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Though not readily associated with Anglican church music (despite being fully aware of its repertoire), Elgar composed two major extended anthems. The first—Great is the Lord, Op 67, a substantial multi-sectional work, begun in 1910—is a setting of Psalm 48 and was eventually used to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Royal Society in 1912. It was first sung in Westminster Abbey on 16 July of that year under the baton of the Abbey’s director of music Sir Frederick Bridge. In the ebullient outer sections in D major, it is possible to hear echoes of the finale of Elgar’s violin concerto (‘is mount Zion, on the sides of the north’) as a counterpoint to the main theme, while the contrasting inner sections seem to draw more extensively on the style of thematic material first heard in The Apostles and The Kingdom, in particular the episode for baritone solo (‘We have thought on thy loving-kindness’).
- Difficulty:
- Intermediate
- Instrumentation:
- 2Fl, 2Ob, 2Cl, 2Bsn, Cbsn, 4Hn, 2Tpt, 3Tbn, Tba, Timp, Org, SATB Chorus, Strings
- Duration:
- ca 10 minutes
- Set of Parts:
- Includes Strings count 4.4.3.3.2
- Extra Strings / Vocal Score:
- Only available with the purchase of the Set of Parts
