{"id":11894,"date":"2023-08-28T13:10:11","date_gmt":"2023-08-28T13:10:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/main\/?p=11894"},"modified":"2023-08-28T14:27:02","modified_gmt":"2023-08-28T14:27:02","slug":"ed-sheeran-finds-classical-music-inspiration-in-upcoming-album","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/main\/2023\/08\/28\/ed-sheeran-finds-classical-music-inspiration-in-upcoming-album\/","title":{"rendered":"Ed Sheeran Finds Classical Music Inspiration in Upcoming Album"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Ed
(L-R) Ed Sheeran (Photo Wikipedia\/ Harald Krichel) \/ Edward Elgar (Public Domain)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The British singer-songwriter recently announced his next album, \u201cAutumn Variations,\u201d inspired by Edward Elgar\u2019s 1899 Enigma Variations.<\/p>\n

The Scoop:<\/strong> On Thursday, the Grammy-award-winning singer Ed Sheeran announced his second album of 2023, \u201cAutumn Variations.\u201d The album will be produced by The National\u2019s Aaron Dessner, also known for his collaborations with Taylor Swift and Gracie Abrams.<\/p>\n

The Inspiration:<\/strong> Sheeran was inspired by Edward Elgar\u2019s 14-movement Op. 36, Variations on an Original Theme, popularly known as the Enigma Variations. Sheeran explained in a statement<\/a> that each movement in Elgar\u2019s opus was inspired by a different one of the composer\u2019s friends, which inspired Sheeran to do the same on his 14-song album.<\/p>\n

The Comparison:<\/strong> In a 1911 program note, Elgar wrote of his Enigma Variations: \u201cThis work, commenced in a spirit of humour & continued in deep seriousness, contains sketches of the composer’s friends. \u2026 The sketches are not ‘portraits’ but each variation contains a distinct idea founded on some particular personality or perhaps on some incident known only to two people.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sheeran\u2019s notes about his album are written in the same vein. He said, \u201cLast autumn, I found that my friends and I were going through so many life changes. \u2026 When I learned about my friends\u2019 different situations, I wrote songs, some from their perspectives, some from mine, to capture how they and I viewed the world at that time.\u201d<\/p>\n

Edward Elgar improvised<\/a> much of his Variations one night to his wife after a long day. Sheeran described a similar fervour when writing his\u00a0 album with Aaron Dessner, saying,\u201cWe wrote and recorded non-stop.\u201d<\/p>\n

When can I hear it?:<\/strong> Sheeran\u2019s album won\u2019t be out till September 29th. Until then, enjoy Elgar\u2019s heart-wrenching and intimately crafted Nimrod from Enigma.<\/p>\n