English composer, arranger and teacher (1874-1934). Autograph manuscript signed ('Gustav Holst'), the 'Violin I Desk I' part for his Choral Fantasia, op. 51. no place. 2½ pages, 310 x 234mm, bifolium, 12-stave paper, a few erasures, one minor pencil marking, the part including an unusually large proportion of autograph cue notes from other parts.
$ 9,383 / 8.500 €
(93605)
A Choral Fantasia was originally conceived as an organ concerto, but later adapted by Holst into a striking work that incorporated his friend Robert Bridges' poem Ode to Music. Described by Holst's biographer as 'impressively individual', A Choral Fantasia features a concertante organ alongside brass, percussion and strings, a chorus and solo soprano. With the 1931 Three Choirs Festival in mind, Holst started work on the piece in 1930; the decision to set a selection of Robert Bridges' verses from Ode to Music, composed for the Bicentenary Commemoration of Henry Purcell, took A Choral Fantasia in an unusual new direction.
Holst conducted the piece himself when it was first performed in Gloucester Cathedral in 1931. Provenance: (1) Musikantiquariat Dr. Ulrich Drüner, Stuttgart, December 2015. (2) Schøyen Collection, MS 5565. Gustav Holst and the Poet Laureate. Autograph music manuscripts by Holst are rare at trade: only three have appeared in the last two decades. Best known for his orchestral suite The Planets, Holst composed many other works across a range of genres, although none achieved comparable success. His distinctive compositional style was the product of many influences, Richard Wagner and Richard Strauss being most crucial early in his development. The subsequent inspiration of the English folksong revival of the early 20th century, and the example of such rising modern composers as Maurice Ravel, led Holst to develop and refine an individual style..