NOSPR / Ponomarchuk / British Portraits - NOSPR

The rich history of British music has not been without its periods of crisis. The most profound followed the death of Henry Purcell at the end of the 17th century. Thereafter, Italian and German styles came to dominate the musical life on the British Isles. It would take more than two centuries before a true revival emerged. When it did, at the beginning of the 20th century, two figures stood at its centre: Edward Elgar and Ralph Vaughan Williams. The latter sought inspiration in the work of his Renaissance predecessor. Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis (1910) draws upon a Renaissance polyphonic form, while its principal melody serves as the foundation for new ideas introduced as counterpoints to it. Here Vaughan Williams demonstrates not only his mastery of voice-leading, but also an exceptional sensitivity to harmony and colour. Britons unanimously point to the Fantasia as a turning point in the history of their music. A comparable position within Elgar’s oeuvre is occupied by the Variations ‘Enigma’. Here the composer, nearly a generation older than Vaughan Williams, combined the Romantic aura of mystery with the Classical variation form to create a theme and fourteen miniatures: musical portraits of his wife, friends and colleagues, as well as himself. The mystery promised by the title remains unsolved. According to some commentators, the variations are built upon a hidden theme that is never actually heard. Others have suggested that the answer may lie beyond music altogether – an idea we shall perhaps never fully comprehend. This, however, in no way diminishes the pleasure of listening to Elgar’s magnificent score.

Piotr Matwiejczuk (Polskie Radio)

Concert duration: approximately 70 minutes

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