Pomp and Circumstance Marches
The Pomp and Circumstance Marches are a series of five marches for orchestra composed by Edward Elgar, together with a sixth march created from sketches. The marches were dedicated to his friends including composer Granville Bantock and organists George Robertson Sinclair, Ivor Atkins and Percy Hull.
Origin of the name
Elgar took the phrase "Pomp and Circumstance" from Act 3, Scene 3 of Shakespeare's Othello:Farewell the neighing steed and the shrill trump,
The spirit-stirring drum, th'ear-piercing fife,
The royal banner, and all quality,
Pride, pomp, and circumstance of glorious war!
Additionally, on the score of the first march, Elgar set as a motto for the whole set of marches a verse from Lord de Tabley's poem "The March of Glory", which begins with:
Like a proud music that draws men on to die
Madly upon the spears in martial ecstasy,
A measure that sets heaven in all their veins
And iron in their hands.
I hear the Nation march
Beneath her ensign as an eagle's wing;
O'er shield and sheeted targe
The banners of my faith most gaily swing;
Moving to victory with solemn noise,
With worship and with conquest, and the voice of myriads.
Shakespeare's words proclaim the "shows of things" : the naïve assumption that the splendid show of military pageantry—"Pomp"—has no connection with the drabness and terror—"Circumstance"—of actual warfare. The first four marches were all written before the events of World War I shattered that belief, and the styles in which wars were written about spurned the false romance of the battle-song.
Marches
The Pomp and Circumstance marches are- March No. 1 in D major
- March No. 2 in A minor
- March No. 3 in C minor
- March No. 4 in G major
- March No. 5 in C major
- March No. 6 in G minor
Each march takes about five minutes to play.
March No. 1 in D
Dedication
March No. 1, was composed in 1901 and dedicated "to my friend Alfred E. Rodewald and the members of the Liverpool Orchestral Society".Instrumentation
The instrumentation is: two piccolos, two flutes, two oboes, two clarinets in A, bass clarinet in A, two bassoons, contrabassoon, four horns in F, two trumpets in F, two cornets in A, three trombones, tuba, three timpani, percussion and tambourine ), two harps, organ, and strings.History
The best-known of the six marches, Pomp and Circumstance March No. 1 in D had its premiere, along with March No. 2, in Liverpool on 19 October 1901, with Alfred Rodewald conducting the Liverpool Orchestral Society. Elgar and his wife attended, and it was a "frantic" success. Both marches were played two days later at a London Promenade Concert in the Queen's Hall London, conducted by Henry Wood, with March No. 1 played second. Wood remembered that the audience "...rose and yelled... the one and only time in the history of the Promenade concerts that an orchestral item was accorded a double encore."The Trio contains the tune known as "Land of Hope and Glory". In 1902 the tune was re-used, in modified form, for the "Land of Hope and Glory" section of his Coronation Ode for King Edward VII. The words were further modified to fit the original tune. The result has since become a fixture at the Last Night of the Proms, and an English sporting anthem and general patriotic song.
March No. 1 was the first piece in the recessional music for the coronations of George VI and Elizabeth II, followed in both cases by March No. 4.
In Canada, the Philippines, and the United States, the Trio section "Land of Hope and Glory" of March No. 1 is often known simply as "Pomp and Circumstance" or as "The Graduation March" and is played as the processional tune at virtually all high school and most college graduation ceremonies. It was first played at such a ceremony on 28 June 1905, at Yale University, where the Professor of Music Samuel Sanford had invited his friend Elgar to attend commencement and receive an honorary doctorate of music. Elgar accepted, and Sanford made certain he was the star of the proceedings, engaging the New Haven Symphony Orchestra, the College Choir, the Glee Club, the music faculty members, and New York musicians to perform two parts from Elgar's oratorio The Light of Life and, as the graduates and officials marched out, "Pomp and Circumstance" March No. 1. Elgar repaid the compliment by dedicating his Introduction and Allegro to Sanford later that year.
