This slow movement in E Major from 1919 is an elegy to the soldiers who died in World War I. The Germans were the first people to appreciate his music, and as a result, Elgar was conflicted about the war. But as a patriotic Brit, he backed it all the way. This movement was played at his funeral in 1934.
At 2:22, the piano asks a question, and each time the passage is played, the answer is slightly different. It’s as if the question is, “Was this all worth it?”
At 4:39, the sun briefly comes out, but it leads to a passage of inconsolable grief at 5:42. It’s all the tears of the world rolled into one.
The squall ends, and the opening theme returns in a moment of catharsis. At 7:30, the question is asked again, but this time there is less regret.
The coda at 10:30 is sublime, but there is one last question. This time the answer is, “Yes, it was worth the sacrifice, sergeant major.”
“Sleep well, good and faithful servant.”
