Frederick Delius was a British composer, at least by birth. For most of his life he was elsewhere. In Florida, he managed his family's orange plantation. Here he heard the singing of the African-American workers. He then studied with Reinecke at the conservatory in Leipzig. The Scandinavian regions became a kind of second homeland for him, thanks in part to his friendship with Edvard Grieg. In
… France, his rich flower garden inspired him to create such orchestral gems as On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring (1912) and Summer Night on the River (1911). Far more ambitious is the oratorio Eine Messe des Lebens (1904-05), better known as A Mass of Life, after Nietzsche's philosophical cult classic Also sprach Zarathustra. The book's partly hysterical, partly poetic call to self-realization went in with Delius like God's word in an elder. Conductor Fritz Cassirer helped Delius compile suitable text fragments. The music is a mixture of Wagner and Strauss, although that characterization does not do justice to Delius' originality. 'He was highly original,' said conductor Mark Elder, 'but above all the harmonic progression characterized his exceptional quality.' (HJ)more
