’s music in Gerontius. Despite the relative failure of Gerontius at its first performance in October 1900, Birmingham kept faith with Elgar and commissioned an oratorio for 1903. Elgar returned to the subject of The Apostles, intending that it should be in three parts, the third of these covering the ground we now know as The Kingdom. But he was unwell during 1902–3 (‘lumbago bad; chills on the liver; eyes troublesome’) and decided to alter the design of the whole work. He wrote to his friend A. J. Jaeger at Novello’s: ‘I propose that they produce Parts I and II of The Apostles – this portion is complete in itself … The concluding portion of the work (Part III to round it off), much of which was written first, you can have any time later.’ He was worried too because he could not find English singers capable of doing justice to the roles of Peter and Judas: ‘Oh! These singers – where are their brains?’ Because he found the English singers too ‘white’, he hankered after the Dutch basses Anton Van Rooy and Johannes Messchaert, whom he had heard while abroad. Elgar completed the full score in 1903 and wrote on it ‘In Longdon Marsh’, a place he had loved since boyhood. He also inscribed lines from william Morris’s The Earthly Paradise: To what a Heaven the Earth might grow If fear beneath the Earth were laid, If hope failed not, nor love decayed. Elgar himself conducted the work’s first performance at the Birmingham Festival on 14 October 1903. Again he left everything too late, as he had done in 1900 with Gerontius. He did not complete the full score until 17 August, which left just eight weeks for the six soloists, choir and orchestra to learn a difficult new work. He was still correcting proofs at the end of September. Much had happened to Elgar’s reputation since 1900. Gerontius may have (temporarily) failed, but the excitement of a new king (Edward VII) in 1901 was a boost to Elgar’s music. In rapid succession after Gerontius came the first two Pomp and Circumstance Marches (with No.1 containing the tune that was to become ‘Land of Hope and Glory’ in the Coronation Ode) and the overture Cockaigne. Even so, the response to The Apostles was respectful rather than ecstatic. After Hans Richter conducted the first Manchester performance with the Hallé in February 1904, there was no ‘scene of great enthusiasm’ such as had greeted Gerontius in Manchester the previous year. That sympathetic critic Arthur Johnstone wrote in The Manchester Guardian: ‘The Apostles unquestionably being much more austere and difficult to understand than Gerontius, we are inclined to accept the simpler explanation that the audience did not like it so well.’ Thus it has ever been. The more dramatic Gerontius has remained more popular and more often performed. The Apostles and The Kingdom are offshoots of Bachian oratorio, albeit sprinkled with wagner dust. In recent years they have gained ground and have benefited from a new generation of Elgar conductors ready to examine the scores afresh. Sir Mark Elder has undertaken extensive research which means that this performance is probably the first since Elgar conducted The Apostles in Hereford on 7 September 1921, at the Three Choirs Festival, to incorporate Elgar’s intentions at several points in the oratorio. A proof copy of the vocal score preserved at the Birthplace Museum at Broadheath, near worcester, contains detailed information about the music to be sung by a semi-chorus of nine male voices at 30 specified places in the score. with John, Peter and Judas they make up the total of 12 Apostles. Elgar indicates by name which of the three male soloists should sing when only two are required. He wrote all these indications in red ink. He called this group ‘Apostles cho’ or ‘Ap.ch’ for short. Sometimes he indicates that they should sing with the solo Apostles, sometimes with the full chorus or sometimes instead of the chorus. Sir Mark has formed a special young choir of nine voices from the Royal Northern College of Music and the University of Manchester to undertake this part of the oratorio. 