Elgar: Cello Concerto; Sea Pictures; "Cockaigne" Overture.(Sound Recording Review)

Elgar: Cello Concerto; Sea Pictures; "Cockaigne" Overture. Jacqueline du Pre, cello; Janet Baker, mezzo-soprano; Sir John Barbirolli, London Symphony Orchestra. EMI 7243 5 62887 2.

It's good to have these classic recordings of the Cello Concerto and the Sea Pictures back in circulation, especially as they are augmented by the "Cockaigne" Overture, remastered in sound that's better than ever, and offered at a mid price.

Sir Edward Elgar (1857-1934) wrote his Cello Concerto relatively late in his career, 1919, and because it appeared just after the devastation of the First World War, it is rather solemn and melancholy. Nevertheless, it quickly became one of the composer's most-cherished works, and its performance by young cellist Jacqueline du Pre and conductor John Barbirolli in 1965 has really never been topped. The booklet note suggests that Ms. du Pre was initially criticized for having too much spirit, too much energy, in her interpretation, but she was defended by Sir John, one of the world's premiere Elgarians, saying that such exuberance was necessary in the young; besides, Elgar himself is said to have remarked years earlier that he preferred vigorous readings of his works because "I am not an austere man."

The first and forth movements of the ...