EDWARD ELGAR

BORN 2 June 1857, Worcestershire, England.

DIED 23 February 1934, from cancer, Worcester.

FAMILY Son of William, a piano tuner who set up a musical shop, and Ann, daughter of a farm worker. Fourth of seven children.

The creator of Land Of Hope And Glory, Elgar met prejudice from the establishment and suffered from depression. He struggled until he married wealthy Caroline ‘Alice’ Roberts, who was with him until she died in 1920. After her death he composed virtually nothing. Elgar’s finest works express nostalgia for rural England.