Enigma Variations

Variations on an Original Theme for orchestra, Op. 36 ("Enigma"), commonly referred to as the Enigma Variations, is a set of a theme and its fourteen variations written for orchestra by Edward Elgar in 1898–1899. It is Elgar's best-known large-scale composition, for both the music itself and the enigmas behind it. Elgar dedicated the piece to "my friends pictured within", each variation being an affectionate portrayal of one of his circle of close acquaintances.

History

His wife's contribution

One account of the piece's genesis is that after a tiring day of teaching in 1898, Elgar was daydreaming at the piano. A melody he played caught the attention of his wife, who liked it and asked him to repeat it for her. So, to entertain his wife, he began to improvise variations on this melody, each one either a musical portrait of one of their friends, or in the musical style they might have used. Elgar eventually expanded and orchestrated these improvisations into the Enigma Variations.

Première

The piece was first performed at St James's Hall, London, on 19 June 1899, conducted by Hans Richter. Critics were at first irritated by the layer of mystification, but most praised the substance, structure, and orchestration of the work. Elgar revised the final variation, adding 100 new bars and an organ part; the new version, the one usually played today, was played at the Worcester Three Choirs Festival on 13 September 1899, with Elgar himself conducting. It has been popular ever since. It quickly achieved many international performances, from Saint Petersburg, where it delighted Alexander Glazunov and Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov in 1904, to New York, where Gustav Mahler conducted it in 1910.

Music

Orchestration

The work is scored for 2 flutes (one doubling piccolo), 2 oboes, 2 clarinets in B flat, 2 bassoons, contrabassoon, 4 horns in F, 3 trumpets in F, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, side drum, triangle, bass drum, cymbals, organ (ad lib) and strings.

Structure

The work consists of the theme, followed by 14 variations. The variations spring from the theme's melodic, harmonic and (especially) rhythmic elements, and the extended fourteenth variation forms a grand finale.

Elgar dedicated the piece to "my friends pictured within" and in the score each variation is prefaced with either a nickname or initials, a clue to the identity of the friend depicted. As was common with painted portraits of the time, Elgar's musical portraits depict their subjects at two levels. Each movement conveys a general impression of its subject's personality; in addition, most of them contain a musical reference to a specific characteristic or event, such as Dorabella's stutter, Winifred Norbury's laugh, or the walk in the woods with Jaeger. The sections of the piece are as follows.

Theme (Andante)

The theme consists of two contrasting melodic fragments, with the first one being the main theme:

The main theme is played by the first violins at the beginning. It is played for a second time, with a slightly different accompaniment, after the second melody has been introduced by the woodwinds. Both fragments are further developed in the following variations.

The theme leads into Variation 1 without a pause.

First four variations with photographic montage of Elgar performed by the CBSO with Simon Rattle

Variation I (L'istesso tempo) "C.A.E."

Caroline Alice Elgar, Elgar's wife. The variation contains repetitions of a four-note melodic fragment which Elgar reportedly whistled whenever arriving home to his wife. In 'My Friends Pictured Within' Elgar wrote, "The variation is really a prolongation of the theme with what I wished to be romantic and delicate additions; those who knew C.A.E. will understand this reference to one whose life was a romantic and delicate inspiration."

Variation II (Allegro) "H.D.S.-P."

Hew David Steuart-Powell. In 'My Friends Pictured Within' Elgar wrote, "Hew David Steuart-Powell was a well-known amateur pianist and a great player of chamber music. He was associated B.G.N. (Cello) and the Composer (Violin) for many years in this playing. His characteristic diatonic run over the keys before beginning to play is here humorously travestied in the semiquaver passages; these should suggest a Toccata, but chromatic beyond H.D.S.-P.'s liking."

Variation III (Allegretto) "R.B.T."

Richard Baxter Townsend, an amateur actor and mimic, capable of extreme changes in the pitch of his voice, a characteristic which the music imitates.

Variation IV (Allegro di molto) "W.M.B."

William Meath Baker, squire of Hasfield, Gloucestershire and builder of Fenton, Stoke-on-Trent, who 'expressed himself somewhat energetically'. This is the shortest of the variations.

Variation V (Moderato) "R.P.A."

Richard Penrose Arnold, the son of the poet Matthew Arnold, and himself an amateur pianist. This variation leads into the next without pause.

