Song of Summer
Encyclopedia
Song of Summer is a 1968
black-and-white film written, produced and directed by Ken Russell
, who also plays a cameo role as a philandering
priest. It portrays the final six years of the life of Frederick Delius
, when he was blind and paralysed, and when Eric Fenby
lived with the composer and his wife Jelka
as Delius's amanuensis
. The title is borrowed from the Delius tone poem A Song of Summer
, which is heard along with other Delius works in the film. It has received wide praise since its first screening, and Ken Russell himself said it was the best film he ever made and he would not have done a single shot differently.
It starred Max Adrian
as Delius, Christopher Gable
as Fenby, and Maureen Pryor
as Delius’s wife Jelka
. The cinematography was by Dick Bush
, and the editing was by Roger Crittenden. It was shot on black-and-white 35mm film rather than videotape. It was first broadcast on BBC
television on 15 September 1968 as part of its Omnibus series. In 2001, a slightly shortened version was released on DVD, as Delius: Song of Summer.
and their servants at Grez-sur-Loing
, 70 kilometres south of Paris
, had never even heard of Fenby, a struggling 22-year-old composer and theatre organist living with his parents in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, but he accepted Fenby’s unsolicited offer. Fenby stayed with the Deliuses at Grez, on and off for six years, until Delius’s death in 1934. He had immense difficulties in dealing with the cantankerous, irascible and impatient composer (perhaps partly excused by his constant pain). Neither party had ever worked this way before, but Fenby was immediately expected to keep up with Delius’s fast pace when dictating, and to make sense of his out-of-tune singing. He was also required to read for long stretches to Delius, the composer’s favourite books being Mark Twain
’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
and Tom Sawyer
. Fenby was a devout Roman Catholic
and Delius hated Christianity
, even going so far as to say that Fenby should not go to the local chapel but visit one further away. On his first visit home, Fenby had a nervous breakdown and lost the use of his own legs for two weeks. Later, Jelka needed to go for treatment for stomach cancer, and Fenby virtually became Delius’s nurse for a month. Delius died only two days after Jelka returned.
The film is memorable for Max Adrian
’s portrayal of Delius and Christopher Gable
’s of Fenby. Eric Fenby coached both actors in their roles and regarded their portrayals as "absolutely true to character" and the film as "disturbingly lifelike". However, he did not attend the actual filming, in order not to distract the director, and also on request from Christopher Gable, who was making his first film (he had previously been a dancer with the Royal Ballet). Max Adrian was a favourite actor of Ken Russell's. Adrian told Fenby that he had more difficulty in ridding himself of involvement in the role of Delius than he had ever experienced with other roles.
, Elgar
and Debussy
, and would later make films about Richard Strauss
, Tchaikovsky
, Liszt
and others.) Words like "subtle", "sensitive", "exquisite", "moving", "beautiful", "poignant", "magical", "exceptional" and "tour de force" recur in critiques of Song of Summer. The acting by the principals was universally praised. When he saw the finished film, Eric Fenby was traumatised, for it brought to the surface feelings he had been suppressing for decades, and he suffered a severe nervous breakdown which took him a full year to recover from.
calls at Grez, and Country Gardens
and Handel in the Strand are heard and another in which Delius has a record of Jerome Kern
's "Old Man River" played. The original film starts with an excerpt from a Laurel and Hardy
film, and then shows Fenby improvising music on an organ for the theatre patrons. In the DVD release, copyright permission for the Laurel and Hardy film could not be obtained, so the introduction was cut from the release; however, the music credits still include Eric Fenby.
Russell explored the possibility of making the film at the Delius home at Grez, but that proved impractical. Budgetary considerations meant it could not be made in France at all, so it was filmed mainly in Surrey, with extra scenes in Scarborough and the Lake District.
The gramophone used in the film was Delius's own, and Jelka's scattering of rose petals over Frederick's dead body from her wheelchair was exactly what she did in real life.
One scene shows Fenby attending a church and discovering the parish priest (played by Ken Russell himself) making love to a girl in a pew. This episode apparently occurred, but it was not mentioned in Delius As I Knew Him. Fenby told it to Russell for his ears alone and was shocked when he saw it in the film.
