Elgar's Hillside

[Karl Henning]

This all delights me beyond words.

As do all of the cycling journals of @Elgarian Redux 

[Luke]

I can't offhand remember any specific reference in the literature, but I bet he did, too.

Of course as I'm sure you know, to get to get to St Ann's Well from the middle of Malvern itself you have to turn off at the Unicorn, by the lamppost which, on a certain snowy evening, was C.S. Lewis's inspiration for The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. That's all I can think of, inspiration-wise, for that particular corner of the world!

[Elgarian Redux]

Still loving these. What a treasure that notebook is!

Bless you! These were great days. I find I've neglected to scan the very first entry, overlooked because there was no map. Here it is, for anyone who had the stamina to get this far, and apologies for the horrific 'Elgar and Mr Phoebus' doodle!

[Luke]

This all delights me beyond words.

Which delights me, in turn.   

[Luke]

Bless you! These were great days. I find I've neglected to scan the very first entry, overlooked because there was no map. Here it is, for anyone who had the stamina to get this far, and apologies for the horrific 'Elgar and Mr Phoebus' doodle!

Amazing! And the picture is great - it's certainly Elgar and no one else.

[Elgarian Redux]

Of course as I'm sure you know, to get to get to St Ann's Well from the middle of Malvern itself you have to turn off at the Unicorn, by the lamppost which, on a certain snowy evening, was C.S. Lewis's inspiration for The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. That's all I can think of, inspiration-wise, for that particular corner of the world!

There was a footpath across the Hills to it, from the cottage we used to stay at in West Malvern, so we got to it the hard way! But only once ...

[Elgarian Redux]

Which delights me, in turn.   

Karl has always delighted me too, even though there have been long gaps.

[Elgarian Redux]

... a peculiar pang for these music-haunted places - made me want to visit this and other locations whose influence - more than that, whose specific, unique aura - had caused music to flow forth. I think, in a symbolic way, I wanted to cause it to flow for me, too, once again.
...
The title is to be The Sound of the Place.

We really must talk about this 'spirit of place' some more. I feel as if all my life I've been chasing the source of these particular 'auras', associated with particular places that inspired great art - visual art as well as music.

I once took a portable CD player and a pair of headphones to the top of the Herefordshire Beacon, so I could listen to the finale of Caractacus up there. I suppose I was courting disappointment, but oh no. Perfectly on cue, the sun began to set behind clouds in the west just as I switched on, glowing redly as it sank, and setting fire to the sky.

[DavidW]

It's not entirely unreadable but one has to make a considerable effort to decipher the small print. As I said, a magnifying glass is needed.

That's just me, other people's eyes might be better than mine (I wear glasses).

Are you on your phone?  I'm on a 27 inch monitor, so no problem for me.

[Luke]

We really must talk about this 'spirit of place' some more. I feel as if all my life I've been chasing the source of these particular 'auras', associated with particular places that inspired great art - visual art as well as music.

I once took a portable CD player and a pair of headphones to the top of the Herefordshire Beacon, so I could listen to the finale of Caractacus up there. I suppose I was courting disappointment, but oh no. Perfectly on cue, the sun began to set behind clouds in the west just as I switched on, glowing redly as it sank, and setting fire to the sky.

A tale completely after my own heart. Yes, as you say, we should talk more!

[Karl Henning]

A tale completely after my own heart. Yes, as you say, we should talk more!

Love you guys!

[Luke]

What a pleasant afternoon this has been!

[Luke]

We really must talk about this 'spirit of place' some more. I feel as if all my life I've been chasing the source of these particular 'auras', associated with particular places that inspired great art - visual art as well as music.

I once took a portable CD player and a pair of headphones to the top of the Herefordshire Beacon, so I could listen to the finale of Caractacus up there. I suppose I was courting disappointment, but oh no. Perfectly on cue, the sun began to set behind clouds in the west just as I switched on, glowing redly as it sank, and setting fire to the sky.

By the way, I tried this myself with some of my 'quests' - Britten's Sea Interludes on Aldeburgh beach being an obvious one; Bax's November Woods in the woods in question being another one. Legend on Chanctonbury Ring another, Elgar's quintet at Brinkwells, a few others. I found it so powerful that it made it hard to think straight, so I didn't do it often!

