ABSTRACT
Mendelssohn's Elijah was in fact commissioned to be first performed in England. Not only that, it proved so popular that, with the sole exception of Handel's Messiah, it came quickly to surpass all other oratorios, and indeed the two were to become guaranteed staples of most choral festivities for the rest of the century. At the other end of the period, The Kingdom was not only the last of Elgar's oratorios; it can be seen to mark the end of an era not only for Elgar himself but also for the oratorio. Whether due to loss of faith or not, Elgar's musical compositions thereafter took a decidedly less religious direction. At the same time they also became more innovative, such that some have seen this latter work as standing in decidedly marked contrast to his oratorios that remain steeped in the music of the nineteenth century. Mendelssohn's Elijah is the right place to begin for more reasons for one.
