The musical compositions of Frederick Delius (1862–1934) cover numerous genres, in a style that developed from the early influences of composers such as Edvard Grieg and Richard Wagner into a voice that was uniquely Delius's. He began serious composition at a relatively advanced age (his earliest songs date to his early twenties), and his music was largely unknown and unperformed until the early 20th century. It was a further ten years before his work was generally accepted in concert halls, and then more often in Europe than in his home country, England. Ill-health caused him to give up composition in the early 1920s and he was silent for several years, before the services of a devoted amanuensis, Eric Fenby, enabled Delius to resume composing in 1928. The Delius-Fenby combination led to several notable late works.
Chronological list of principal works The "principal" works are those identified as such by Eric Fenby. A division of Delius's work into phases such as "apprentice" and "middle period" has been suggested by many commentators, notably Anthony Payne in "Delius's Stylistic Development" (1962).
Apprentice works, 1887–1899 1887: Florida Suite 1890–92: (Opera) Irmelin 1893–95: (Opera) The Magic Fountain 1895–97: (Opera) Koanga 1897: (Incidental music) Folkeraadet (Norwegian Suite) 1897: Concerto for piano and orchestra (original version) 1899: Paris: The Song of a Great City
"Middle period" works, 1900–06 1900–01: (Opera) A Village Romeo and Juliet (Orchestral interlude between Scenes 5 and 6) "The Walk to the Paradise Garden" 1902: (Opera) Margot-la-Rouge 1903: Appalachia: Variations on a Slave Song 1903–04: Sea Drift (setting of a poem by Walt Whitman) 1904–05: A Mass of Life (text by Friedrich Nietzsche) 1906: Concerto for piano and orchestra (with revised first movement) 1906–07: Songs of Sunset (poems by Ernest Dowson)
Mature works, 1907–24 1907: Brigg Fair 1908: In a Summer Garden 1909–10: (Opera) Fennimore and Gerda 1911: An Arabesque (poems by Jens Peter Jacobsen) 1911: A Song of the High Hills (wordless chorus) 1911–12: Summer Night on the River 1911–12: On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring 1912: Life's Dance (revised from 1899 symphonic poem La ronde se déroule) 1913–14: North Country Sketches 1914: Sonata for violin and piano No. 1 (begun 1905) 1914–16: Requiem (text by Heinrich Simon) 1915: Double Concerto for violin, cello and orchestra 1916: Concerto for violin and orchestra 1916: Dance Rhapsody No. 2 1916: String Quartet 1916: Sonata for cello and piano 1917: Eventyr (Once Upon a Time) 1918: A Song Before Sunrise 1920–23: (Incidental music) Hassan (play by James Elroy Flecker) 1921: Cello Concerto 1923: Sonata for violin and piano No. 2
Late works 1929–30: A Song of Summer 1930: Sonata for violin and piano No. 3 1930: Songs of Farewell (setting of poems by Walt Whitman)
List of works by genre A definitive catalogue of the works of Delius was produced by Robert Threlfall in 1977, and a supplement to it in 1986. It is abbreviated as RT. The Threlfall sectioning is a categorization where works are assigned nominal numbers according to a roman-numeric genre numbering scheme. For example, A Village Romeo and Juliet is, according to Threlfall's counting, the sixth piece of dramatic work Delius composed. Thus, the piece is in Section I, number 6, so is designated RT I/6.
