Serenade

Elgar wrote the Serenade in E minor in 1892, and the Worcester Ladies' Orchestral Class gave the first performance under his direction at a private concert that year; the public premiere waited until 1896. His own piano duet arrangement carries a dedication to his wife Alice on their third wedding anniversary. No autograph of the score survives, so the Breitkopf edition of 1893 has served as the source text ever since. At this date he was still unknown, living by teaching and by writing for whatever ensembles he could reach.