Catalogue # CHAN10709

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Paul Watkins is the cello soloist in a recording that showcases\nsome of Elgar’s most popular works. He is accompanied by the BBC\nPhilharmonic and Sir Andrew Davis, a conductor steeped in the\nEnglish music tradition.

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Elgar studied the violin from a young age, and had some early\nhopes of making a career as a soloist. Consequently, he wrote for\nthe strings of the orchestra with a special understanding and\nflair, not least in a handful of works for strings alone. The\nshowpiece among these is the Introduction and Allegro, written in\n1904, for the newly formed London Symphony Orchestra to be included\nin an all-Elgar concert. The premiere performance was conducted by\nthe composer.

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Elgar started writing his Pomp and Circumstance Marches in 1901\nin the wake of his national successes with the Enigma Variations\nand The Dream of Gerontius. The Marches vary considerably in mood.\nThe First March gained worldwide fame largely due to the trio\nmelody, which Elgar considered ‘a tune that comes once in a\nlifetime’, and the Second displays a certain air of urgency with\nits brazen horn calls and jaunty trio. Also on this disc is Elgar’s\nintimate and restrained Elegy for Strings.

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The Cello Concerto in E minor, written in 1918 – 19, was the\nlast major work Elgar completed. Its mood is often described as\n‘autumnal’, and highly reflective of the ageing composer’s own\nstate of mind. At the time of writing it, Elgar was concerned about\nthe failing health of his wife and about his own waning popularity;\nhe was deeply disturbed, too, by the horrors of the First World\nWar. Paul Watkins writes of his experience of recording this work:\n‘It is a privilege to have the opportunity to add my voice to the\nmany different interpretations of this iconic work. I prepared for\nthis recording by using my experience as a conductor: in other\nwords, to study Elgar’s masterful score as deeply as possible, and\nto realise how intimately the solo cello is linked to the orchestra\nthroughout. In this respect I feel fortunate to have been working\nwith Sir Andrew Davis. He is the most natural and intelligent\ninterpreter of Elgar I know.’

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Elgar:
\nCello Concerto in E minor, Op. 85
\nPaul Watkins (cello)

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Introduction & Allegro for strings, Op. 47
\nElegy for strings, Op. 58
\nPomp and Circumstance Marches Nos. 1-5, Op. 39

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BBC Philharmonic, Sir Andrew Davis

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