3 | ≥ THE APOSTLES Elgar employs a complex system of leitmotifs, many of which occur in both The Apostles and The Kingdom, much of the music for which he had written before he decided to make it into the third part of The Apostles. The choral writing in The Apostles is arguably an advance on Gerontius. As for the orchestration, one needs only to remember that In the South and the symphonies were round the next corner. He used one of the largest orchestras for which he ever wrote. To a full complement of the normal orchestra he added bass clarinet, double bassoon, organ, shofar (see below) and among the percussion small gong, large gong, antique cymbals, glockenspiel, tambourine and triangle. Elgar studied biblical scholars’ writings as he compiled the libretto and put his own gloss on the characters of Judas and Mary Magdalene. The finest music in the work is, I believe, given to Judas, almost amounting to a self-portrait of the depressive Elgar. He avoided a graphic Crucifixion scene as ‘too awful’ and presents it instead as it affected Judas and Mary. Listeners may agree with what Jaeger wrote in 1903 about the music’s ‘message of beauty and peace in these days of unprecedented stress and complexity’. How much truer that is today. The music Prologue: The Spirit of the Lord A short and solemn orchestral prelude introduces the main theme of the oratorio. The chorus enters and further themes are heard, including a new version of the principal theme with new harmonies and a sequence of chords representing Christ the Man of Sorrows. Part 1 I. The Calling of the Apostles The tenor soloist’s opening narration precedes three descriptive episodes: ‘In the Mountain – Night’ evokes a sultry Palestine night by means of three distant oboes and a cor anglais. Muted brass, harp and strings depict Christ at prayer (the harp has a major part in this score). The soprano (Angel Gabriel) sings ‘The voice of Thy watchman!’ and is interrupted by an orchestral description of ‘Dawn’ that begins with a distant E flat ascending to C flat on the shofar, an ancient Hebrew instrument made of ram’s horn. In most performances this is imitated by modern instruments, but for this performance Sir Mark Elder has tracked down a genuine shofar player. when it sounds in full, it is joined by trumpets and horns. Contraltos and tenors proclaim that ‘the face of all the East is now ablaze with light’. So is Elgar’s orchestration as the shofar dominates this dazzling sunrise and the voices within the temple sing the ‘Morning Psalm’. The tenor narrates the choosing of the Apostles. At the word ‘disciples’ an important new theme (Fellowship) occurs in the orchestra. In the subsequent chorus, ‘The Lord hath chosen them’, we meet John, Peter and Judas (sung by tenor, baritone and bass), the words and music illustrating their characters, particularly that of Judas. The section ends with a grandioso version of the chorus, after which Christ (baritone) sends them forth to music of dignified solemnity. II. By the Wayside This is pastoral Elgar. The wayside could be in Herefordshire! Jesus is walking with his mother Mary and John, Peter, Judas and others. Jesus, accompanied by violas, utters conversationally what are known as the Beatitudes, while the others comment among themselves. The only sour note is from Judas. Elgar based this part of the libretto on Longfellow’s versified life of Christ, The Divine Tragedy. III. By the Sea of Galilee The tenor tells us that Jesus has ordered the Apostles to sail to Capernaum, while he goes into the mountains to pray. In the Tower of Magdala, Mary Magdalene (mezzo-soprano) asks for forgiveness for her dissolute life. An interlude for the chorus and Mary Magdalene that Elgar calls Fantasy (‘Let us fill ourselves with costly wine’) merges into an orchestral description of the storm at sea, during which the terrified Apostles see Christ walking upon the waters towards them. Peter’s attempt to emulate him fails from lack of faith, the storm abates and the men and Mary sing ‘Of a truth Thou art the Son of God’. In Caesarea Philippi, Peter acknowledges Christ’s divinity. Christ’s ‘Upon this rock I will build My church’ is followed by the grand chorus ‘Proclaim unto them’. In Capernaum, Mary Magdalene’s plea for help is answered by Mary the Mother of God, though Magdalene’s washing of Christ’s feet with her tears provokes a spiteful outburst from the women’s chorus. Beautiful scoring for woodwind accompanies her solo ‘Hide not Thy face far from me’ and leads into the devotional 4 | ≥ THE APOSTLES ensemble ‘Turn you to the stronghold’. Part 2 Introduction: Elgar re-visits some of the principal themes in an adagio introduction for orchestra.. IV. The Betrayal The tenor describes the Apostles’ journeys and their miracles. The chief priests and Pharisees decide to kill Jesus. They find an ally in Judas who, on the promise of 30 