Elgar: Enigma Variations, Introduction & Allegro album cover

Elgar: Enigma Variations, Introduction & Allegro

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The Variations on an Original Theme, or 'Enigma' as it is commonly known, brought Elgar overnight fame when it appeared in 1899. The music is glorious from start to finish, especially in the serene Nimrod. Each variation is given a cryptic title referring to one of Elgar’s friends although the overall enigma behind the original theme has never been deciphered.

Composer Sir Edward Elgar
Conductor Sir Colin Davis
Performers London Symphony Orchestra

Enigma Variations
1. Theme - Andante
2. Variation I. C.A.E - L'istesso tempo
3. Variation II. H.D.S-P - Allegro
4. Variation III. R.B.T - Allegretto
5. Variation IV. W.M.B - Allegro di molto
6. Variation V. R.P.A - Moderato
7. Variation VI. Ysobel - Andantino
8. Variation VII. Troyte - Presto
9. Variation VIII. W.N - Allegretto
10. Variation IX. Nimrod - Adagio
11. Variation X. Intermezzo - Dorabella - Allegretto
12. Variation XI. G.R.S - Allegreo di molto
13. Variation XII. B.G.N - Andante
14. Variation XIII. Romanza (***) - Moderato
15. Variation XIV. E.D.U - Allegro

16. Introduction and Allegro for Strings

Release Date 4 June 2007
LSO0609 | 822231110927

Producer James Mallinson
Engineers Neil Hutchinson and Jonathan Stokes for Classic Sound Ltd
Recorded September & December 2005 (Introduction and Allegro), January 2007 (Enigma Variations), Barbican, London

DSD (Direct Stream Digital) recording

Booklet in English, French & German

FLAC - 24bit 96kHz - Compatible with Windows and Android devices
MP3 - 320kbps - Universal compatibility
SACD - Compatible with all CD players

Available on streaming services

Reviews

“

‘[Davis] has always been a great Elgarian ... Their Enigma, captured at the beginning of this year, is one of the most beautifully played I can recall, and certainly one of the most moving accounts of this much-recorded music.’

- The Sunday Times, CD of the Week
“

‘Colin Davis's LSO Live recordings of the Elgar symphonies are already jewels in the label's crown, so this release brought with it high expectations. Davis's way with Elgar is always a fairly flexible one ... it gives this splendid account of the Enigma Variations a real sense of a living organism. The LSO plays wonderfully.’

- The Daily Telegraph
“

‘Of all the issues to mark the 150th anniversary of Elgar's birth, few will be more distinguished than these masterful accounts ... you have an Enigma Variations as beautifully paced and played as any on disc and a superb Introduction & Allegro by the orchestra that premiered the work under the composer.’

- The Observer