Charles Hubert Hastings Parry

Symphonic Variations in E minor

Charles Hubert Hastings Parry (1848-1918) composed the Symphonic Variations in E minor only two years prior to the completion of the Enigma Variations by his well-known student, Edward Elgar. It premiered on June 3, 1897, with Parry himself conducting the Philharmonic in London. While Parry and other composers from his era fell out of favor in the cultural shift that followed World War I, his Symphonic Variations remained the primary orchestral work, along with a few of his popular choral compositions, still occasionally found on concert programs. While Parry enjoyed a revival of his larger catalog in the latter part of the 20th century, Symphonic Variations remains his most popular instrumental work. The orchestral tour-de-force includes 27 variations on an original theme in a single movement. Instrumentation: 2.2.2.2: 4.2.3.1: Timp: Str (9-8-7-6-5 in set).