Works for chamber orchestra performed by the Gardner Chamber Orchestra directed by Douglas Boyd.
The
two works on this podcast have a striking number of similarities. Written at
the very beginning of the 20th century, both of these works for
strings exhibit a luscious, Romantic sensibility, applied to centuries-old
material. Vaughan Williams takes a hymn tune by a British Renaissance composer
as his starting point, while Elgar evokes the Baroque more generally, using
rhythmic hemiola and incorporating a vigorous fugue. Both works also hearken
back to the early form concerto grosso—using
a larger orchestra paired with a smaller “solo” group. Both pieces evoke the
folk music of the British Isles. Despite all
the commonalities, the works undoubtedly have their own distinct character,
which makes for an interesting study of the similarities and differences
between these two contemporaries.
