Several points of trivia: Some have suggested Elgar took the title “Pomp and Circumstance” from a speech by Othello in Act III of William Shakespeare’s “The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice” with the phrase “Pride, pomp, and circumstance of glorious war!” The “pomp” in “pomp and circumstance,” according to Webster, means “a stately or brilliant display-or splendor.” Its origin is from the Latin “pompa,” meaning “procession,” based on a Greek root meaning “to send.” “Circumstance” comes from the Latin “circumstantia,” meaning “standing around,” but in modern usage it means in this sense, “ceremony” or “show.” More: Robert Schmidt: Ever engaging in new worlds of sound The contrast seems to suggest Elgar’s ability to express prayer, praise and applause within a single work. 1 remains the most popular, and although the work is performed sometimes at a bombastic level, when Elgar introduced the tune he marked the dynamics “pianissimo” (softly) for the first part-then distinct markings “fortissimo” (loudly) for what follows. Of the five “Pomp and Circumstance” marches, No. Today it is ubiquitous and a rare occasion when a graduation procession marches to anything else. Within a decade, it was embraced by many others. So stirring was the work that shortly thereafter other prominent universities such as Princeton, Chicago, Columbia, Vassar, and Rutgers adopted the work in their graduation ceremonies. 1” played by the New Haven Symphony Orchestra. In New Haven, Conn., on the edge of the Yale campus, Sanford hosted the Elgars in his beautiful home on Hillhouse Avenue, a place Charles Dickens in 1842 had called “the most beautiful street in America.” At the commencement ceremony the academic procession entered Woolsey Hall to Mendelssohn’s “Ruy Blas” overture, but as a tribute to Elgar, everyone left the hall with “Pomp and Circumstance March No. How did “Pomp and Circumstance” become de rigueur at graduation exercises in America?Īccording to the Elgar Society, amongst the many works written by Sir Edward William Elgar (1857-1934) were five pieces known as the “Pomp and Circumstance Marches.” In 1905 Elgar’s American friend Samuel Sanford, a Yale professor of Applied Music, invited Elgar to the United States to receive an Honorary Doctorate of Music. More: Integrating art and design into STEM education For the moment, however, it seemed an effort to contain our overwhelming enthusiasm. We continued in perfect precision as we found our way to our seats, eager and ready for the future. We were deliberate in our steps by stepping forward with the right foot and bringing the left foot to the side of the right foot, then stepping forward with the left foot and bringing the right foot to the side of the left foot. I barely remember the message of the speakers, but I never forget the music. Hearing the melody brings back memories of my own high school graduation day, when the young women marched in their brand new high-heeled shoes and all graduates wore their best dress clothes beneath navy blue gowns on a day we thought would never arrive. Within a single musical line, Edward Elgar, the composer, seems to blend emotions of triumph with feelings of melancholy, capturing the bittersweet sense of excitement for the future fused with sorrow of leaving the present and the past. Listening to “Pomp and Circumstance” is like entering a soothing sanctuary.
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