Elgar: the Dream of Gerontius album cover

Elgar: The Dream of Gerontius

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Elgar's Dream of Gerontius was thought by many to be outlandishly modern at the time of its completion in 1900. Telling the story of the journey of a dying man's soul into the afterlife, the subject originally caused uproar within the English church yet is now acclaimed as one of the great choral masterpieces and one of Elgar's most popular works.

Composer Sir Edward Elgar
Conductor Sir Colin Davis
Performers London Symphony Chorus, London Symphony Orchestra
Soloists David Rendall, Anne Sofie von Otter, Alastair Miles

Disc 1
The Dream of Gerontius
1. Prelude to Part One
2. "Jesu, Maria - I Am Near to Death"
3. "Kyrie Eleison... Holy Mary, Pray for Him"
4. "Rouse Thee, My Fainting Soul"
5. "Be Merciful, Be Gracious"
6. "Sanctus Fortis, Sanctus Deus"
7. "I Can No More"
8. "Rescue Him, O Lord"
9. "Novissima Hora Est"
10. "Profisciscere, Anima Christiana"
11. "Go, In the Name of Angels and Archangels"

Disc 2
1. "Prelude to Part Two"
2. "I Went to Sleep"
3. "My Work Is Done"
4. "Low-born Clods of Brute Earth"
5. "The Mind Bold and Independent"
6. "I See Not Those False Spirits"
7. "Praise to the Holiest"
8. "Glory to Him"
9. The Dream of Gerontius: "But Hark! a Grand Mysterious Harmony"
10. "And Now the Threshold As We Traverse It"
11. "Praise to the Holiest In the Height"
12. "Thy Judgment Is Now Near"
13. "Jesu! By That Shuddering Dread"
14. "Praise to His Name"
15. "Take Me Away"
16. "Lord, Thou Hast Been Our Refuge"
17. "Softly and Gently, Dearly-ransomed Soul"

Release Date 7 August 2006
LSO0083 | 822231108320

Producer James Mallinson
Engineers Neil Hutchinson and Jonathan Stokes for Classic Sound Ltd
Recorded December 2005, Barbican, London

DSD (Direct Stream Digital) recording

Booklet in English, French & German

SACD - Compatible with all CD players

Available on streaming services

Reviews

'This new recording from the LSO and Sir Colin Davis is so detailed in its emotional responses - so magical is Davis's phrasing that there are times that one dare not breathe for fear of breaking the spell.'

- International Record Review

'In charge of his eloquent LSO forces, Colin Davis delivers this performance with passionate engagement, bringing to it an elemental sweep and dynamism on the one hand and spiritual tenderness on the other. Fine solo contributions from David Rendall's intensely vulnerable Gerontius, Alastair Miles forthright Priest and Anne Sofie von Otter's consoling Angel.'

- The Observer

'Colin Davis's conducting is superb and the strings sound particularly luminous in the ecstatic sections; he also pulls the dramatic tension up to ever greater heights as the Soul both fears and hopes to meet God ... [Anne Sofie von Otter's] gorgeous performance is worth the price of the disc alone.'

- Metro