pieces of silver, tells them that whomsoever he kisses in the garden of Gethsemane is Jesus – ‘hold Him fast’. In the High Priest’s palace, Peter thrice denies any connection with Jesus. A sustained D flat on solo viola accompanies the women’s chorus as they describe Peter’s remorse. Inside the temple, a service is in progress into which Judas interpolates his anguished musings (taken by Elgar from the Psalms). The congregation chants over a steady staccato bass while Judas recalls his admiration for Jesus with a theme from the Beatitudes scene. Hardly anywhere in all Elgar’s work did he score with such skill and inspiration as in the background to Judas’s words: ‘we shall be hereafter as though we had never been; for the breath in our nostrils is as smoke … Our spirit shall vanish as the soft air’. Cries of ‘Crucify Him!’ are heard. Judas’s death is depicted by a short orchestral episode in which, to quote Elgar, ‘The man of action staggers about in a ghastly way’. Violent chords are followed by a sustained ppp. V. Golgotha Muted violins and violas play a short introduction over which Elgar wrote (but did not set) the words ‘Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?’ (Lord, why hast thou forsaken me?). The chorus acknowledges ‘Truly this was the Son of God’ and the Virgin Mary and John talk about their grief. VI. At the Sepulchre The mezzo-soprano soloist tells of the discovery of Christ’s empty tomb. It is dawn and the dawn scene in Part 1 is recalled along with the shofar that merges into Alleluias chanted by Angels who ask: ‘why seek ye the living among the dead?’ From this point the music gains an extra spirituality and intensity that are almost exclusively Elgarian. VII. The Ascension we are now approaching the exalted end of this work. The movement begins with a short ensemble for the Apostles. A long solo for Jesus, constructed from the principal themes, contains the injunction to ‘go … and teach all nations’. The female narrator describes Christ’s ascension before the Apostles and the two Marys plead: ‘Give us one heart, and one way.’ This culminates in triumphant Alleluias as the words of Christ in heaven are combined with declarations of faith by the Apostles and the women. The Alleluias return and Elgar’s inspiration is white hot as he finds a new theme to accompany the words ‘Give us one heart’. This is presented twice in glowingly rich orchestral colours and leads directly into a fortissimo brass enunciation of the opening theme of the work, while the chorus affirms that ‘the Kingdom is the Lord’s’. The music builds towards a huge climax, marked nobilmente, at the words ‘the power of God’. Gradually the intensity slackens into radiant Alleluias, and Peter and John and the two Marys sing ‘In His love and in His pity He redeemed them’ to a phrase that sounds like an echo of Gerontius’s ‘And thou art calling me’. A halo of string sound surrounds the last Alleluia until a swelling chord of E flat major ends this affecting work. Michael Kennedy © 2012 5 | ≥ THE APOSTLES EDwARD ELGAR (1857–1934) (Orchestra) THE APOSTLES, OP.49 The Angel ‘Behold My servant, whom I have chosen; My beloved, in whom My [CD1, Track 1] soul is well pleased: PROLOGUE: The Spirit of the Lord He shall not strive, nor cry aloud: neither shall anyone hear His voice in the streets: a bruised reed shall He not break, the dimly burning wick Chorus and Orchestra shall He not quench, and in His name shall the Gentiles hope.’ The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He hath anointed me to The voice of Thy watchman! preach the Gospel to the poor: [CD1, Track 3] He hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the THE DAWN captives and recovering of sight to the blind – to preach the acceptable Shofar (distant) year of the Lord; The Watchers (on the Temple roof) To give unto them that mourn a garland for ashes, the oil of joy for It shines! mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they might be called trees of righteousness, (Clang of the Gates – Shofar) the planting of the Lord, that He might be glorified. The face of all the East is now ablaze with light, For as the earth bringeth forth her bud, and as the garden causeth the the Dawn reacheth even unto Hebron! things that are sown in it to spring forth; MORNING PSALM So the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth The Singers (within the Temple) before all the nations. It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to sing