(William Congreve/George Frideric Handel/Leroy Anderson)
Composition by Leroy Anderson which was published after being finished in the summer of 1951 and is a transcription of “Where’er You Walk” which was an aria written by William Congreve for his opera Semele in 1707 which had the music written by John Eccles. In 1743 the composer George Frideric Handel took this libretto for his oratorio Semele, which was published the year after the premiere of The Messiah.
The arrangement of the music has retained the style of Handel and may be accompanied by chorus, in which case the solo trumpet is left out. There are versions written for band, chorus, or both together. The premiere performance date is not known but the Eastman-Rochester Pops Orchestra conducted by Frederick Fennell recorded it for the first time.
Eastman Rochester Pops Orchestra recordings
Mercury 432 013-2 (CD: The Music of Leroy Anderson)
Conductor – Frederick Fennell
Sources:
- http://www.leroy-anderson.com/html/hearthemusic.htm
- http://www.leroyanderson.com/html/newsletter-word-removed.htm
- http://www.binghamtonyouthsymphony.org/programs.html
- http://www.pbs.org/sleighride/Video&Music/Compositions_SongJupiter.htm
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semele_(oratorio)