Elgar was pre-eminently the composer of large forms. Complex, lengthy development of musical ideas was for him a measure of genius. His songs, with the exception of the orchestral cycle Sea Pictures , were not often the vehicles for his most striking ideas. Paradoxically, he was also bedevilled by a fine literally taste. He once told a friend that he felt it better to set the best second-rate poetry to music, for the most immortal verse is music already. Some of his songs are therefore settings of poets now all but forgotten, such as Arthur Salmon and Gilbert Parker: to their verse his music might make a vital addition. Elgar's songs offer authentic Edwardian reflections which we can value now in their own terms. These songs are full of echoes of a master's thoughts - and especially in the songs written for the stage - flashes of his genius. / Chant Et Piano

Il s'agit d'une belle sélection de grands chefs-d'oeuvre par Edward Elgar, transcrites et arrangées pour piano facile, et maintenant, y compris pleines performances de chaque morceau sur CD. Un complément indispensable à votre bibliothèque de piano! / Piano

Par GOODALL HOWARD. Shackelton's Cross was inspired by a painting created in 1957 by the English artist Edward Seago (1910-1974). The title refers to a cross which was erected to the memory of Sir Ernest Shackleton, who led a number of explorations to the Antarctic. Shackleton died in 1922 whilst on a Polar expedition, and the cross can be found on a promontory at the entrance to the bay at Grytviken Whaling Station in South Georgia. The painting is owned by HRH The Duke of Edinburgh, and was part of an exhibition at Buckingham Palace from October 2011 to April 2012. Originally scored for oboe, trumpet and small orchestra, Daniel Hall's sensitive arrangement follows the composer's alternative version for solo trumpet and organ, created for Crispian Steele-Perkins (trumpet) and David Goode (organ). / Répertoire / Ensemble de Cuivres