COVE

His Master's Voice – 04168, In A Persian Garden. Recording of this composition. There are no digital recordings of the 1905 performance, so this sample record is from EMGColonel's personal collection of pre-WWII records. Bass Vocals by George Baker, Contralto Vocals by Edna Thornton, Soprano Vocals by Agnes Nicholls, Tenor Vocals by Hubert Eisdell and Piano Accompaniment by Madame Adami.

In A Persian Garden: A Song-Cycle for Four Solo Voices (Soprano, Contralto, Teno and Bass with Pianoforte Accompaniment) was composed by Liza Lehmann and Copyrighted by Metzler & Co. Ltd. in 1896, but this edition was Published in 1920, "By kind permission of Messrs. MacMillan & Co". It was sold exclusively in The United States and British North America. It selected words from the Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám, the Edward FitzGerald translation. The language in the songs most closely matches FitzGerald's 4th edition.

There are 76 pages of various wear, not including the cover, back cover, and advertisement pages. The pages themselves have no extra decoration, but the book is not devoid of the kind of opulence often associated with the Rubáiyát. On the front cover, in vibrant yellow and blue, there is a facsimile of an arched entryway, heavily detailed with brocade flowers. There is no mention of a possible artist for the cover art. Inside, the pages are heavy but rough, as is the printed font. It's clear that the value in songbooks, aside from clarity, is the ability to be used frequently, and produced or sold in multiples. The song format is exactly what makes this edition so unique. Individual verses are singled out to be repeated by the quartet, a duet, or a speciality solo. Lehmann takes artistic licence to the rhythm of each quatrain and adds repetition.

Each performance of this music will of course, also be unique. Tucked into the front of the songbook is a programme for a performance of In a Persian Garden, given for the Woman's Club in Madison, Wisconsin. The singers all feature in print: "Miss Genevieve Church Smith, Soprano, Mr Elias A. Bredin, Tenor, Mrs Frances. Hiestand, Contralto, Mr Alexis Baas, Bass." Note the accompaniment, which is not printed, but penned in loopy cursive below: "Accompanied by Miss Alice Regan."  The pamphlet itself could not resist a little detailing and included some small vine-shaped scrolling and a small flower in its corners.

What's truly interesting about this combination of works is that this programme predates the book it's in. Knowing from the inside cover that the songbook was published in 1920, it is a marvel and a mystery how a well-loved pamphlet of the song performance from 1905 found its way inside. Were the two combined by a collector at some point who wanted to keep relevant materials together? Did someone who saw the performance in 1905 come across the songbook at least 15 years later, and purchased it as a pair to their keepsake? We know that this programme is from Madison, Wisconsin, but there is no distinction for the origin of the greater book.