Symphony No. 1 in A-flat, Op. 55: Full Orchestra Score

Edward Elgar's (1857-1934) Symphony No. 1 in A-flat, Op. 55 was completed in 1908, although it was a work about a decade in the making. Originally proposed as early as 1898 as a programmatic work based on the life of General George Gordon, by 1907 is had transformed into something wholly different, with the program then abandoned. It was an immediate success at its premiere by the Hallé Orchestra, Hans Richter (conductor), in Manchester on December 3rd, 1908, and approximately 100 performances followed in the next year, with it often thought of as the first major British symphony. The third movement (adagio) is considered by many to be the most perfect and lyrical of all of Elgar's works, which Hans Richter called "an Adagio such as Beethoven might have written." The work is frequently performed in the United Kingdom today, and it features occasionally in programs in continental Europe and North America. Instrumentation: 3(3rd dPicc).2+EH.2+BCl.2+CBsn: 4.3.3.1: Timp.Perc(2-3): Hp(2): Str (9-8-7-6-5 in set).