The Dream of Gerontius op. 38

“This is the best of me”, wrote Edward Elgar after the final measure of his Dream of Gerontius. Premiered in 1900, in Great Britain the work has long been a standard work in the repertoire of large oratorio choirs. Elgar’s moving, poetic setting of the eponymous poem by Cardinal John Henry Newman is about a dying man and his journey beyond death to God.

Before the eyes of the listeners, a musical image of the soul is created which flies past mocking demons to God with its protecting angel at its side, is allowed to look at him briefly, then faces the purgatorial fire of salvation confident and comforted. The work is a real rarity in the history of oratorio, and for large choirs it is a thrilling alternative to the established repertoire of Requiem settings. Its popularity is thanks to the suggestive, often sensuous power of the music, the great choral scenes of the demons and the Angel, and the three impressive solo parts.

All previous editions were reprints based on the historic first printed materials, which are inconsistent. By contrast, Carus has produced a modern, newly-engraved edition, compatible in all sections, which takes all the sources into consideration and evaluates the autograph manuscript in detail. For this edition the complete orchestral material is available on sale, and the vocal score and full score contain both English and German singing texts. The full score is also available digitally.

Scoring: Soli MsTB, Coro SATB (divisi), Semicoro SATB (divisi), 2 Fl, Pic, 2 Ob, Eh, 2 Clt, Clt basso, 2 Fg, Cfg, 4 Cor, 3 Tr, 3 Trb, Tuba, Timp, Perc, 2 Arpe, Org, 2 Vl, Va, Vc, Cb