Sea Pictures

''Sea Pictures, Op. 37'' is a song cycle for contralto and orchestra by Edward Elgar. It consists of settings of a poems by five different authors. A version for piano was often performed by Elgar. Many mezzo-sopranos have sung the piece.

The songs are:
* " Sea Slumber Song" by Roden Noel
* " In Haven (Capri)" by Caroline Alice Elgar, the composer's wife
* " Sabbath Morning at Sea" by Elizabeth Barrett Browning
* " Where Corals Lie" by Richard Garnett
* " The Swimmer" by Adam Lindsay Gordon

Much of the vocal line of the first song, "Sea Slumber Song", is heard again in other parts of the cycle; most notably, the second stanza is heard again almost in its entirety as part of the finale.

History

The English composer Edward Elgar composed the piece on his 1894 Broadwood Square piano while residing at Birchwood Lodge, Great Storridge, near Cradley, Herefordshire. The songs were originally written in high keys for a soprano voice, but were transposed by the composer to lower keys for the orchestral version, largely at the request of the contralto Clara Butt. Four of the songs were composed in July 1899; " In Haven (Capri)" was a reworking of his 1897 " Love alone will stay".

The premiere took place on 5 October 1899 at the Norfolk and Norwich Festival with Elgar himself conducting and Butt singing, dressed as a mermaid. Butt gave the first London performance two days later at St. James's Hall, with Elgar at the piano. O 20 October, Butt performed the work for Queen Victoria at Balmoral.

''Sea Pictures'' were published by Boosey & Hawkes, who bought the copyright for £50, with a small royalty payment per copy of the songs published separately.

''Sea Pictures'' was published in German: as ''See-Bilder'' with words by Dr. Wilhelm Henzen, and in French as ''Marines'' with words by George Petilleau.

While the cycle is heard most often in its canonical form for contralto and symphony orchestra, it can also be performed as a work for voice and piano, and in recent years some sopranos have taken up the work using Elgar's original keys.

In 2010, the British composer Donald Fraser made a version of Sea Pictures for SATB chorus and strings. The first recording of that version was made by the English Chamber Orchestra, Rodolfus Choir and conductor Kenneth Woods in Abbey Road Studios in 2013. Fraser's arrangement was hailed by Stephen Johnson in BBC Music Magazine as "beautifully realised, performed with warmth and understanding, and sympathetically recorded."

Fraser has also made a version of the work for SATB chorus and large symphony orchestra.

Recordings

*The first recording, of "In Haven" and "Where Corals Lie", was made on 10 November 1922, by Leila Megane (contralto) with Elgar conducting the Royal Albert Hall Orchestra. The same parties recorded the remaining three songs on 8 January 1923. These acoustic recordings were made for The Gramophone Company and appeared under the His Master's Voice label, on 2 discs D674-5.Kennedy, p.366 This can be heard on ''The Elgar Edition'' GEMMCDS 9951–5 ()
* Larisa Avdeyeva, USSR State Symphony Orchestra, Yevgeny Svetlanov. ''Edward Elgar Sea Pictures & Symphony No. 2'' (recorded live at the Grand Hall of the Moscow State Conservatory, 11 April 1977. Sung in Russian; translations by Natalia Rozhdestvenskaya). Scribendum SC 032
* Janet Baker, London Symphony Orchestra, conductor Sir John Barbirolli (1965) is available on many EMI CDs (only some of which include texts), for example ''Elgar: Cello Concerto; Cockaigne; Sea Pictures'', EMI Classics 5 62886 2
* Dame Janet Baker, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Vernon Handley ''London Philharmonic Orchestra plays Elgar'' LPO – LPO0016-0020 (recorded live 1984)
* Rodolfus Choir, English Chamber Orchestra, Kenneth Woods. 2013, recorded on 31 July 2013 in Abbey Road Studios. Avie Records AV2362. Version for SATB choir and string orchestra arr. Donald Fraser, coupled with Fraser's orchestration of Elgar's Piano Quintet.
* Muriel Brunskill ''Elgar's Interpreters on Record Volume 2 – Historic Recordings'' (also includes recording by Clara Butt) Dutton CDAX8020