Description
March No. 1 opens with an introduction marked Allegro, con molto fuoco. The introduction leads to a new theme: strong pairs of beats alternating with short notes, and a bass which persistently clashes with the tune. The bass tuba and full brass is held back until the section is repeated by the full orchestra. A little rhythmic pattern is played by the strings, then repeated high and low in the orchestra before the section is concluded by a chromatic upward scale from the woodwind. The whole of this lively march section is repeated. The bridging section between this and the well-known Trio has rhythmic chords from the brass punctuating high held notes from the wind and strings, before a fanfare from trumpets and trombones leads into the theme with which the march started. There are a few single notes that quieten, ending with a single quiet tap from side drum and cymbal accompanied by all the bassoons. The famous, lyrical "Land of Hope and Glory" trio follows, played softly and repeated by the full orchestra including two harps. What follows is a repetition of what has been heard before, including a fuller statement of the Trio in which the orchestra is joined by organ as well as the two harps. The march ends, not with the big tune, but with a short section containing a brief reminder of the brisk opening march.March No. 2 in A minor
Dedication
March No. 2 was composed in 1901 and dedicated "To my friend Granville Bantock".Instrumentation
The instrumentation is: piccolo, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, 2 clarinets in A, bass clarinet in A, 2 bassoons, contrabassoon, 4 horns in F, 2 trumpets in F, 2 cornets in A, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion, and strings.History
It was first performed, as was March No. 1, by the Liverpool Orchestral Society conducted by Alfred Rodewald, in Liverpool on 19 October 1901. Both marches were played two days later at a London Promenade Concert.Description
The second is the shortest and most simply constructed of the marches. The composer Charles Villiers Stanford is said to have preferred this march to the first, and thought this the finest of all the marches. After a loud call to attention from the brass, a simple staccato theme, tense and repetitive, is played quietly by the strings, being gradually joined by other instruments before building up to an abrupt climax. This section is repeated. The second theme, confidently played by horns and clarinets, with contrasting triple and duple rhythms, is one which was sketched by Elgar a few years before: this is developed and ends with flourishes from the strings and brass joined by the glockenspiel. The opening staccato theme returns, concluded by a quiet swirling bass passage, which leads into the Trio section which consists of a delightfully simple tune in thirds played by the woodwind, answered conclusively by the strings and brass. This Trio section is repeated, and the march concluded with a brilliant little coda, which includes a drum roll on the snare drum, a shattering chord in A Minor, briefly played by horns, and followed by a final cadence.March No. 3 in C minor
Dedication
March No. 3 was completed in November 1904 and published in 1905. It was dedicated "To my friend Ivor Atkins". It was first performed on 8 March 1905, in the Queen's Hall, London, conducted by the composer.Instrumentation
The instrumentation is: piccolo, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, cor anglais, 2 clarinets in B, bass clarinet in B, 3 bassoons, contrabassoon, 4 horns in F, 2 trumpets in B, 2 cornets in B, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion, and strings.Description
March No. 3 differs from the others in its opening mood, which is deliberately solemn. It begins with a dark subdued quick march led by low clarinets, three bassoons and the horns, before a vigorous theme, erupts from the full orchestra. The dark theme re-appears, is then restarted boldly, then ended abruptly. The central section commences with a perky tune played by a solo clarinet with simple string accompaniment, which is followed by another of Elgar's noble tunes played by the strings of the orchestra. All the themes re-appear and there is the final section which ends abruptly.March No. 4 in G
March No. 4 is as upbeat and ceremonial as No. 1, containing another big tune in the central Trio section.Dedication
March No. 4 was completed on 7 June 1907, and dedicated "To my friend Dr. G. Robertson Sinclair, Hereford". It was first performed on 24 August 1907, in the Queen's Hall, London, conducted by the composer.Instrumentation
The instrumentation is: piccolo, 2 flutes, 2 oboes, cor anglais, 2 clarinets in B, bass clarinet in B, 2 bassoons, contrabassoon, 4 horns in F, 3 trumpets in A, 3 trombones, tuba, timpani, percussion, 2 harps, and strings.History
The Trio was used by Elgar in a song called "The King's Way" which he wrote, to his wife's words, in celebration of the opening of an important new London street called Kingsway in 1909.During World War II, No. 4 also acquired words: a patriotic poem by A. P. Herbert with the refrain beginning "All men must be free" was used as "Song of Liberty".
During the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer on 29 July 1981, Pomp and Circumstance No. 4 served as the recessional. As Diana's veil was lifted and the couple bowed and curtsied to Queen Elizabeth II, the opening notes sounded and continued as they walked down the aisle of St Paul's Cathedral out to the portico and the waiting crowds.
March No. 4 was the first piece in the recessional music for the coronation of Charles III on 6 May 2023.