The Crown of India
Encyclopedia
The Crown of India, was a masque
, an elaborate theatrical presentation, staged in 1912 to celebrate the visit the preceding December of King George V and Queen Mary
to Delhi
for their coronation as Emperor
and Empress of India. For this masque, the English composer Edward Elgar
wrote the music as his Op. 66, with a libretto by Henry Hamilton
. The masque consisted of two tableaux: 'The Cities of Ind' and 'Ave Imperator!'.
in London
on 11 March 1912. Elgar composed twelve pieces for contralto
, bass, chorus
and orchestra
:
Tableau I: The Cities of Ind
Tableau II: Ave Imperator!
: "The Cities of Ind" and "Ave Imperator!". The programme listed the cast, who personified 'India' herself, England represented by 'St. George', and various Indian cities. There were also attendant performers, in elaborate costumes, personifying other roles. Elgar attended the daily rehearsals for two weeks, then conducted the hour-long show two performances a day for a further two weeks.
for solo violin to create The Crown of India Suite. The first performance was at the Hereford Festival on September 11th, 1912, by the London Symphony Orchestra
conducted by the composer. The Suite gained immediate popularity: during Elgar's lifetime, there were 102 live performances of it on the BBC
.
The Crown of India March from the incidental music for the masque is also performed separately.
. The remaining orchestral parts were destroyed in the 1960s. In 2007 the Elgar Society commissioned the composer Anthony Payne
to complete the orchestration of the music for The Crown of India. Payne is to "complete the scoring of the piano-vocal version and combining this, where appropriate, with the orchestral suite and march."
Masque
The masque was a form of festive courtly entertainment which flourished in 16th and early 17th century Europe, though it was developed earlier in Italy, in forms including the intermedio...
, an elaborate theatrical presentation, staged in 1912 to celebrate the visit the preceding December of King George V and Queen Mary
Mary of Teck
Mary of Teck was the queen consort of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, as the wife of King-Emperor George V....
to Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
for their coronation as Emperor
Emperor of India
Emperor/Empress of India was used as a title by the last Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah II, and revived by the colonial British monarchs during the British Raj in India....
and Empress of India. For this masque, the English composer 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...
wrote the music as his Op. 66, with a libretto by Henry Hamilton
Henry Hamilton (playwright)
Henry Hamilton was an English playwright, lyricist, and critic. He is best remembered for his musical theatre pieces....
. The masque consisted of two tableaux: 'The Cities of Ind' and 'Ave Imperator!'.
Music
The masque was first performed at the Coliseum TheatreColiseum Theatre
The London Coliseum is an opera house and major performing venue on St. Martin's Lane, central London. It is one of London's largest and best equipped theatres and opened in 1904, designed by theatrical architect Frank Matcham , for impresario Oswald Stoll...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
on 11 March 1912. Elgar composed twelve pieces for contralto
Contralto
Contralto is the deepest female classical singing voice, with the lowest tessitura, falling between tenor and mezzo-soprano. It typically ranges between the F below middle C to the second G above middle C , although at the extremes some voices can reach the E below middle C or the second B above...
, bass, chorus
Choir
A choir, chorale or chorus is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform.A body of singers who perform together as a group is called a choir or chorus...
and orchestra
Orchestra
An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
:
Tableau I: The Cities of Ind
- 1a Introduction
- 1b Sacred Measure
- 2 - Dance of Nautch GirlsNautchIn North India, Nautch is one of several styles of popular dance, performed by girls known as "Nautch girls". The word Nautch is an anglicized version of नाच , a word found in Hindi and Urdu , and several other languages of North India, derived from the Sanskrit, Nritya, via the Prakrit, Nachcha...
- 2a India greets her Cities
- 3 - Song (Agra): 'Hail, ImmemorialTime immemorialTime immemorial is a phrase meaning time extending beyond the reach of memory, record, or tradition, indefinitely ancient, "ancient beyond memory or record"...
IndIndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
!' (The HomageHomageHomage is a show or demonstration of respect or dedication to someone or something, sometimes by simple declaration but often by some more oblique reference, artistic or poetic....
of Ind) - 3a Entrance of Calcutta. India: 'Welcome Calcutta!'
- 3b Entrance of Delhi. Delhi: 'Stop! That place is mine'
- 4a Introduction
- 4b March of the Mogul EmperorsMughal EmpireThe Mughal Empire , or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...
. India: 'Illustrious Emperors!' - 5 - Entrance of 'John Company'. Calcutta: 'Good John Company, reply'
- 5a Entrance of St. George. India: 'Calcutta, Delhi, give your quarrel pause'
- 6 - Song (St. George): 'The Rule of England'
- 7 - Interlude
Tableau II: Ave Imperator!
