Conducting Elgar [Hardcover]

Norman Del Mar (Author), Jonathan Del Mar (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 18, 1999

This is the final book in the series on orchestral conducting that Norman Del Mar had been writing until his death in February 1994. As with the previous books, each chapter is devoted to a specific work, and once again all the major orchestral works of this important composer are covered. The book culminates in an important study of The Dream of Gerontius completed by his son Jonathan, himself a conductor.

Norman Del Mar was renowned in his generation as an interpreter of English music and in particular for his understanding of Elgar's music. His explanations of the subtleties of guiding an orchestra through these magnificent scores are an invaluable help to all those who seek to clarify this elusive music. Elgar's own recordings are frequently consulted but not always accepted.

Editorial Reviews

Review

`In this book the author brings his vast experience to bear on the problems of all the major orchestral works of the composer ... Del Mar clearly knew and loved his Elgar ... As one reads through this book fascination grows, and non-musicians will realise how much planning goes into a performance ... This is a remarkable work, both for the scholar and for the Elgar enthusiast. Amateur, and budding professional, musicians should make it one of their major text-books.' Ronald Taylor, Elgar Society Journal --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

Norman Del Mar (died 1994) was an eminent orchestral conductor with many years experience. He taught conducting at the Guildhall School of Music (1954-60), the Royal College of Music (1971-90), and at a number of international conducting seminars.
Jonathan Del Mar is a musicologist, writer, and conductor. He has prepared a complete Urtext edition of Beethoven's Choral Symphony. He worked closely with his father on all his recent books.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (March 18, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 019816551X
• ISBN-13: 978-0198165514
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,367,758 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A maestro shares his secrets., February 2, 2000

By 

Frank Beck (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Conducting Elgar (Paperback)

When you hear an orchestra play, how much is dictated by the score, and how much depends on the conductor?

Norman Del Mar's outstanding series of books about conducting reveals the many decisions a conductor makes about tempo, phrasing, tone color, attack and orchestral balance. After earlier books about Beethoven, Berlioz, and Brahms, CONDUCTING ELGAR explores the music of this Late Romantic composer, whose Enigma Variations and Cello Concerto are among the most popular works in the repertory.

Elgar's scores are known for their elaborate instructions, but, in many matters, there is wide latitude for interpretation, as Elgar's own recordings show. Drawing on decades of experience as one of Britain's leading conductors, Del Mar offers a page by page--often bar by bar--discussion of 14 Elgar scores, including The Dream of Gerontius.

Del Mar explains, for example, why parts of the opening Allegro of the Violin Concerto, marked "quarter note = 100" in the score, require tempos as slow as 80 and as fast as 112. He suggests ways of using rubato to give proper shape to such famous Elgar melodies as the great long tune of the First Symphony's Adagio and "Nimrod" of the Enigma Variations. He is equally good with Elgar's choral writing, devoting a full nine pages to a description of how to handle the complex counterpoint and other challenges of the "Praise to the Holiest" choruses in Gerontius.

This book will be very useful to conductors and musicians, but listeners will enjoy it too. It is clearly and gracefully written, and anyone with a knowledge of basic musical terms will have little trouble understanding it. In greater detail than any other author I know, Del Mar tells how musicians turn notes into music.