Variation VI (Andantino) "Ysobel"

Isabel Fitton, a viola pupil of Elgar. The melody of this variation is played by the viola.

Variation VII (Presto) "Troyte"

Arthur Troyte Griffiths, an architect. The variation good-naturedly mimics his enthusiastic incompetence on the piano. It also refers to a specific memory, of a day on which Griffiths and Elgar were walking and got caught in a thunder-storm. The pair ran for it, and took refuge in the Norbury house, to which the next theme refers.

Variation VIII (Allegretto) "W.N."

Winifred Norbury, a friend Elgar regarded as particularly easygoing, hence the relatively relaxed atmosphere. The theme also refers to the Norbury house, which Elgar was fond of. At the end of this variation, a single violin note is held over into the next variation, the most celebrated of the set.

Variation IX (Adagio) "Nimrod"

Augustus J. Jaeger, Elgar's best friend. An attempt to capture what Elgar saw as Jaeger's noble character, it is also said that this variation depicts a night-time walk the two of them had, during which they discussed the slow movements of the music of Ludwig van Beethoven. The first eight bars resemble, and have been said to represent, the beginning of the second movement of Beethoven's Eighth Piano Sonata (Pathetique). The name of the variation punningly refers to Nimrod, an Old Testament patriarch described as "a mighty hunter before the Lord" - the name Jäger being German for hunter. It has been suggested that the famous Beethoven theme is the 'solution' to Elgar's 'enigma'. However, Elgar only suggested a slight connection with this particular variation (Elgar's programme notes to A.J. Jaeger memorial concert, 1910). Elsewhere in the variations there is an acknowledged Mendelssohn quotation, not related to 'the enigma'.

This variation has become popular in its own right and is sometimes used at funerals, memorial services, and other solemn occasions. It is always played at the Cenotaph in London on Remembrance Sunday (the Sunday nearest to 11 November).

Excerpt performed by the Royal Scottish National Orchestra conducted by Sir Alexander Gibson.

Excerpt arranged by Eric Ball and performed by the Black Dyke Band

Complete variation performed by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra conducted by Daniel Barenboim.

Complete variation performed by the Massed Bands of the Household Cavalry at the 2007 Remembrance Day at the Cenotaph.

Complate variation performed by the Amsterdam Symphony Orchestra conducted by Peter Santa in Rotterdam

Complete variation performed by the LSO conducted by Sir Colin Davis in 2004

Complete variation in a Philip Bloom's airshow movie

Complete Variation "Nimrod" featured on organ with "Ein' feste Burg" played "through and over" it on trumpet as a counterpoint.

Variation X (Intermezzo: Allegretto) "Dorabella"

Dora Penny, a friend whose stutter (or laugh, depending on the source) is depicted by the woodwinds. Dora was the stepdaughter of the sister of William Meath Baker, inspiration for the fourth variation, and sister-in-law of Richard Baxter Townsend, inspiration for the third. She was also the recipient of another of Elgar's enigmas, the so-called Dorabella Cipher.

Variation XI (Allegro di molto) "G.R.S."

George Robertson Sinclair, the energetic organist of Hereford Cathedral. More specifically, the variation also depicts Sinclair's bulldog Dan, and a walk by the River Wye with Sinclair and Elgar when Dan jumped into the river, with the orchestra playing a virtual "splash." G.R.S. and Dan mirror the English national symbol: John Bull. Another John Bull, a composer, was also organist of Hereford cathedral.

Variation XII (Andante) "B.G.N."

Basil G. Nevinson, a well known cellist, who gets a cello melody for his variation. Later, Nevinson inspired Elgar to write his Cello Concerto.

Variation XIII (Romanza: Moderato) "* * *"

Because of the lack of initials, the identity of this person is unclear and remains an enigma within the Enigma. The music includes a quotation from Felix Mendelssohn's concert overture Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage (Meeresstille und glückliche Fahrt), which leads to speculation that it depicts either Lady Mary Lygon, local noblewoman on a voyage to Australia at the time, or Helen Weaver, who was Elgar's fiancée before she emigrated to New Zealand in 1884. At certain intervals, the timpani create a sound reminiscent of a ship's engines, by means of hard sticks or, traditionally, coins.

Variation XIV (Finale: Allegro Presto) "E.D.U."

