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Composer Plays: Master Class/Elgar's Rondo/Elgar's Third/Music to Murder by by David Pownall
Includes the plays Master Class, Elgar's Rondo, Music to Murder By and Elgar's ThirdThe creative artist in conflict with destructive external pressures and corrosive internal tensions is a recurring theme in David Pownall’s meticulously crafted plays. Master Class was first performed at the Haymarket Theatre, Leicester before transferring to the Old Vic; Elgar’s Rondo was performed by the RSC at Stratford-upon-Avon in 1993, and at the Barbican Centre. Elgar’s Third, winner of the Sony Gold Award, was first performed on BBC Radio 3 in 1994; Music to Murder By was first performed by the Paines Plough theatre company.
Paperback
First published January 1, 1998
About the author
David Pownall
57 books5 followersDavid Pownall is an award winning British novelist and playwright. He has had over eighty radio plays broadcast on the BBC and worldwide, and his work for stage has been produced in many countries throughout the world.During his extensive career, David has written in a number of different mediums including thirteen novels.
He was born in Liverpool in l938 and educated at Lord Wandsworth College and Keele University, it was during this time that he became involved with writing and managing student publications. After graduating, David worked for the Ford Motor Company before going to Africa to work as a Personnel Manager in the copper-mining industry. During this time he worked with local drama groups, who performed his earliest stage plays. He returned to England in l969 to start a new career as a writer.
He was born in Liverpool in l938 and educated at Lord Wandsworth College and Keele University, it was during this time that he became involved with writing and managing student publications. After graduating, David worked for the Ford Motor Company before going to Africa to work as a Personnel Manager in the copper-mining industry. During this time he worked with local drama groups, who performed his earliest stage plays. He returned to England in l969 to start a new career as a writer.
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November 12, 2024
MASTER CLASS ***
It is close to twenty years since I saw The Helsinki City Theatre’s production of David Pownall’s play ”Master Class.” It was a mind-blowing experience, especially thanks to the superb actors, crème de la crème among Finnish actors of those days, Lasse Pöysti, Esko Roine, Asko Sarkola and Martti Suosalo. I recently bought the book “The Composer Plays” and have now read “Master Class.” Reading it now was inspiring, but like so many times before, I find it difficult to fully enjoy texts that are written for the stage. The text is, however, only raw material for a stage production. Especially when so much time has passed since I saw the play on stage, it was hard reliving the stage performance by just reading it. The text felt “light weight” compared to what I had experienced earlier. I felt that the text did not make progress as it had done on the stage.
The elementary message of this play is in my mind the freedom of music, and art in general. Art shall not be controlled by any government, and especially regarding music, the freedom of art is fundamental. Totalitarianism is unveiled here, but it is not black and white. The vanity of artists gets its share as well.
I spotted a minor lapse regarding language. There is discussion regarding Stalin’s demand that the composers be more “folk.” In English we understand it as reference to folk music meaning music of the people, but the Russian word “narod” also means people. In Russian the pun works, in English not.
MUSIC TO MURDER BY **
The second of David Pownall’s plays “Music to Murder By” was a strange mixture of crossovers in both time and space. An Italian renaissance composer Carlo Gesualdo and a British 20th century composer Philip Heseltine (known as Peter Warlock) together with their women meet in a bar somewhere near Naples, Italy. Time is not the only cross-over here. Freud and theology are among the items covered by the absurd events and witty dialogue. Wit is often weird. I was not convinced of the merits of the text, but this could become something thrilling on the stage in the hands of true masters.
ELGAR'S RONDO ***
The events of this play take place between the composing of Elgar’s first and second symphonies. It depicts well the conditions for artistic work in the business of classical music. The depiction of the epoque is credible, often with tongue in cheek . The conditions for artistry in the world of classical music was not easy at the time. I assume that it was even harder than it is today.
The ongoing World War 1 is strongly felt and the insanity of the whole affair. Patriotism at time of war is hard on Elgar, he finds its impossible to believe the horror stories told about the Germans. He finds it impossible that the compatriots of Bach and Beethoven could have committed the atrocities the British propaganda spreads. A quote: “When I hear a Beethoven symphony, I feel like a tinker looking at the Forth Bridge. And what must I believe? That these same Germans, the people of Bach, would split babies on their bayonets and all the other vile propaganda?” (p. 158)
ELGAR'S THIRD *****
The last one of the plays in this edition, “Elgar’s Third,” is by far the best reading of them all. The story of Elgar struggling at the end of his life with an attempt to compose his third symphony, which has been commissioned by the B.B.C. I believe that one reason why this story enraptures the reader more strongly than the three previous ones, is that it is written for the radio. Even though the reader does not hear the sound effects mentioned in the text, he is still closer to the listener of the radio play than someone sitting in the theatre salon hearing the text and simultaneously seeing the action on stage. There is however one drawback in the text, which makes understanding the constellation more difficult for a non-British reader. All characters are referred to only by their first names, even though quite a few characters obviously are real people. I recognized some of them, but surely not all.