[Karl Henning]

By the way, I tried this myself with some of my 'quests' - Britten's Sea Interludes on Aldeburgh beach being an obvious one; Bax's November Woods in the woods in question being another one. Legend on Chanctonbury Ring another, Elgar's quintet at Brinkwells, a few others. I found it so powerful that it made it hard to think straight, so I didn't do it often!

You're making me wish I'd done similarly with Ives' The Saint-Gaudens on Boston Common. It's not absolutely too late for me to do so, it's only that my broader mobility isn't what it was.

[Luke]

You're making me wish I'd done similarly with Ives' The Saint-Gaudens on Boston Common. It's not absolutely too late for me to do so, it's only that my broader mobility isn't what it was.

You know, I'm not sure why it is  - or even if it really is - but this peculiarly haunted sense of place, the aura of the earth and the water leaching out into a state of music, the heightened sensitivity of creative minds to specific locations does seem to be particularly strong amongst British (mostly English) composers, of the early 20th century above all. It's easy to think of examples such as the above-mentioned, and my book is basically about my travels to over 70 of them. But it's a harder to think of an equal profusion in other counties (where perhaps such an approach is less common). But there are plenty of examples, nonetheless, and I think perhaps chief among them was Ives. There is, for instance the story of his being overwhelmed by the 'oversoul' as he walked to church one day and surrounded by the clangour of bells from all directions. The result, From the Steeples and the Mountains, one of his most radical and uncompromising pieces.

[Karl Henning]

You know, I'm not sure why it is  - or even if it really is - but this peculiarly haunted sense of place, the aura of the earth and the water leaching out into a state of music, the heightened sensitivity of creative minds to specific locations does seem to be particularly strong amongst British (mostly English) composers, of the early 20th century above all. It's easy to think of examples such as the above-mentioned, and my book is basically about my travels to over 70 of them. But it's a harder to think of an equal profusion in other counties (where perhaps such an approach is less common). But there are plenty of examples, nonetheless, and I think perhaps chief among them was Ives. There is, for instance the story of his being overwhelmed by the 'oversoul' as he walked to church one day and surrounded by the clangour of bells from all directions. The result, From the Steeples and the Mountains, one of his most radical and uncompromising pieces.

Yes, Ives had an affinity with the Transcendentalists. And Concord is closer than Boston. I could theoretically go hear the Concord Sonata in situ.

[Elgarian Redux]

Just one last picture of the real heroes of my story ...

[Elgarian Redux]

You know, I'm not sure why it is  - or even if it really is - but this peculiarly haunted sense of place, the aura of the earth and the water leaching out into a state of music, the heightened sensitivity of creative minds to specific locations does seem to be particularly strong amongst British (mostly English) composers, of the early 20th century above all.

It does, and I've never thoroughly understood why. Something to do with the sort of thing Gimli sensed at Helm's Deep maybe? 'This country has tough bones.' When we visit these places it's hard not to be aware of the layers and layers beneath our feet in a way that feels peculiarly British, but of course comparable layers exist everywhere on Earth, so it can't just be that.

The question is whether we would experience this mysterious sense of place if we were unaided, as it were, by the art/music that drew us there? Would I be drawn to the Malverns without the advantage of having listened to Elgar's music, or did I need him to 'show' it to me, first? I've scoured Shoreham in search of Samuel Palmer, Constable country in search of Constable, Kelmscott in search of William Morris, and I just don't know. I fancy if I'd gone to Tintagel in ignorance of the Arthurian legends, I'd have been driven to invent something like them. 'There's that in Nature which calls for the invention of Giants, and only Giants will do.' CS Lewis wrote that, and surely he's right?

I'm probably framing the question too simplistically - it's not either/or, but rather the artist extends our perception so that it includes his vision along with our own.

[Luke]

Fascinating stuff, and impossible to ever truly understand. It's in so much English poetry too, this kind of fulsome attachment to place that takes on a kind of quivering, quasi-religious sentiment and a childlike wonder - think Clare and Gurney especially, two men driven mad and partly so by the sheer strength of their love of an Edenic home and their pain at the loss of innocence brought by adulthood and its travails.

[Luke]

Page 2 of the cycling journal. I was obsessed with Dora Penny at the time - she too being a keen cyclist...

Nice coincidence that, having shared this chat earlier today, I see this tonight:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c2vv37e6ppzo.amp