Elgar himself, Edu being his wife's nickname for him. The themes from the first and ninth variations are echoed. The original Variation 14 is 100 bars shorter than the version now usually played. In July 1899, one month after the original version was finished, Elgar's friend Jaeger, the person depicted in Variation IX, urged Elgar to make the variation a little longer. Elgar agreed, and also added an organ part. The new version was played for the first time at the Worcester Three Choirs Festival, with Elgar himself conducting, on 13 September 1899.

Arrangements

Among many, the following are noteworthy:

• The composer's arrangement of the complete work for piano solo
• The composer's arrangement of the complete work for piano duet (two pianos)
• Piano duet (one piano) - by John E. West
• Brass band - by composer Eric Ball
• There are many arrangements of individual variations, particularly the popular Variation IX "Nimrod"
• Variation X "Dorabella", also popular, was published separately in its orchestral version

The enigma and its solution: "Ein' feste Burg ist unser Gott"

The "Enigma" refers to two puzzles. The first concerns the identities of Elgar's friends pictured within each variation. This has largely been solved as outlined above with the notable exception of Variation XIII Romanza. The second puzzle pertains to the identity of a famous unheard 'hidden theme' on which the Enigma Theme (with its decidedly unusual characteristics) forms a counterpoint.

Thee rules were given by Elgar to help unmask his enigmatic melody. In the original program note he stated the first:

“The Enigma I will not explain — it’s ‘dark saying’ must be left unguessed, and I warn you that the connection between the Variations and the Theme is often of the slightest texture; further, through and over the whole set another and larger theme ‘goes’, but it is not played. So the principal theme never appears even as in some late dramas — e.g., Maeterlinck’s L’Intruse and Les Sept Princesses the chief character is never on the stage.”

Elgar’s first rule identifies a “larger theme” going through and over the whole set of variations but is never stated. Over means above, and through means from beginning to end. On one level this refers to the hidden theme because it is a counterpoint to the Enigma Theme, and is thereby indelibly linked to the variations even though it never appears. On another level, this means the missing theme must play over the full 17 bars of the opening Enigma Theme — not an abridged version as some reflexively suggest. While virtually all prior solutions are confined to the first 6 bars of the Enigma Theme, this approach arbitrarily overlooks the remaining 11 bars of the Enigma Theme. At best these remain partial solutions as they fail to go “through and over” the theme, and by extension, the variations. Elgar’s use of the phrase “dark saying” in this context clearly denotes that the missing theme is hidden just as the chief character in Meaterlinck’s late dramas. To speculate further about possible meanings of the phrase “dark saying” ventures beyond the obvious context of this passage and obscures the plain meaning of the text. Elgar plainly states the hidden theme—like the main character — never appears. That is no great semantic mystery, for therein lies the enigma.

The second rule is found in Elgar's first full-length interview in The Musical Times from October 1900. He said the “heading Enigma is justified by the fact that it is possible to add another phrase, which is quite familiar, above the original theme…” [4] This was reaffirmed by Troyte Griffith, the friend pictured in Variation VII. When Troyte guessed God Save the King, Elgar replied, “Of course not, but it is it is so well-known that it is extraordinary no-one has found it.” So the second condition is the hidden melody must be famous.

The third rule is the hidden theme must be exceedingly familiar to Dora Penny, the friend pictured in Variation X subtitled Dorabella. In a letter to The Times in 1942, she wrote, “Elgar plainly told me while the work was being written that there was another, unheard, melody. Furthermore, he twitted me on more than one occasion about my failure to find it.” Elgar later insisted that “of all people” Dora Penny should have been the one to guess the identity of the missing theme. For eminent Elgar scholars like Dr. Rushton, the word "guess" does not mean to reason one's way through the intricacies of counterpoint and harmony to arrive at an obvious solution. It should also be emphasized that Elgar explicitly informed Dora that "there was another, unheard melody," sustaining our first rule. For those who stubbornly insist there is no missing melody (i.e., Dr. Rushton), they must do so only by brazenly ignoring Elgar's repeated statements to the contrary. Evidently Dora's life experience enjoyed some special connection to the mystery theme. Among Elgar’s friends at the time he composed the Enigma Variations, Dora was the most active musically. As she explained, “I was so mixed up with tunes in those days; Choral music; Church music, and orchestral music — and then my own solo singing, scenes from opera, songs, ballads, and so on.”