praises unto The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He hath anointed me to Thy name, O Most High: preach the Gospel. To shew forth Thy lovingkindness in the morning, and Thy faithfulness every night, [CD1, Track 2] Upon the psaltery; upon the harp with a solemn sound. PART 1 For Thou, Lord, hast made me glad through Thy work: I will triumph in I: The Calling of the Apostles the works of Thy hands. Narrator 1 For, lo, Thine enemies, 0 Lord, shall perish: all the workers of iniquity And it came to pass in those days that Jesus went out into a mountain shall be scattered. to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God. The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar (Orchestra) in Lebanon. The Angel Gabriel (Shofar and Orchestra) The voice of Thy watchman! The Lord returneth to Zion – break forth into joy, sing together ye waste places of Jerusalem: for the Lord hath comforted His people. 6 | ≥ THE APOSTLES [CD1, Track 4] Peter Narrator 1 In Thy light shall we see light. And when it was day, He called unto Him His disciples: and of them He Judas chose twelve, whom also He named Apostles, that they should be with God exalteth by His power. Him, and that He might send them forth to preach. Chorus Chorus They are the servants of the Lord; He will direct their work. The Lord hath chosen them to stand before Him, to serve Him. John, Peter, Judas and Apostles Chorus He hath chosen the weak to confound the mighty; For out of Zion shall go forth the law. He will direct their work in truth. The Angel and Chorus Behold! God exalteth by His power, who teacheth like Him? Thy watchmen shall lift up the voice; with the voice together shall they The meek will He guide in judgment, and the meek will He teach His way. sing: He will direct their work in truth, for out of Zion shall go forth the law. For they shall see eye to eye, when the Lord shall bring again Zion. John, Peter, Judas and Apostles Chorus John, Peter, Judas and Apostles Chorus we are the servants of the Lord. Come ye, and let us walk in the light of the Lord. Peter Chorus Thou wilt shew us the path of life; in Thy light shall we see light. God hath chosen them. The Spirit of the Lord is upon Him. Let Thy work appear unto Thy servants. Jesus Peter, Judas and Apostles Chorus Behold, I send you forth. In Thy light shall we see the light. He that receiveth you, receiveth Me; and he that receiveth Me, receiveth John Him that sent Me. O blessed are they which love Thee, for they shall rejoice in Thy peace John, Peter, Judas and Apostles Chorus and shall be filled with the law. we are the servants of the Lord. Judas The Angel we shall eat of the riches of the Gentiles, Look down from heaven, 0 God, and behold, and visit this vine. and in their glory shall we boast ourselves. The Apostles and Chorus John, Peter and Judas Amen. For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. Chorus and Apostles Chorus The Lord hath chosen them, they shall be named the Priests of the Lord, men shall call them the Ministers of our God. John O blessed are they which love Thee. 7 | ≥ THE APOSTLES [CD1, Track 5] Jesus II: By the Wayside Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for Jesus they shall be filled. Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Mary, John, Peter and Judas Mary (The Blessed Virgin), John and Peter Mercy and truth are met together; He setteth the poor on high from affliction. righteousness and peace have kissed each other. Judas The People He poureth contempt upon princes. Sow to yourselves in righteousness, Jesus Jesus Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. John The People The Lord shall give them rest from their sorrow, reap in mercy. Peter Mary, John and Peter and will turn their mourning into joy, He that hath mercy on the poor, happy is he. Mary and John Judas and will comfort them: The poor is hated even of his own neighbour: the rich hath many friends. Women weeping may endure for a night, The People Draw out thy soul to the hungry, Men but joy cometh in the morning. John and satisfy the afflicted soul; Jesus Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth. Peter then shall thy light rise in obscurity. The People The meek also shall increase their joy – Jesus Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God. Mary, John and Peter in the Lord; Mary Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil. The People and the poor among men shall rejoice – John Blessed are the undefiled. Mary, John and Peter in the Holy One of Israel. Peter who can say, I have made my heart clean? 