Elgar's Second Symphony was dedicated to the memory of which king?
Symphony No. 2 (Elgar) and in fact, the "Daily Mail" gave it a warm review, stating, "the symphony was received with unhesitating and most cordial warmth". There is much speculation as to who inspired Elgar to write this symphony. It was officially dedicated to Edward VII, who died in May 1910, but many scholars nonetheless believe his close friend Alice Stuart Wortley, with whom he was rumoured to have a romantic liaison, served as inspiration. Others tie the work to Elgar's grief over the death of his close friend Alfred E. Rodewald in 1903, as shortly thereafter, Elgar started sketching the "Larghetto" movement of
Symphony No. 2 (Elgar) correspondent Alice Stuart-Wortley, in which Elgar states: These remarks, recounted by Elgar's friend Charles Sanford Terry, shed light on Elgar's creative process. Some sketches of the Symphony No. 2 date back to 1903, a letter from October of that year indicating an idea for a symphony in E-flat major to be dedicated to his friend and conductor Hans Richter. The symphony was set aside during the composition of "In the South", Symphony No. 1, and the Violin Concerto. Rejected ideas from the latter work and earlier sketches joined the material Elgar began developing in late 1910 to complete the piece.