Cello Concerto in E minor, Op. 85

The concerto opens with the cello alone, playing a stern, chordal recitative before the orchestra enters, a gesture that returns to mark later turning points.

I. Adagio, moderato: A rocking, melancholy melody in the strings introduces the main theme, first stated by the cello. The mood stays hushed and searching rather than heroic.

II. Lento, allegro molto: After a brief slow introduction, the cello launches into a rapid, skittering theme built from repeated notes, played mostly softly and quickly, like a held breath. It passes without pause into the next movement.

III. Adagio: The heart of the piece, a short, songful slow movement where the cello sings a long, unbroken melody over spare accompaniment. Many first-time listeners remember this movement most.

IV. Allegro, moderato: A more assertive finale begins with a brief introduction before turning march-like and energetic, though it repeatedly pulls back to recall the opening recitative and the slow movement's mood before a resolute close.

Listen for how little the soloist competes with the orchestra for volume, this is a concerto built on conversation and reflection, not contest.

Elgar composed the concerto in the summer of 1919 at his cottage in Sussex, England, not long after the end of the First World War. It was his last major work. The premiere took place in London on October 27, 1919, with cellist Felix Salmond and the London Symphony Orchestra, but a poorly rehearsed program (the rest of the concert was conducted by another composer) left the performance under-prepared, and it was coolly received. The concerto's reputation grew slowly over subsequent decades, helped enormously by a celebrated 1965 recording by the young cellist Jacqueline du Pré, which brought the work wide popularity. It is now one of the most performed cello concertos of the twentieth century.