Symphony No. 2 (Elgar) Elgar is widely acknowledged as one of England's leading composers, his orchestral music, with the exception of the "Enigma Variations", the Cello Concerto, and his "Pomp and Circumstance" Marches, is only sporadically programmed outside Britain. The symphony was first recorded complete in 1927 by His Master's Voice, part of the EMI group, conducted by the composer. This recording was later reissued on LP and later on CD. There was no further recording for eighteen years, until Sir Adrian Boult and the BBC Symphony Orchestra made a recordings of the symphony in 1944. Since then there have been more than twenty-four
Pomp and Circumstance Marches modified form, for the "Land of hope and glory" section of his "Coronation Ode" for King Edward VII. The words were further modified to fit the original tune, and the result has since become a fixture at the Last Night of the Proms, and an English sporting anthem. In the United States, the "Trio" section "Land of Hope and Glory" of March No. 1 is often known simply as "Pomp and Circumstance" or as "The Graduation March" and is played as the at virtually all high school and some college graduation ceremonies. It was first played at such a ceremony