The History of Mendelssohn's Oratorio "Elijah" Part 7

"Then I wish the notes altered thus:--

[Music: Go up again, and still look towards the sea.]

"Then also 'the earth is _as_ iron.' And then would you like this:--

[Music: There is a sound of abundance of rain.]

"If possible I should wish to have omitted 'I implore Thee,'

which does not sound as scriptural to me. If I am wrong, pray leave it; but if not, the words 'to my prayer' might be repeated instead of them. The following is Psalm xxviii., 1:--

[Music: Unto Thee will I cry, Lord, my rock: be not silent to me.]

and could not the following sentence be thus:--

[Music: and Thy great [_or_ Thy gracious] mercies do remember, O Lord!]

"Then I prefer--[Music: like a man's hand!]

"Instead of 'His boundless,' I propose to omit the G (the first note), and have instead 'for His' (mercies, &c.), and to add afterwards a note (A), in order to say 'endureth _for_ evermore.' I prefer 'The Lord is _above them_,' to 'is the highest.'

"I am so very sorry you had that trouble with the words! And the first portion of the second part, which I sent off before the receipt of your letter, was again written in German characters. But the numbers you receive with this will, I hope, be legible; and I have made reference to the verses of the Bible, and will continue to do so. With the next packet you will again receive some pieces, and so always on till the whole (at least of the choruses) is in your hands, which I hope shall not last more than a fourthnight (_sic_). And if there should be something left it would be here or there a solo-piece, which (as it must not be printed) will easily be done and copied in time. You are right, the great question is, Who is to sing the Elijah?--and I am at a loss why I have not yet heard some news respecting this most essential point.

"My intention was to write no Overture, but to begin directly with the curse. I thought it so energetic. But I will certainly think of what you say about an Introduction, although I am afraid it would be a difficult task, and do not know exactly what it should or could mean before that curse. And after it (I first thought to write the Overture _after_ it), the chorus _must_ immediately come in. Now once more excuse the haste and accept the thanks of

"Yours very truly,

"FELIX MENDELSSOHN-BARTHOLDY."

[Footnote 34: This letter is reproduced in _fac-simile_ at the end of this book.]

[Footnote 35: In order to make the musical examples in the following letters more intelligible to the general reader, and easier of reference to the printed score, I have added clefs and key signatures where Mendelssohn did not think it necessary to insert them when writing to Bartholomew. The figures in brackets refer to the _present_ numbers in Novello's Edition of the Oratorio.]

[Footnote 36: This No. 5 was the _original_ form of the tenor Recitative (now No. 3), "Ye people, rend your hearts." Before the Birmingham performance Mendelssohn re-wrote it, making it much shorter (10 bars instead of 17) and less elaborate, and in the form in which it is now sung. The concluding bars of the original are here appended, with the two versions of the words, to show the force of Mendelssohn's suggested alteration:--

[Music: TENOR SOLO.

Bar 16 of _original_ RECIT.

(_Bartholomew._) and He comforteth us in affliction, If with all &c.

(_Mendelssohn._) and in our affliction He comforteth us.]

The words of this Recit., as originally written by Bartholomew, were: "Ye people, rend your hearts, and not your garments, for your transgressions; even as Elijah hath sealed the heavens through the word of G.o.d.

"I therefore say to ye, Forsake your idols, return to G.o.d; for He is ever enduring in goodness; repenting of the evil. He turneth our sorrow to gladness, and He comforteth us in affliction."]

[Footnote 37: Bartholomew originally had these words: "Ah! could I find Him; and at His footstool bow before His presence."]

[Footnote 38: Mendelssohn greatly altered the "Widow" scene before the oratorio was published.]

[Footnote 39: The music of this chorus ("Blessed are the men") was afterwards much altered.]

In regard to the Overture, referred to at the end of the foregoing (very long) letter, it may be interesting to quote an extract from one of Bartholomew's letters to Mendelssohn:--

"I have maturely considered, and, with Mr. K[lingemann], think it will be a new feature, and a fine one, to announce the curse, No. 1. Then let an Introductory-movement be played, expressive, descriptive of the misery of famine--for the chorus (I always thought) comes so very quickly and suddenly after the curse, that there seems to elapse no time to produce its results."

It seems evident that Mendelssohn was indebted to Bartholomew for the suggestion of an Overture to "Elijah." That Mendelssohn accomplished what he calls his "difficult task" we know full well, and Bartholomew must have felt quite satisfied when the composer wrote to him and said, "I have written an Overture, and a long one."

[MENDELSSOHN TO BARTHOLOMEW.]

[_Written in English._]

"LEIPZIG, 18_th_ _July_, 1846.

"My dear Sir,--I received yours of the 9th. And many thanks again! And you copy yourself the solo parts! Whatever your reason may be, I feel what an obligation you confer upon me.

"Now I go on with my remarks about those pieces of the second part which you sent me the translation of, viz.: Nos.

33, 34, and 35. By-the-bye: No. 33 will be altered and another Recit. (for a _Soprano_) comes in its stead with the next parcel; but the words are the same, and your translation will go quite as well to the new Recit.

"In No. 34 I again wish to alter the notes in order to keep the English scriptural version. And it seems to me so important that this should be done that I hope it is time still to make the alteration in all the choral parts. The beginning I wish altered thus:--

[Music: And behold, the Lord pa.s.sed by.]

or, if 'pa.s.sed' must have two syllables:--

[Music: Lord pa.s.s-ed]

"The end of the first phrase 'as He approached' is not quite agreeable to me; could you not find _four_ syllables instead of them (making the two _slurred_ notes single ones)--_e.g._, 'as the Lord drew near' (don't laugh), or something in which _the accent on the last syllable is strong and decided_!

"Then comes:--

[Music: But the Lord was not in the tempest.]

"Then again: 'And behold, the Lord pa.s.sed by.' And at the end again, 'But the Lord was not in the earthquake.' Also the third time: 'But the Lord was not in the fire.'

[Music: But the Lord, &c.]

"Then--

[Music: And after the fire there came a still small voice]

(here I think it is _quite_ necessary to keep the scriptural expression _at least_ at the beginning!) And then perhaps: 'And in that voice the Lord came unto him.'

"The instrumental parts are all copied here, and I bring them with me. Excuse the haste of these lines.--Always yours very truly,

"FELIX MENDELSSOHN-BARTHOLDY."

[MENDELSSOHN TO BARTHOLOMEW.]