Queen Alexandra's Memorial Ode is an ode

Ode

Ode is a type of lyrical verse. A classic ode is structured in three major parts: the strophe, the antistrophe, and the epode. Different forms such as the homostrophic ode and the irregular ode also exist...

 "So many true Princesses who have gone" written by John Masefield

John Masefield

John Edward Masefield, OM, was an English poet and writer, and Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom from 1930 until his death in 1967...

 and set to music for choir and orchestra by Sir Edward Elgar

Edward Elgar

Sir Edward William Elgar, 1st Baronet OM, GCVO was an English composer, many of whose works have entered the British and international classical concert repertoire. Among his best-known compositions are orchestral works including the Enigma Variations, the Pomp and Circumstance Marches, concertos...

 for the occasion of the unveiling of Sir Alfred Gilbert's memorial to Queen Alexandra

Alexandra of Denmark

Alexandra of Denmark was the wife of Edward VII of the United Kingdom...

 on 8 June 1932 outside Marlborough House

Marlborough House

Marlborough House is a mansion in Westminster, London, in Pall Mall just east of St James's Palace. It was built for Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough, the favourite and confidante of Queen Anne. The Duchess wanted her new house to be "strong, plain and convenient and good"...

 in London.

History

It was Masefield's first commission as Poet Laureate

Poet Laureate

A poet laureate is a poet officially appointed by a government and is often expected to compose poems for state occasions and other government events...

, and Elgar, as Master of the King's Musick, was requested to set the verses in mid-May 1932, shortly before his seventy-fifth birthday. Elgar originally set the poem to an orchestral accompaniment, but due to a change of plan it was to be played by a band, with the accompaniment hurredly re-arranged for Military Band

Military band

A military band originally was a group of personnel that performs musical duties for military functions, usually for the armed forces. A typical military band consists mostly of wind and percussion instruments. The conductor of a band commonly bears the title of Bandmaster or Director of Music...

 by Captain Andrew Harris of the Welsh Guards

Welsh Guards

The Welsh Guards is an infantry regiment of the British Army, part of the Guards Division.-Creation :The Welsh Guards came into existence on 26 February 1915 by Royal Warrant of His Majesty King George V in order to include Wales in the national component to the Foot Guards, "..though the order...

.

The day chosen for the unveiling of the memorial by the King

George V of the United Kingdom

George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....

  was Alexandra Rose Day

Alexandra Rose Day

Alexandra Rose Day is a charitable fund raising event held in the United Kingdom since 1912. It was first launched on the 50th anniversary of the arrival of Queen Alexandra, the consort of King Edward VII, from her native Denmark to the UK...

. At the beginning of the ceremony outside Marlborough House, Elgar, wearing magnificent robes, conducted the chorister children of the Chapels Royal

Chapel Royal

A Chapel Royal is a body of priests and singers who serve the spiritual needs of their sovereign wherever they are called upon to do so.-Austria:...

, the choir of Westminster Abbey

Westminster Abbey

The Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster, popularly known as Westminster Abbey, is a large, mainly Gothic church, in the City of Westminster, London, United Kingdom, located just to the west of the Palace of Westminster. It is the traditional place of coronation and burial site for English,...

, and the band of the Guards in a performance of the Ode.

The orchestra and band parts have since been lost. The only manuscript of the work is in the Library of St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle: a vocal score handwritten by the composer, which includes indications of the orchestral instrumentation.

The music

The work starts with a short fanfare-like figure, followed by a lengthy prelude by the orchestra (or band) before the choir enters, unaccompanied, with the words "So many true princesses who have gone". The effect of the whole is of appropriate simplicity and wistfulness, and seems to ask for delicacy of instrumentation.

There are four verses of four lines, and the performing time is about six minutes.

Lyrics

The lyrics to the song were written by John Masefield.

So many true princesses who have gone
Over the sea, as love or duty bade,
To share abroad, till Death a foreign throne,
Have given all things, and been ill repaid.

Hatred has followed them and bitter days.
But this most lovely woman and loved Queen
Filled all the English nation with her praise;
We gather now to keep her memory green.

Here, at this place, she often sat to mark
The tide of London life go roaring by,
The day-long multitude, the lighted dark,
The night-long wheels, the glaring in the sky.

Now here we set memorial of her stay,
That passers-by remember with a thrill:
"This lovely princess came from far away
And won our hearts, and lives within them still".

Revival and recordings

• Choir and piano: So many true princesses who have gone (Queen Alexandra Memorial Ode) and other music by Elgar, performed by Barry Collett (piano) and Tudor Choir. On CD - The Unknown Elgar - Pearl SHECD9635
• Choir and orchestra: Queen Alexandra's Memorial Ode arranged by John Morrison for choir and small orchestra, performed by Bristol University
  University of Bristol
  The University of Bristol is a public research university located in Bristol, United Kingdom. One of the so-called "red brick" universities, it received its Royal Charter in 1909, although its predecessor institution, University College, Bristol, had been in existence since 1876.The University is...
  
  Musical Society, at St. George's Church Concert Hall, Bristol in 2002
• Choir and orchestra: So Many True Princesses included with other revivals by Anthony Payne of Elgar's music (Third Symphony, 6th Pomp and Circumstance March). Adrian Partington Singers, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, cond. Richard Hickox. On CHANDOS CHSA5057
• Choir and military (wind) band: Musical Opinion: "Lost Elgar work returns to the wind band repertoire" - arrangement of Queen Alexandra's Memorial Ode for choir and wind band by John Morrison in 2010
• Wind band: Queen Alexandra's Memorial Ode arranged by John Morrison, first public performance, by the Nottingham Concert Band, 22 October 2011
• Choir and organ: Westminster Abbey Choir, conducted by James O'Donnell with Robert Quinney (organ) includes Queen Alexandra Memorial Ode (ed. Witt and Quinney) and other music by Elgar. On HYPERION CDA67593