There is much drama in Elgar’s struggle to produce his third symphony, which continuously becomes more difficult despite the help and assistance he gets from various sources. He even wonders whether the work on the symphony could continue in the afterlife. “This medieval notion of music in the afterlife. You know, harps and trumpets, angel choirs, all that. Can’t be true, can it?” (p. 183). It is remarkable how Elgar as a devoted Catholic becomes doubtful at this moment.
Both this story and “Elgar’s Rondo” are also perfect depictions of the British class society, or should I say “English.” This is a distinction that is often made in the text in various situations.
Naturally, the reader cannot discern what are Elgar’s thoughts and what the author’s, David Pownall’s. The author masters his handicraft so well here, that the reader is easily deceived to believe that it is Elgar who is speaking and thinking.
It is close to twenty years since I saw The Helsinki City Theatre’s production of David Pownall’s play ”Master Class.” It was a mind-blowing experience, especially thanks to the superb actors, crème de la crème among Finnish actors of those days, Lasse Pöysti, Esko Roine, Asko Sarkola and Martti Suosalo. I recently bought the book “The Composer Plays” and have now read “Master Class.” Reading it now was inspiring, but like so many times before, I find it difficult to fully enjoy texts that are written for the stage. The text is, however, only raw material for a stage production. Especially when so much time has passed since I saw the play on stage, it was hard reliving the stage performance by just reading it. The text felt “light weight” compared to what I had experienced earlier. I felt that the text did not make progress as it had done on the stage.
The elementary message of this play is in my mind the freedom of music, and art in general. Art shall not be controlled by any government, and especially regarding music, the freedom of art is fundamental. Totalitarianism is unveiled here, but it is not black and white. The vanity of artists gets its share as well.
I spotted a minor lapse regarding language. There is discussion regarding Stalin’s demand that the composers be more “folk.” In English we understand it as reference to folk music meaning music of the people, but the Russian word “narod” also means people. In Russian the pun works, in English not.
MUSIC TO MURDER BY **
The second of David Pownall’s plays “Music to Murder By” was a strange mixture of crossovers in both time and space. An Italian renaissance composer Carlo Gesualdo and a British 20th century composer Philip Heseltine (known as Peter Warlock) together with their women meet in a bar somewhere near Naples, Italy. Time is not the only cross-over here. Freud and theology are among the items covered by the absurd events and witty dialogue. Wit is often weird. I was not convinced of the merits of the text, but this could become something thrilling on the stage in the hands of true masters.
ELGAR'S RONDO ***
The events of this play take place between the composing of Elgar’s first and second symphonies. It depicts well the conditions for artistic work in the business of classical music. The depiction of the epoque is credible, often with tongue in cheek . The conditions for artistry in the world of classical music was not easy at the time. I assume that it was even harder than it is today.
The ongoing World War 1 is strongly felt and the insanity of the whole affair. Patriotism at time of war is hard on Elgar, he finds its impossible to believe the horror stories told about the Germans. He finds it impossible that the compatriots of Bach and Beethoven could have committed the atrocities the British propaganda spreads. A quote: “When I hear a Beethoven symphony, I feel like a tinker looking at the Forth Bridge. And what must I believe? That these same Germans, the people of Bach, would split babies on their bayonets and all the other vile propaganda?” (p. 158)
ELGAR'S THIRD *****
The last one of the plays in this edition, “Elgar’s Third,” is by far the best reading of them all. The story of Elgar struggling at the end of his life with an attempt to compose his third symphony, which has been commissioned by the B.B.C. I believe that one reason why this story enraptures the reader more strongly than the three previous ones, is that it is written for the radio. Even though the reader does not hear the sound effects mentioned in the text, he is still closer to the listener of the radio play than someone sitting in the theatre salon hearing the text and simultaneously seeing the action on stage. There is however one drawback in the text, which makes understanding the constellation more difficult for a non-British reader. All characters are referred to only by their first names, even though quite a few characters obviously are real people. I recognized some of them, but surely not all.
There is much drama in Elgar’s struggle to produce his third symphony, which continuously becomes more difficult despite the help and assistance he gets from various sources. He even wonders whether the work on the symphony could continue in the afterlife. “This medieval notion of music in the afterlife. You know, harps and trumpets, angel choirs, all that. Can’t be true, can it?” (p. 183). It is remarkable how Elgar as a devoted Catholic becomes doubtful at this moment.
Both this story and “Elgar’s Rondo” are also perfect depictions of the British class society, or should I say “English.” This is a distinction that is often made in the text in various situations.
Naturally, the reader cannot discern what are Elgar’s thoughts and what the author’s, David Pownall’s. The author masters his handicraft so well here, that the reader is easily deceived to believe that it is Elgar who is speaking and thinking.
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