1968 in film
The year 1968 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* October 30 - The film The Lion in Winter, starring Katharine Hepburn, debuts.* November 1 - The MPAA's film rating system is introduced.-Top grossing films :- Awards :...
black-and-white film written, produced and directed by Ken Russell
Ken Russell
Henry Kenneth Alfred "Ken" Russell was an English film director, known for his pioneering work in television and film and for his flamboyant and controversial style. He attracted criticism as being obsessed with sexuality and the church...
, who also plays a cameo role as a philandering
Promiscuity
In humans, promiscuity refers to less discriminating casual sex with many sexual partners. The term carries a moral or religious judgement and is viewed in the context of the mainstream social ideal for sexual activity to take place within exclusive committed relationships...
priest. It portrays the final six years of the life of Frederick Delius
Frederick Delius
Frederick Theodore Albert Delius, CH was an English composer. Born in the north of England to a prosperous mercantile family of German extraction, he resisted attempts to recruit him to commerce...
, when he was blind and paralysed, and when Eric Fenby
Eric Fenby
Eric William Fenby OBE was an English composer and teacher who is best known for being Frederick Delius's amanuensis from 1928 to 1934. He helped Delius realise a number of works that would not otherwise have been forthcoming....
lived with the composer and his wife Jelka
Jelka Rosen
Helena Sophie Emilie "Jelka" Delius was a painter, and wife of composer Frederick Delius.-Life and work:...
as Delius's amanuensis
Amanuensis
Amanuensis is a Latin word adopted in various languages, including English, for certain persons performing a function by hand, either writing down the words of another or performing manual labour...
. The title is borrowed from the Delius tone poem A Song of Summer
A Song of Summer
A Song of Summer is a tone poem for orchestra by Frederick Delius, completed in 1931.A Song of Summer derived from an unpublished 1918 symphonic work, originally called Poem of Life and Love. In 1921, Delius told Peter Warlock that he had misplaced most of that score...
, which is heard along with other Delius works in the film. It has received wide praise since its first screening, and Ken Russell himself said it was the best film he ever made and he would not have done a single shot differently.
It starred Max Adrian
Max Adrian
Max Adrian was a Northern Irish stage, film and television actor and singer. He was a founding member of both the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre....
as Delius, Christopher Gable
Christopher Gable
Christopher Gable, CBE was an English ballet dancer, choreographer, and actor.Born in London, Gable studied at the Royal Ballet School, joining the Sadler's Wells Royal Ballet in 1957...
as Fenby, and Maureen Pryor
Maureen Pryor
Maureen Pryor was an Irish-born English character actress. She appeared on stage, screen and television.-Early life:Maureen Pryor was born Maureen Pook in 1922 in Limerick, Ireland, to a Cockney father and an Irish mother...
as Delius’s wife Jelka
Jelka Rosen
Helena Sophie Emilie "Jelka" Delius was a painter, and wife of composer Frederick Delius.-Life and work:...
. The cinematography was by Dick Bush
Dick Bush
Dick Bush was a prolific cinematographer whose career spanned over thirty years. He was born on 2 December 1931 and died on 4 August 1997 in Devon. In 1980, he was nominated for a BAFTA for Best Cinematography for Yanks. In 1982, he was nominated for a similar award by the British Society of...
, and the editing was by Roger Crittenden. It was shot on black-and-white 35mm film rather than videotape. It was first broadcast on BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
television on 15 September 1968 as part of its Omnibus series. In 2001, a slightly shortened version was released on DVD, as Delius: Song of Summer.
Book
Song of Summer was based on Eric Fenby’s 1936 memoir Delius As I Knew Him (re-released in 1966), which recounts his experience of offering his services in transcribing Frederick Delius’s music from the composer's dictation. The 66-year-old Delius, who lived with his wife JelkaJelka Rosen
Helena Sophie Emilie "Jelka" Delius was a painter, and wife of composer Frederick Delius.-Life and work:...
and their servants at Grez-sur-Loing
Grez-sur-Loing
Grez-sur-Loing is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in north-central France.-People:It is located 70 km south of Paris and is notable for the artists and musicians who have lived or stayed there...
