The Festival Te Deum is the popular name for an 1872 composition by Arthur Sullivan, written to celebrate the recovery of Albert Edward,

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...

(later King Edward VII of the United Kingdom) from

typhoid fever Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several ...

. The prince's father, Prince Albert, had died of typhoid fever in 1861, and so the prince's recovery was especial cause for celebration. The Festival Te Deum was first performed on 1 May 1872 at

The Crystal Palace The Crystal Palace was a cast iron and plate glass structure, originally built in Hyde Park, London, to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. The exhibition took place from 1 May to 15 October 1851, and more than 14,000 exhibitors from around th ...

in a special "Thanksgiving Day" concert organised by the Prince's brother,

Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh Alfred (Alfred Ernest Albert; 6 August 184430 July 1900) was the sovereign duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha from 1893 to 1900. He was the second son and fourth child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. He was known as the Duke of Edinburgh from 1 ...

, who was a friend of Sullivan's and commissioned the piece. Sullivan was allowed to dedicate the work to the prince's mother,

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...

: an unusual honour.Jacobs, p. 75 The soloist was Therese Titiens, who had been the soprano soloist in Sullivan's earlier '' The Prodigal Son''.

Description

The libretto uses an English translation of the traditional

Te Deum The "Te Deum" (, ; from its incipit, , ) is a Latin Christian hymn traditionally ascribed to AD 387 authorship, but with antecedents that place it much earlier. It is central to the Ambrosian hymnal, which spread throughout the Latin Ch ...

, in praise of God, with the addition of a "''Domine salvum fac''" ("O Lord, save the Queen!"), divided up into seven self-contained sections. There are multiple choral fugues throughout, and the score calls for instrumentation on a grand scale, including the addition of a full military band to the orchestra, chorus, and organ in the final section. At the original performance, the London contingent of the Handel Festival Choir of 2,000 performers constituted the chorus, and the audience numbered 26,000. ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...

'' wrote, "we are glad to be able to speak in terms of unqualified praise. It is not only, in our opinion, the most finished composition for which we are indebted to ullivan'spen but an honour to English art." Sullivan was "uproariously cheered" at the premiere. The first section begins with a reference to the hymn tune ''St. Anne'', which is repeated in the final section, suggesting that divine intervention played a part in the recovery of the Prince. Handel's influence is heard throughout the piece, including in the fugues, and Sullivan uses key selection to emphasize sacred and secular sections of the piece. Soprano solo or choral sections alternate in a broad dynamic range to illustrate the text. The piece, in keeping with the spirit of the occasion, is often upbeat, even exuberant in places. While Sullivan was writing the Festival Te Deum, his first opera with

W. S. Gilbert Sir William Schwenck Gilbert (18 November 1836 – 29 May 1911) was an English dramatist, librettist, poet and illustrator best known for his collaboration with composer Arthur Sullivan, which produced fourteen comic operas. The most fam ...

, '' Thespis'', was still being performed. Sullivan was also busy composing '' The Light of the World'' (an oratorio for the Birmingham festival), and a cantata for the opening of a London exhibition. The

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...

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