In summary, Elgar’s mystery melody needs to satisfy the following three rules. It must:

1. Fit over the full 17 bars of the Enigma Theme. 2. Be famous. 3. Be very familiar to Dora Penny.

Before proceeding to the solution, let us first revisit a story from Elgar's precocious youth as reported by biographer Robert Anderson:

"At the 1869 festival Elgar presented himself as surreptitious composer.’ Messiah' was to be performed, and the parts were to be supplied by Elgar Bros. This gave the lad his opportunity. He had composed 'a little tune of which I was very proud. I thought the public should hear it'. While his father worked over the parts, Elgar took action: 'Very laboriously I introduced my little tune into the music. The thing was an astonishing success, and I heard that some people had never enjoyed Handel so much before! When my father learned of it, however, he was furious!"

Elgar was only 12 years old when he committed this mischievous act of melodic sabotage, yet it reveals far more about his character than previously ascribed.

After careful research and analysis, Robert W. Padgett discovered that the missing melody is Ein’ feste burg ist unser Gott by the Reformation Leader Martin Luther. Known as A Mighty Fortress is our God, this hymn satisfies all three rules set forth by the composer:

1. It plays through and over the entire 17 bars of the Enigma Theme. 2. It is famous. 3. Dora Penny was intimately familiar with this work.

Complete Enigma Theme The “Enigma Theme” is featured on piano with “Ein’ feste Burg” played “through and over” it.

Complete Enigma Theme The “Enigma Theme” is featured on piano with “Ein’ feste Burg” played “through and over” it.

Elgar’s Enigma Theme Unmasked This is the full paper documenting Robert W. Padgett’s novel solution “Ein’ feste Burg” as the missing theme to Elgar’s Enigma Variations.

The theme to A Mighty Fortress clearly satisfies rule one by fitting over the entire Enigma Theme, sharing far too many notes to be a matter of chance. Some will object to a few apparent dissonances between the missing melody and the Enigma Theme. For example, there is an apparent dissonance between the A, C and F# in the Enigma Theme (bar 1 beat 3) and the G from A Mighty Fortress. However, Elgar employs those very same notes in bar 7 beat 3 with G serving as a pedal tone below A, F#, C and E. One may cogently argue G is an implied pedal tone in bars 1 through 6 as that note appears in virtually every chord except in bar 1 beat 3. The seeming dissonance in bar 1 beat 4 between the G and A is clearly permitted by Elgar’s use of the identical notes in bar 3 beat 3. In bar 9 beat 1, there is an apparent dissonance between the G and F #, yet the Enigma Theme plays G and E below F# on beat 2, and G and B below F # on beat 3. Besides, a 4/3 suspension is clearly implied in this bar with G falling to F # above a sustained D. If Elgar saw fit to employ the same dissonances in the score, then certainly they are permissible in validating the counterpoint of the missing theme. Those who narrowly insist the solution must be free of the very dissonances the composer uses in the score are mistaken by imposing such an artificial restriction. One should not insist on putting new wine into old wine skins by invoking some arbitrary restrictions of tonal counterpoint from Bach's era onto a work from the late Romantic period. Besides, in the final choral from his Ein' fest Burg Cantata, even Bach has G and F # played at the same time.

The popularity of A Mighty Fortress is beyond question, satisfying rule two. Those who question its fame betray an profound ignorance of music history. Martin Luther composed Ein’ feste Burg around 1529, and it is his most famous choral work. Known as the “Battle Hymn of the Reformation,” it was quoted numerous times by the undisputed master of counterpoint, Johann Sebastian Bach (1685 – 1750). It is the cornerstone of his most famous Cantata — BWV 80 Ein’ feste burg ist unser Gott — and organ prelude BWV 720. Felix Mendelssohn (1809 – 1847) quotes it in the fourth movement of his first major symphonic work — the Reformation Symphony. The same theme is also found in the grand opera Les Huguenots (1836) by Giacomo Meyerbeer (1791 – 1864). Meyerbeer was a distant cousin of Mendelssohn, and Les Huguenots is arguable his greatest work and the most performed opera of the 19th century. It was composed in 1836, a tantalizing coincidence since the opus number for the Enigma Variations is 36, and the tempo marking is the reverse — 63. Interestingly, the opera’s central theme revolves around the love between a Catholic and a Protestant. In a stunning parallel, Elgar was Catholic, and his wife Protestant. [7] Joachim Raff (1822 – 1882) quoted A Mighty Fortress in one of his overtures ( Ein' fest Burg ist unser Gott, Op. 12), and Richard Wagner (1813 – 1883) quotes it in his famous Kaisermarsch.