, 70 kilometres south of Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, had never even heard of Fenby, a struggling 22-year-old composer and theatre organist living with his parents in Scarborough, North Yorkshire, but he accepted Fenby’s unsolicited offer. Fenby stayed with the Deliuses at Grez, on and off for six years, until Delius’s death in 1934. He had immense difficulties in dealing with the cantankerous, irascible and impatient composer (perhaps partly excused by his constant pain). Neither party had ever worked this way before, but Fenby was immediately expected to keep up with Delius’s fast pace when dictating, and to make sense of his out-of-tune singing. He was also required to read for long stretches to Delius, the composer’s favourite books being Mark Twain
Mark Twain
Samuel Langhorne Clemens , better known by his pen name Mark Twain, was an American author and humorist...
’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is a novel by Mark Twain, first published in England in December 1884 and in the United States in February 1885. Commonly named among the Great American Novels, the work is among the first in major American literature to be written in the vernacular, characterized by...
and Tom Sawyer
Tom Sawyer
Thomas "Tom" Sawyer is the title character of the Mark Twain novel The Adventures of Tom Sawyer . He appears in three other novels by Twain: Adventures of Huckleberry Finn , Tom Sawyer Abroad , and Tom Sawyer, Detective .Sawyer also appears in at least three unfinished Twain works, Huck and Tom...
. Fenby was a devout Roman Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
and Delius hated Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
, even going so far as to say that Fenby should not go to the local chapel but visit one further away. On his first visit home, Fenby had a nervous breakdown and lost the use of his own legs for two weeks. Later, Jelka needed to go for treatment for stomach cancer, and Fenby virtually became Delius’s nurse for a month. Delius died only two days after Jelka returned.
The film is memorable for Max Adrian
Max Adrian
Max Adrian was a Northern Irish stage, film and television actor and singer. He was a founding member of both the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre....
’s portrayal of Delius and Christopher Gable
Christopher Gable
Christopher Gable, CBE was an English ballet dancer, choreographer, and actor.Born in London, Gable studied at the Royal Ballet School, joining the Sadler's Wells Royal Ballet in 1957...
’s of Fenby. Eric Fenby coached both actors in their roles and regarded their portrayals as "absolutely true to character" and the film as "disturbingly lifelike". However, he did not attend the actual filming, in order not to distract the director, and also on request from Christopher Gable, who was making his first film (he had previously been a dancer with the Royal Ballet). Max Adrian was a favourite actor of Ken Russell's. Adrian told Fenby that he had more difficulty in ridding himself of involvement in the role of Delius than he had ever experienced with other roles.
Reception
The film has often been described as the best of the biographical films Ken Russell made for the BBC in the 1960s. (He had previously made films about BartókBéla Bartók
Béla Viktor János Bartók was a Hungarian composer and pianist. He is considered one of the most important composers of the 20th century and is regarded, along with Liszt, as Hungary's greatest composer...
, Elgar
Edward Elgar
Sir Edward William Elgar, 1st Baronet OM, GCVO was an English composer, many of whose works have entered the British and international classical concert repertoire. Among his best-known compositions are orchestral works including the Enigma Variations, the Pomp and Circumstance Marches, concertos...
and Debussy
Claude Debussy
Claude-Achille Debussy was a French composer. Along with Maurice Ravel, he was one of the most prominent figures working within the field of impressionist music, though he himself intensely disliked the term when applied to his compositions...
, and would later make films about Richard Strauss
Richard Strauss
Richard Georg Strauss was a leading German composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras. He is known for his operas, which include Der Rosenkavalier and Salome; his Lieder, especially his Four Last Songs; and his tone poems and orchestral works, such as Death and Transfiguration, Till...
, Tchaikovsky
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Russian: Пётр Ильи́ч Чайко́вский ; often "Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky" in English. His names are also transliterated "Piotr" or "Petr"; "Ilitsch", "Il'ich" or "Illyich"; and "Tschaikowski", "Tschaikowsky", "Chajkovskij"...
, Liszt
Franz Liszt
Franz Liszt ; ), was a 19th-century Hungarian composer, pianist, conductor, and teacher.Liszt became renowned in Europe during the nineteenth century for his virtuosic skill as a pianist. He was said by his contemporaries to have been the most technically advanced pianist of his age...
and others.) Words like "subtle", "sensitive", "exquisite", "moving", "beautiful", "poignant", "magical", "exceptional" and "tour de force" recur in critiques of Song of Summer. The acting by the principals was universally praised. When he saw the finished film, Eric Fenby was traumatised, for it brought to the surface feelings he had been suppressing for decades, and he suffered a severe nervous breakdown which took him a full year to recover from.