* Clara Butt, Unidentified Orchestra, Hamilton Harty "Where corals lie" only. ''Dame Clara Butt (1872–1936)'' Prima Voce NI 7912. (Recording is also on ''Dame Clara Butt: Britain's Queen of Song'' GEM 0086)
* Elizabeth Campbell, Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, Nicholas Braithwaite ''Elgar: Cello Concerto/Sea Pictures'' ABC Classics 4767966
* Yvonne Minton, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Daniel Barenboim. ''Elgar''. CD collection of former recordings, 2002. Sony Classical 508249 2
* Sarah Connolly, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Simon Wright ''Elgar: Music Makers / Sea Pictures'' Naxos 8.557710. This recording was a 2007 Grammy nominee, for the Grammy Award for Best Classical Vocal Performance
* Alice Coote, The Hallé, Sir Mark Elder, recorded on 5–7 August 2014, Manchester.
* Margreta Elkins, Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Werner Andreas Albert (August 1983) ''Margreta Elkins – The Classic Recordings'' ABC 461,922-2
* Lauris Elms, Sydney Symphony Orchestra, John Hopkins LP RCA GL40749
* Linda Finnie, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Bryden Thomson, (1991). ''Elgar: Sea Pictures, The Music Makers'' Chandos Records 9022
* Birgit Finnilä, Geoffrey Parsons (piano). ''Baroque and Romantic Vocal Music'' BIS-CD-127
* Bernadette Greevy, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Vernon Handley ''Elgar: Symphony No.2 / Sea Pictures'' Cfp 5753062
* Aafje Heynis, "Sea Slumber Song" only. ''Het Puik van zoete kelen'' (''The Cream of Glorious Voices'') Philips Dutch Masters 464,385-
"Sea Slumber Song" audio sample
* Marilyn Horne, New York Philharmonic Orchestra, Zubin Mehta, recorded on 6 June 1980, New York.
* Konrad Jarnot (baritone), Reinild Mees (piano) ''Elgar: Complete Songs for Voice and Piano Vol. 1'' Channel Classics Records CCS SA 27507
* Mary Jarred, contralto; The BBC Orchestra, Section F; Clarence Raybould, conductor ''Elgar's Interpreters on Record, Volume 5: Broadcasts from the Leech Collection at the British Library (1935–1950)'' Elgar Society EECD003-005 ("Sea Slumber Song" complete, "Sabbath Morning at Sea" to bar 84, "The Swimmer" bars between 74 and 107 are missing)
* Della Jones, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Charles Mackerras ''The British Music Collection – Edward Elgar'' Decca 4732492
* Rosemarie Lang, Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra, Hans-Peter Frank c/w Wagner '' Wesendonck Lieder'' and Gösta Nystroem ''Sănger vid havet (Songs at the Sea)'' ''Wagner / Nystroem / Elgar: Lieder'' BIS-CD-530
* Claire-Louise Lucas (mezzo-soprano), Jonathan Darnborough (piano) Claudio Bohema CB5258-2 (This is the version with piano accompaniment.)
* Leila Megane, Unidentified Orchestra, Edward Elgar (first complete recording made on 11 October 1922, with Elgar conducting) available in ''The Elgar Edition'' GEMMCDS 9951–5 (). ''Leila Megane'' Sain SCD2316 includes three songs from ''Sea Pictures''.
* Kerstin Meyer (mezzo-soprano), Hallé Orchestra, Sir John Barbirolli (recorded live at the St. Nicholas Chapel, King's Lynn Festival, 24 July 1970. Barbirolli's last recorded concert. Includes Elgar's Symphony No. 1). Intaglio INCD 701-1
* Maartje Offers "Where Corals Lie" only. ''Het Puik van zoete kelen'' (''The Cream of Glorious Voices'') Philips Dutch Masters 464,385-2
* Felicity Palmer, London Symphony Orchestra, Richard Hickox, ''Elgar Violin Concerto in B Minor, Op. 61; Cello Concerto in E Minor, Op. 85; Sea Pictures'', Op. 37 Virgin 562425 2 / EMI CDM 5 65126 2
Amanda Pitt
(soprano) David Owen Norris (piano) ''Songs & Piano Music by Edward Elgar'' AVIE AV 2129 (played on Elgar's 1844 Broadwood square piano and set in Elgar's original keys)
* Gladys Ripley, Philharmonia Orchestra, George Weldon (Summer 1946) on His Master's Voice 78s C.3498/3500. CD release on ''The Dream of Gerontius and Sea Pictures'' Pearl GEMS 0128. Re-recorded for LP by Ripley and Weldon with the London Symphony Orchestra on 26 February 1954. Released on UK Columbia LP 33SX 1028 and US Capitol LP P-18017. Reissued on His Master's Voice Concert Classics XLP 30008. CD releases of this second version: Somm SOMMCD 073 and Pristine Audio PASC 196AS.
* Birgitta Svendén, Orchestre philharmonique de Nice, John Carewe, (1991). ''Grands lieder judupptagningGreat songs / Mahler, Elgar, Zemlinsky'' Forlane UCD 16642
* Roderick Williams, BBC Concert Orchestra, Martin Yates (2010) Dutton Epoch CDLX7243
* Catherine Wyn-Rogers, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Sir Andrew Davis. (2003, recorded on 30 July 2003 in the Royal Albert Hall, London, as part of the BBC Proms), CD title is not that clear but the CD includes Walton ''Coronation Te Deum'', Elgar ''Sea Pictures'', Bax '' November Woods'', Britten ''The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra'' Warner Classics 2564 61550-2

Notes

Sources

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Further reading

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External links

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Translations of ''Sea Pictures''
from The LiederNet Archive

Elgar—His Music: ''Sea Pictures''
from ''All About Elgar''

Programme notes
by Fred Kirshnit ( American Symphony Orchestra)

Programme notes
by Michael Kennedy (Philharmonia Orchestra)

{{Authority control

Song cycles by Edward Elgar
Classical song cycles in English
1899 compositions
Orchestral songs