Dramatic works Year(s) composedRTTitleGenreFirst performanceCommentsRef.1888I/1ZanoniIncidental music1890–92I/2IrmelinOperaOxford, 4 May 1953Libretto: E. Graham, T. Round1893–95I/3The Magic FountainLyric dramaBroadcast performance, BBC 1977Libretto: Delius1895I/4KoangaLyric dramaElberfeld, 30 March 1904Libretto: Charles Francis Keary, after George Washington Cable1897I/5FolkeraadetIncidental musicChristiania, October 1897Play by Gunnar Heiberg1900–01I/6A Village Romeo and JulietLyric dramaBerlin, 21 October 1907Libretto: Delius, after Gottfried Keller. The orchestral interlude between Scenes 5 and 6, "The Walk to the Paradise Garden", is often performed and recorded separately.1902I/7Margot la rougeLyric dramaLibretto: I. Rosenval1909–10I/8Fennimore and GerdaOperaFrankfurt am Main, October 1919Libretto: Delius, after J.P. Jacobsen1920–23I/9HassanIncidental musicDarmstadt, 1 June 1923Full version first performed in London, 30 September 1923Play by James Elroy Flecker
Works for voices and orchestra Year(s) composedRTTitleVocal forcesFirst performanceCommentsRef.1898II/1Mitternachtslied Zarathustras (The Midnight Song of Zarathustra)Male chorus1903II/2Appalachia: Variations on a slave songChoir, baritone soloElberfeld, 19041903–04II/3Sea DriftChoir, baritone soloEssen, 24 May 19061904–05II/4A Mass of LifeDouble choir, SATB soloistsLondon, 7 June 1909Part II was performed in Munich, in 19081906–07II/5Songs of SunsetChoir, Mezzo-soprano & baritone soloistsLondon, 16 June 19111911II/6A Song of the High HillsChoir, tenor & soprano soloistsLondon, 26 February 1920Textless chorus1911II/7An ArabesqueChoir and baritone soloistNewport, 19201914–16II/8RequiemChoir, soprano & baritone soloistsLondon, 23 March 19221930II/9Songs of FarewellChoirLondon, 21 March 19321930–32II/10Idyll: Once I passed through a populous citySoprano & baritone soloistsLondon, 3 October 1933Music adapted from Margot la rouge; words from Walt Whitman; after the first performance, Delius expanded the work and renamed it Prelude and IdyllLiner notes from A Mass of Life & Prelude and Idyll Naxos 8.572861-62
Works for solo voice and orchestra Year(s) composedRTTitleVocal forcesFirst performanceCommentsRef.1888III/1Paa Vidderne (Melodrama)Recitation Revised (1891) as orchestral suite1889III/2SakuntalaTenor soloist 1891III/3Maud (from Tennyson)Tenor soloist 1897III/4Seven Danish Songs: 1. "Summer Nights (On the Sea Shore)"; 2. "Red Roses (Through Long, Long Years)"; 3. "Wine Roses"; 4. "Let Springtime Come, Then" (Den Lenz laβ kommen); 5. "Irmelin Rose"; 6. "In the Seraglio Garden"; 7. "Silken Shoes"Solo voice (unspecified)Paris, 19011907III/5CynaraBaritone soloistLondon, 18 October 1929Left incomplete, finished in 19291925III/6A Late LarkSolo voice (unspecified)
Works for unaccompanied voices Year(s) composedRTTitleVocal forces/accompaniment First performanceCommentsRef.before 1887IV/1Six German part-songs: 1. "Lorelei" (H. Heine); 2. "Oh! Sonnenschein" (Oh! Sunshine); 3. "Durch den Wald" (By the Forest) [von Schreck]; 4. "Ave Maria"; 5. "Sonnenscheinlied" (Sunshine Song) [Bjornsen]; 6. "Fruhlingsanbruch" [Bjornsen]Choir, unaccompanied1907IV/2On Craig DduSoprano, alto, 2 tenor, 2 bass, pianoBlackpool, 19071908IV/3Wanderer's Song2 tenor, 2 bass, piano1908IV/4Midsummer Song2 soprano, 2 alto, 2 tenor, 2 bass, pianoWhitley Bay, December 19101917IV/5Two Songs to be sung of a summer night on the waterSoprano, alto, 2 tenor, 2 basses, unaccompaniedLondon, 28 June 1920Also arranged for string orchestra by Eric Fenby in 1932, titled Two Aquarelles.1923IV/6The splendour falls on castle walls (from Tennyson)Chorus, unaccompaniedLondon, 17 June 1924