- 8a Introduction
- 8b Warriors' Dance
- 9 - The Cities of Ind. India: 'Hail Festal Hour from out the Ages drawn'
- 10 - March: 'The Crown of India'. India: 'Incessu patuit Imperator'
- 10a The Homage of Ind
- 11 - The Crowning of Delhi
- 12 - Ave Imperator!
First Performance
The London Coliseum programme for the first week of the performance shows that The Crown of India masque was the most important of the eleven acts in the show. There were two TableauxTableau vivant
Tableau vivant is French for "living picture." The term describes a striking group of suitably costumed actors or artist's models, carefully posed and often theatrically lit. Throughout the duration of the display, the people shown do not speak or move...
: "The Cities of Ind" and "Ave Imperator!". The programme listed the cast, who personified 'India' herself, England represented by 'St. George', and various Indian cities. There were also attendant performers, in elaborate costumes, personifying other roles. Elgar attended the daily rehearsals for two weeks, then conducted the hour-long show two performances a day for a further two weeks.
-
-
- -- Great New Elgar Work --
- "THE CROWN OF INDIA,"
-
- An Imperial Masque, in Two Tableaux, specially
-
-
- composed by
- SIR EDWARD ELGAR.
-
- Written by Mr. Henry Hamilton.
-
-
- Cast:-
-
-
-
- IndiaIndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
.................................Miss Nancy PriceNancy PriceNancy Price, CBE , was an English actress on stage and screen, authoress and theatre director. Her acting career began in a repertory theatre company before progressing to the London stage, silent films, talkies and finally television. In addition to appearing on stage she became involved in... - St. George........................Mr. Harry Dearth
- AgraAgraAgra a.k.a. Akbarabad is a city on the banks of the river Yamuna in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, India, west of state capital, Lucknow and south from national capital New Delhi. With a population of 1,686,976 , it is one of the most populous cities in Uttar Pradesh and the 19th most...
.................................Miss Marion Beeley - DelhiDelhiDelhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
.................................Miss May Leslie Stuart - Calcutta............................Miss Evelyn Kerry
- Benares............................Miss Sybil Etherington
- Cities, Mogul Emperors, Princes, Guards, Executioners, Courtiers, Fan Bearers, Ladies
-
-
- Attendant Syce, Litter Bearers, Heralds, Trumpeters, etc.
-
-
- NOTE. - During the first two weeks of "THE CROWN OF INDIA"
-
-
-
- SIR EDWARD ELGAR
-
-
-
- will himself conduct the Augmented Orchestra in the performance of his work.
Extracts
Elgar later extracted five of the pieces - 1(a), 2, 5, 8 and 4 - and added an intermezzoIntermezzo
In music, an intermezzo , in the most general sense, is a composition which fits between other musical or dramatic entities, such as acts of a play or movements of a larger musical work...
for solo violin to create The Crown of India Suite. The first performance was at the Hereford Festival on September 11th, 1912, by the London Symphony Orchestra
London Symphony Orchestra
The London Symphony Orchestra is a major orchestra of the United Kingdom, as well as one of the best-known orchestras in the world. Since 1982, the LSO has been based in London's Barbican Centre.-History:...
conducted by the composer. The Suite gained immediate popularity: during Elgar's lifetime, there were 102 live performances of it on the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
.
The Crown of India March from the incidental music for the masque is also performed separately.
Complete Score
The complete score for the Crown of India incidental music was only published in a piano-vocal version by Elgar's friend Hugh BlairHugh Blair (composer)
Hugh Blair was an English musician, composer and organist.He was Organist of Worcester Cathedral from 1895 to 1897, having been Acting Organist before that time...
. The remaining orchestral parts were destroyed in the 1960s. In 2007 the Elgar Society commissioned the composer Anthony Payne
Anthony Payne
Anthony Payne is an English composer, most famous for the work published as Edward Elgar: The Sketches for Symphony No. 3 Elaborated by Anthony Payne...
to complete the orchestration of the music for The Crown of India. Payne is to "complete the scoring of the piano-vocal version and combining this, where appropriate, with the orchestral suite and march."
Recordings
- The CD with the book Oh, My Horses! Elgar and the Great War has many historical recordings including "Hail, Immemorial Ind", a 1975 recording with Carol Leatherby (soprano) and the Kensington Symphony Orchestra conducted by Leslie Head
- The Anthony Payne orchestration of the complete pageant was recorded by the BBC Philharmonic and Sir Andrew Davis in 2007 (Chandos).
External links and sources
- The Crown of India, Op. 66 on the site of the Elgar Society
- Jeffrey Richards: Imperialism and Music, Manchester University Press, 2001, ISBN 07-19061431