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Born in Bradford to German parents, Frederick Delius soon discovered
that the commercial interests of his family were unpalatable. After a
two-year spell as an orange grower in Florida, he was helped by Edward
Grieg in persuading his father to allow a musical career. After studying
in Leipzig, he moved to Paris remaining in France for the rest of his
life. Another eminent musician, Sir Thomas Beecham, was probably the most
influential advocate of Delius' music in both England and America. Since
that time Delius' work has become immensely unfashionable and, whilst
not all of his work is of equal value, we have perhaps thrown out the
baby with the bath water and in the process lost some delightful music.
"In a Summer Garden", a beautifully evocative, extended rhapsody, was
dedicated to the composer's wife, Jelka Rosen, with an inscription taken
from Rosetti, "All are my blooms and all sweet blooms of love - To thee
I gave while Spring and Summer Sang". May this charming music with its
deft interplay of light and shade remind us of the delights of summer
still to come.
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