Elgar was a devoted admirer of Wagner, Mendelssohn and Bach, and even went to far as to learn German with the intent of studying at the Leipzig Conservatory founded by Mendelssohn in 1843. It was in Leipzig that Bach composed his Cantata Ein’ feste burg ist unser Gott for a festival celebrating the Reformation. Similarly, Mendelssohn composed the Reformation Symphony in honor of the 300th anniversary of Martin Luther's Augsburg Confession. Mendelssohn and Bach will forever be linked in music history because Mendelssohn revived public interest in Bach’s music by conducting a historic performance of the St. Matthew’s Passion in 1829. With the solution now revealed, it appears Elgar’s unusual quotation of a fragment from Mendelssohn’s concert overture Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage in Variation XIII was a deliberate clue intended to show that the popular hidden theme was quoted by Mendelssohn. The fragment is quoted four times in this variation, and Mendelssohn quotes Ein’ feste burg in the fourth movement of the Reformation Symphony. That the Enigma Theme is a counterpoint to the hidden theme also invites the belief the master of counterpoint, J.S. Bach, quotes the same thematic material in his works. Finally, an enigma may be compared to a fortress in that it presents a seemingly impregnable and inaccessible barrier to understanding.

A Mighty Fortress is enormously famous, masterfully concealed, and would have been exceedingly familiar to Dora Penny, satisfying rule three. She was a voice student, an active member of the Wolverhampton Choral Society, and daughter of the Reverend Alfred Penny, a Christian missionary and Rector. She most certainly heard and sang that hymn countless times during her musically active youth. The melody from this historic hymn formed the basis for a standard chant in Anglican worship. No wonder Elgar was stunned that Dora never guessed the solution. The choice for the hidden theme also explains why Elgar — a Roman Catholic — stubbornly refused to disclose its identity. After all the hymn was composed by a heretic and a leading figure of the Reformation excommunicated by the Pope. Nevertheless, Elgar’s first full performance of the Enigma Variations was not in a Catholic Cathedral, but rather in Worcester’s Anglican Cathedral.

For those who question the popularity of Ein’ feste burg in England during the era when Elgar composed the Enigma Variations (e.g., Dr. McClelland at Leeds), they need look no further than the coronations of 1902 and 1911. To appreciate just how popular Ein’ feste burg was in those days, we turn to Jeffrey Richards book Imperialism and music: Britian, 1876-1953. In it we find the following description of the 1902 coronation of King Edward VII:

“Hymns were played and sung as various processions entered the Abbey. They included Rejoice Today with One Accord (sung to the famous Lutheran hymn Ein’ feste burg) and, O, God Our Help in Ages Past. During the many hours when the assembled guests in the Abbey had to wait for the arrival of the King and Queen they were entertained by a succession of marches: Wagner’s Kaisermarsch (known in England as the Imperial March), Elgar’s Pomp and Circumstance March No. 1, and the coronation marches by Tchaikovsky, Gounod, Saint-Saëns, Mackenzie and Godrey.” [9]

Recall that Wagner’s Kaisermarsch also quotes Ein’ feste burg. This famous hymn was also performed at the 1911 coronation of King George V and Queen Mary as Richards explains:

“Immediately following the Coronation came Sir Walter Parratt’s Confortare, “Be Strong and Play the Man” (previously performed in 1902) and, after the benediction and enthronement, the homage anthem, newly composed by Sir Frederick Bridge and making liberal use of Ein’ feste burg. The Musical Times called it ‘one of Sir Frederick Bridge’s most notable contributions to processional marches.’ The service continued with Elgar’s Offertorium (‘O hearken Thou unto the voice of my calling, my King and my God’) ‘beautifully set for this occasion…in a short but intensely expressive composition’, the Sanctus by Dr. Walter Alcock, Organist of the Chapel Royal, and the Gloria in Excelsis by Stanford, both also specially written for the occasion.” [10]

Elgar certainly heard if not peformed Ein' fest burg on numerous occasions in the years preceding the genesis of his Enigma Variations. Bach's works were routinely performed at the Three Choirs Festival beginning in the early 1870's. In 1871 Bach's St. Matthew's Passion was first performed there. Performances of Bach's and Mendelssohn's music were commonplace in England throughout the 1880's and 1890's. Elgar first played violin in the Festival orchestra in 1878. The Monthly Musical Record confirmed that Bach’s Cantata A Stronghold Sure (Ein’ feste Burg) was performed at the Three Choirs Festival on September 10, 1890.

