Programme
John Wilson
Northern School Of Music (NSM), Houldsworth Hall
1963

The Dream of Gerontius is a pretty huge work by Elgar, and a big deal for the students performing.
The Guardian review notes that it was "given with a small amount of assistance by experienced hands was extraordinarily successful.” The execution by students was “never less than adequate and was at times quite movingly suave and appealing, more it was all scaled intelligently to the rather congested physical conditions, and never became overpowering.” The students had a certain naiveté of approach “a freshness of outlook untarnished by the stain or routine or the blasé professional manner. The dead hand of the British oratorio tradition seemed far away from these youthful shoulders.”

Ref: NSM/20

Part of the #NSM2020 project "A 20/20 Legacy: the centenary of the Northern School of Music" supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund.