Elgar’s Cryptic Enigma Variations

Admired for the vibrant intensity of her playing, Karen Gomyo will perform Dvořák’s Violin Concerto, a powerful work that draws from the sources of Bohemian dances. Two unsolved enigmas remain in Edward Elgar’s Enigma Variations: first, the composer never revealed the origin of the work’s main theme. Second, the title of each variation gives only the initials of the friend or family member whose personality is being depicted, in many instances by imitating the style of a German composer.