Songs with piano accompaniment Year(s) composedRTTitleCommentsRef.undatedV/1"When other lips shall speak"UnpublishedundatedV/4"Der Fichtenbaum" (The Spruce Tree)Unpublished1885V/2"Over the mountains high"Unpublished1885V/3"Zwei braune Augen" (Two Brown Eyes)Unpublished1888V/5Five Songs from the Norwegian: 1. "Slumber Song" (Bjørnsen); 2. "The Nightingale" (Wellhaven); 3. "Summer's Eve" (Paulsen); 4. "Longing" (Kjerulf); 5. "Sunset" (Munck)1888V/6"Hochgebirgsleben" (High Mountain Life) Unpublished1888V/7"O schneller mein Ross" ( O faster, my Ross) Unpublished1889V/8"Chanson (de) Fortunio" Unpublished1889–90V/9Seven Songs from the Norwegian: 1. "Cradle Song" (Ibsen); 2. "The Homeward Journey" (Vinje); 3. "Twilight Fancies" (Bjørnsen); 4. "Sweet Venevil" (Bjørnsen); 5. "Minstrel" (Ibsen); 6. "Love concealed" (Bjørnsen); 7. "The Birds Story" (Ibsen)1890V/10"Skogen gir susende langsom besked" (Softly the Forest) Unpublished1890–91V/11Songs to words by Heine: 1. "Mit deinen blauen Augen" (With your blue eyes); 2. "Ein schöner Stern geht auf in meiner Nacht" (A shining star appears in my night); 3. "Hör' ich das Liedchen klingen" (I hear the sound of singing); 4. "Aus deinen Augen fliessen meine Leider" (From your eyes flows my song)Unpublished1891V/12Three English songs [Shelley]: 1. "Indian Love Song"; 2. "Love's Philosophy" 3. "To the Queen of my Heart"1891V/13"Lyse Naetter"Unpublished1893 V/14"Jeg horde en nyskaaren Seljeflojte" (I once had a newly cut willow pipe)Unpublished1893V/15"Nuages" (Clouds)Unpublished1895V/16Deux Melodies [Verlaine]: 1. "Il pleure dans mon coeur" (It cries in my heart); 2. "Le ciel est, par-dessus le toit" (The sky is over the roof)Accompaniment later orchestrated1895V/17"Pagen hojt paa Taarnet sad" (The page sat in the lofty tower) Unpublished1898V/18"Traum Rosen" (Dream Roses) Unpublished1898V/19Lieder nach Gedichten von Friedrich Nietzsche (Songs after poems by Fredrich Nietzsche): 1. "Nach neuen Meeren" (By New Seas); 2. "Der Wanderer" (The Wanderer); 3. "Der Einsame" (The Lonely One); 4. "Der Wanderer und sein Schatten" (The Wanderer and his Shadow)1898V/20"Im Glück wir lachend gingen" (In bliss we walked with laughter)1900V/21Two songs from the Danish: 1. "The Violet"; 2. "Autumn""The Violet" accompaniment orchestrated, 19081900V/22"Black Roses"1901V/23"Jeg horer i Natten" (I hear in the night)Unpublished1902V/24"Summer Landscape" Orchestral accompaniment 19031910V/25"The Nightingale has a Lyre of Gold"1911V/26"La Lune blanche" (The white moon) (Verlaine poem)Orchestral accompaniment 19111911V/27"Chanson d'Automne" (Song of Autumn) (Verlaine poem)1913V/28"I-Brasil"1913V/29Two songs for children: 1. "Little Birdie"; 2. "The Streamlet's Slumber Song"1915–16V/30Four old English lyrics: 1. "It was a lover and his lass"; 2. "So white, so soft, so sweet is she"; 3. "Spring, the sweet Spring"; 4. "To Daffodils"1919V/31"Avant que tu ne t'en ailles" (Morning Star)
Works for orchestra alone Year(s) composedRTTitleFirst performanceCommentsRef.1887VI/1Florida SuiteLeipzig, 1888Revised 18891888VI/2Hiawatha (tone poem)1888VI/3Rhapsodic VariationsIncomplete1888VI/4Three pieces for string orchestra1889VI/5Idylle de Printemps1889–90VI/6Orchestral suite (Petite Suite No. 1) Marche Berceuse Scherzo Duo Theme with variations London, 18 November 19461889 (approx.)VI/6aSuite of 3 Characteristic pieces La Quadroöne (Rhadsodie Floridienne) Scherzo Marche Caprice 1889 (approx)VI/6bMarche Française1890VI/7Three small tone-poems: Summer Evening Winter Night (Sleigh Ride) Spring MorningLondon, 2 January 19491890 (approx.)VI/8A l'Amore1890VI/9Orchestral Suite (Petite Suite No. 2) Allegro ma non troppo Con moto Allegretto 1890–92VI/10Paa Vidderne (On the Mountains) - symphonic poemChristiania, Norway, 10 October 1891c. 1891MazurkaIncomplete sketch1895–97VI/11Over the hills and far away (fantasy overture)London, 30 May 18991896VI/12Appalachia: an American rhapsodyOrchestral version, later adapted for solo and chorus1899VI/13La Ronde se déroule (The Dance Goes On)London, 30 May 1899Revised, 1901, as "Lebenstanz" (Life's Dance) 1899VI/14Paris: The Song of a Great CityElberfeld, 19011901VI/15Lebenstanz (Life's Dance)Düsseldorf, February 1904Further revised, 19121907VI/16Brigg FairBasel, 19071908VI/17In a Summer GardenLondon, 11 December 1909Delius conducted the first performance1908VI/18Dance Rhapsody (No. 1)Hereford (Three Choirs Festival) 8 September 1909Delius conducted the first performance1911–12VI/19Two pieces for small orchestra: On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring