Coleridge- Taylor performed by David Lloyd (tenor)
BBC Chorus
Chorus-Master, Leslie Woodgate
BBC Orchestra
(Section B)
Leader, Paul Beard
Conducted by Leslie Woodgate
It was the appearance of the first part of Hiawatha, in 1898, that spread Coleridge-Taylor's fame all over the English-speaking world, and just as it was the composer's first really important success, so it has remained the most popular of all his music.
In its vivid and yet simple rhythm, its fresh and natural melody, and the warmth of its orchestral treatment, the music is obviously ideally mated with Longfellow's poem. The ' Wedding Feast' was first performed alone, the second part, ' The Death of Minnehaha', appearing a year later at a North Staffordshire Festival. ' Hiawatha's Departure', which completes the trilogy, was first performed by the Royal Choral Society in London in the spring of 1900.