Other Solutions

Others believe that the unheard theme is a countermelody to some other tune — in other words it would fit when played simultaneously, but does not necessarily contain any of its characteristics other than the most general harmonic or structural outline. However, self-taught Edward Elgar was not at all an academic 'counterpoint composer' (Kontrapunktisten) in the sense of Anton Bruckner, or Max Reger, Elgar's contemporary.

It is usually assumed that the 'unheard theme' is a melody. But Elgar did not explicitly state that this was so. It is possible that the 'enigma' also represents a 'friend pictured within.' According to the Rule Brittania! theory (presented by the Anglo-Dutch musicologist and writer Theodore van Houten, in Music Review, May 1976) this hidden character is 'Britannia ruling the waves.' Moreover, Van Houten suggested that Variation XI represents another symbol for England: John Bull, with bulldog and all! Van Houten's Rule Britannia theory links the Enigma Variations with nationalism in European music around 1900. Elgar, then a solid conservative, wrote his patriotic cantata Caractacus (op. 35) just before the Enigma Variations (Op. 36). The Rule Britannia! theory was accepted by the Honorary President of the Elgar Society, the illustrious Yehudi Menuhin. Before conducting the variations at Carnegie Hall, New York, in 1984, Menuhin addressed the audience explaining that the solution to Elgar's 'enigma' was 'none other' than Rule Britannia!

Another famous theory, postulated by Professor Ian Parrott, former vice-president of the Elgar Society, in his book on Elgar ("Master Musicians", 1971) was that the "dark saying", and possibly the whole of the Enigma was related to 1 Corinthians 13:12 which reads according to the Authorised Version of the Bible:

"For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known".

This verse is from St. Paul's essay on love. Elgar was a practising Roman Catholic and on 12 February 1899, eight days before the completion of the Variations, Elgar attended Quinquagesima Mass at St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church in Malvern. This particular reading was read. In the Roman Catholic Church, the Vulgate translation (in Latin) would have been used which reads:

"videmus nunc per speculum in enigmate tunc autem facie ad faciem nunc cognosco ex parte tunc autem cognoscam sicut et cognitus sum".

Perhaps then, the Enigmatic Theme that 'goes', but is not played "through and over the whole set" is the faith, hope and love of the friends who had been close to him during his years of obscurity and frequent depression, friends who for Elgar had reflected that great and central theme of Christian scripture - God's love.

Remarkably, Elgar seems to have thought that the 'enigma' would be 'solved' by any listener at the first performance. The premiere concert was significantly concluded by Alexander MacKenzie's Overture Britannia, based on Rule Britannia!

The Art of Fugue

In 1985, Marshall Portnoy in the Musical Quarterly (Oxford) suggested that the answer to the enigma was J S Bach's The Art of Fugue. The Art of Fugue contains the B-A-C-H motif (in English notation, B-flat A C B-natural) which appears in the 14th fugue, which also seems to have been hinted at in the Enigma variations. This seems to have some grounds for the following reasons:

• The Art of Fugue has 14 fugues on the same fugue subject. The Enigma variations have 14 variations on the same theme.

• Bach signed the 14th fugue with the tune "B A C H". Elgar signed the last variation with "EDU" (his nickname that his wife used), in the title.

• The "B A C H" tune begins on a B-flat, and ends on a B-natural, the enigma theme does likewise.

• There are some superficial relationships between the B-A-C-H note sequence (B-flat A C B-natural) which appears in the 14th fugue, and the theme of the enigma variations, e.g. they both start on B-flat and end on B-natural. The first 4 notes of Elgar's theme has a similar shape (down-up-down), although the intervals are augmented by a step — B-A-C-H is minor 2nd down, minor 3rd up, minor 2nd down; the first intervals of the theme are minor 3rd down, perfect 4th up, minor 3rd down. Shape is similar, but enough to make the tune sound different. Sometimes the rhythm of the first 4 notes is played in retrograde.

