"Nimrod" - transcribed for Viola and Piano - Edward Elgar
In recognition of the 150th anniversary of the birth of Sir Edward Elgar in 2007, I was able to celebrate one of my favorite composers with transcriptions of the ninth (and probably the most famous and best-loved) variation "Nimrod," from his orchestral work, ENIGMA VARIATIONS - "My Friends Pictured Within". Here is a new transcription for viola and piano.
Elgar had written a special program note, and I quote a part. "...the Variation bearing this name (Nimrod) is a record of a long summer evening talk, when my friend - A.J. Jaeger - grew nobly eloquent on the grandeur of Beethoven and especially of his slow movements. A reference to the Adagio of the Pathétique Sonata is therefore seen in the opening bars of the Nimrod Variation."