8 | ≥ THE APOSTLES Judas [CD1, Track 7] The stars are not pure in His sight, IN THE TOWER OF MAGDALA The People Mary Magdalene How much less man. O Lord Almighty, God of Israel, the soul in anguish, the troubled spirit, Jesus crieth unto Thee. Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God. Hear and have mercy; for Thou art merciful: have pity upon me, because I have sinned before Thee. The People Hear the voice of the forlorn, and deliver me out of my fear. The work of righteousness shall be peace. Help me, desolate woman, which have no helper but Thee: Hear and have Jesus pity. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake: for theirs The troubled spirit, the soul in anguish, crieth unto Thee. is the kingdom of heaven. woe is me! for I am as when they have gathered the summer fruits as Rejoice, and be exceeding glad; for great is your reward in heaven: the grape-gleanings of the vintage. for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you. Have pity, because I have sinned before Thee. Mary, Apostles and Chorus My tears run down like a river day and night. Blessed are they which have been sorrowful for all Thy scourges, whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them, I withheld not my for they shall rejoice for Thee, when they have seen all Thy glory, and heart from any joy. shall be glad for ever. FANTASY Chorus [CD1, Track 6] Let us fill ourselves with costly wine and ointments, III: By the Sea of Galilee Let no flower of the spring pass by us, Narrator 1 Let us crown ourselves with rosebuds before they be withered. And straightway Jesus constrained His disciples to get into a ship, and to Mary Magdalene go before Him unto the other side: ‘Ye that kindle a fire, walk in the flame of your fire, walk among the and He went up into a mountain to pray; and when the evening was brands that ye have kindled. come, He was there alone. And His disciples went over the sea toward Capernaum. [CD1, Track 8] This shall ye have of Mine hand; ye shall lie down in sorrow.’ God of Israel, the soul in anguish, the troubled spirit, crieth unto Thee. Hear and have mercy. The mirth of tabrets ceaseth; the noise of them that rejoice endeth, our dance is turned into mourning. ‘This shall ye have of Mine hand; ye shall lie down in sorrow.’ 9 | ≥ THE APOSTLES Hear and have mercy, for Thou art merciful. Peter, John and Judas (There arose a great tempest in the sea.) The Lord hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm. Mary Magdalene Mary Magdalene Is Thy wrath against the sea? who stilleth the raging of the seas, The voice of Thy thunder is in the heavens! who maketh the storm a calm? Deep calleth unto deep at the noise of Thy cataracts. Thy providence, O Father, governeth it: for Thou hast made a way in the I see a ship in the midst of the sea, distressed with waves: and One sea, and a safe path in the waves; shewing that Thou canst save from cometh unto it, walking on the sea! all danger. And they that are in the ship, toiling in rowing, are troubled and cry out Thy face, Lord, will I seek. for fear. Thou hast not forsaken them that seek Thee. Thy Face, Lord, will I seek. The Apostles (in the ship) My soul followeth hard after Thee: It is a spirit! Thy right hand upholdeth me. Jesus Thy Face, Lord, will I seek. Be of good cheer; it is I, be not afraid. Peter [CD1, Track 9] Lord, if it be Thou, bid me come unto Thee upon the waters. IN CAESAREA PHILIPPI Jesus Narrator 1 Come! when Jesus came into the parts of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His John, Judas and Apostles Chorus disciples, saying: He walketh on the waters. Jesus Fearfulness and trembling are come upon him, and an horrible dread whom do men say that I, the Son of man, am? hath overwhelmed him. The Apostles Peter Some say John the Baptist; some Elias; and others Jeremias, or one of Lord, save me; I perish! the prophets. Mary Magdalene Jesus He stretcheth forth His hand. But whom say ye that I am? Jesus Peter O thou of little faith; wherefore didst thou doubt? Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. Mary Magdalene Jesus The wind ceaseth, and they worship Him. Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed Apostles Chorus it unto thee, but My Father which is in heaven. Of a truth Thou art the Son of God. Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. 10 | ≥ THE APOSTLES