• Bach liked number games, that's why the 14th fugue has B-A-C-H (in alphabetical order A=1, B=2, C=3, H=8, BACH=14, hence 14th fugue). Elgar was also known for cryptographic games also (Dorabella Cipher, etc). Elgar, when he was 9, foreshadowed the Enigma Variations by drawing an ingenious musical anagram which spells out the four letters of Bach's name.

• Just as the main Art of Fugue subject is heard throughout the whole piece (heard in the first 2 bars of the first fugue), the theme is presented, recognizably, in many forms throughout the variations.

• The scoring of the Variations includes an organ (ad lib). Bach, of course, was a well known organ player and composer. The organ is especially heard in the background 14th variation (perhaps a tribute to Bach?). The organ seems to always be in the background, never in the foreground, just as the hidden theme is always in the background, but never presented up front.

• The Art of Fugue is never directly quoted, like, as Elgar himself wrote, principal Theme never appears, even as in some late dramas ... the chief character is never on stage.

Objections to the Art of Fugue as the answer to the enigma:

• The Art of Fugue also has 4 canons after the last fugue, which are not accounted for in the Enigma Variations.

• The Art of Fugue is in D-minor, and Enigma variations in G-minor. It has been proposed, that G-minor was used since both B-flat and B-natural can be used in G-minor.

Subsequent history

Elgar himself quoted many of his own works, including Nimrod (Variation 9), in his choral piece of 1912, The Music Makers.

On 24 May 1912 Elgar conducted a performance of the Variations at a Memorial Concert in aid of the family survivors of musicians who had been lost in the Titanic disaster.

Frederick Ashton's ballet Enigma Variations (My Friends Pictured Within) is choreographed to Elgar's score with the exception of the finale, which uses Elgar's original shorter ending (see above), transcribed from the manuscript by John Lanchbery. The ballet, which depicts the friends and Elgar as he awaits Richter's decision about conducting the premiere, received its first performance on 25 October 1968 at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, London. Elgar himself suggested, that in case the variations were to be a ballet the 'enigma' would have to be represented by 'a veiled dancer'. Elgar's remark suggested that the 'enigma' in fact pictured 'a friend', just like the variations. He used the word 'veiled'. It was obviously a female character (Brittania).

"Enigma Variations" is also a drama in the form of a dialogue - original title "Variations Énigmatiques" (1996) - written by the French dramatist Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt and widely performed. It is inspired to Elgar's music composition.

Recordings

One of the earliest recordings dates from 1926, with the composer himself conducting the Royal Albert Hall Orchestra on the EMI label; it has been remastered, and the CD also includes Elgar conducting his own Violin Concerto in B minor with Yehudi Menuhin as the soloist. Sixty years later, Menuhin took the baton to conduct the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in the Variations for Philips. Sir John Eliot Gardiner's 1998 recording with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra for Deutsche Grammophon was released in 2002.

References

• Moore, Jerrold N. (1984). Edward Elgar: a Creative Life. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0193154471.
• Nice, David (1996). Edward Elgar: an essential guide to his life and works. London: Pavilion. ISBN 1-85793-977-8.
• Reed, W H: Elgar, London, J M Dent & Sons, 1939.
• Rushton, Julian. Elgar: Enigma variations. Cambridge: CUP 1999.
• Van Houten, Theodore. 'You of all people'- Elgar's Enigma. In: Music Review, xxxvii, May 1976.
• Van Houten, Theodore. The Enigma I will not explain. In: Mens & Melodie, 2008 #4.

External links

• Piano adaptation of Enigma Variations in MIDI file (104KB) The theme and its 14 variations are located at ca. [00:00, 00:55, 02:05, 02:55, 04:20, 04:50, 06:25, 07:30, 08:28, 09:50, 12:22, 14:55, 15:53, 17:38, 19:13] in this 24-min track.
• Free scores by Enigma Variations at the International Music Score Library Project (IMSLP)
• Julia Trevelyan Oman Archive University of Bristol Theatre Collection, University of Bristol
• John Pickard, "Variations on an Original Theme (‘Enigma’) (1898–9)" from BBC Radio 3
• Discovering Music Enigma Variations (.ram file)
• The Enigma I Will Not Explain on BBC Radio 4