Music
Song of Summer uses the music of Delius throughout, except for a passage where Percy GraingerPercy Grainger
George Percy Aldridge Grainger , known as Percy Grainger, was an Australian-born composer, arranger and pianist. In the course of a long and innovative career he played a prominent role in the revival of interest in British folk music in the early years of the 20th century. He also made many...
calls at Grez, and Country Gardens
Country Gardens
Country Gardens is an English folk tune collected by Cecil Sharp and arranged for piano in 1918 by Percy Grainger.In 2008 was added to the .-Format of renditions:...
and Handel in the Strand are heard and another in which Delius has a record of Jerome Kern
Jerome Kern
Jerome David Kern was an American composer of musical theatre and popular music. One of the most important American theatre composers of the early 20th century, he wrote more than 700 songs, used in over 100 stage works, including such classics as "Ol' Man River", "Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man", "A...
's "Old Man River" played. The original film starts with an excerpt from a Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy
Laurel and Hardy were one of the most popular and critically acclaimed comedy double acts of the early Classical Hollywood era of American cinema...
film, and then shows Fenby improvising music on an organ for the theatre patrons. In the DVD release, copyright permission for the Laurel and Hardy film could not be obtained, so the introduction was cut from the release; however, the music credits still include Eric Fenby.
Details
A theme that is quite overtly explored is the dichotomy between a composer who is an egotistical and tyrannical monster and womaniser (his blindness and paralysis were the result of tertiary syphilis contracted at Paris brothels and with other women), but who writes ravishingly beautiful, lyrical, sensitive music. Fenby himself comments "I can't reconcile such hardness with such lovely music".Russell explored the possibility of making the film at the Delius home at Grez, but that proved impractical. Budgetary considerations meant it could not be made in France at all, so it was filmed mainly in Surrey, with extra scenes in Scarborough and the Lake District.
The gramophone used in the film was Delius's own, and Jelka's scattering of rose petals over Frederick's dead body from her wheelchair was exactly what she did in real life.
One scene shows Fenby attending a church and discovering the parish priest (played by Ken Russell himself) making love to a girl in a pew. This episode apparently occurred, but it was not mentioned in Delius As I Knew Him. Fenby told it to Russell for his ears alone and was shocked when he saw it in the film.
Inaccuracies
- The Laurel and Hardy film shown was Way Out WestWay Out WestWay Out West may refer to:* Way Out West , a world music influenced jazz group from Melbourne* Way Out West , a progressive house duo from the United Kingdom* Way Out West , starring Laurel and Hardy...
, which was a sound film and would not have required additional music from a theatre organ. - Eric FenbyEric FenbyEric William Fenby OBE was an English composer and teacher who is best known for being Frederick Delius's amanuensis from 1928 to 1934. He helped Delius realise a number of works that would not otherwise have been forthcoming....
is shown playing chessChessChess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...
with his father, who is wearing an open-neck shirt. In fact, Fenby's father could not play chess and Eric never saw him without a collar and tie. - Percy GraingerPercy GraingerGeorge Percy Aldridge Grainger , known as Percy Grainger, was an Australian-born composer, arranger and pianist. In the course of a long and innovative career he played a prominent role in the revival of interest in British folk music in the early years of the 20th century. He also made many...
(born 1882) was 24 years older than Fenby (born 1906), but the actors playing these roles were the same age (both born in 1940) and there was no overt attempt to make Grainger appear considerably older than Fenby. - Although he had various paintings by Edvard MunchEdvard MunchEdvard Munch was a Norwegian Symbolist painter, printmaker and an important forerunner of expressionist art. His best-known composition, The Scream, is part of a series The Frieze of Life, in which Munch explored the themes of love, fear, death, melancholia, and anxiety.- Childhood :Edvard Munch...
, Delius did not own The ScreamThe ScreamScream is the title of Expressionist paintings and prints in a series by Norwegian artist Edvard Munch, showing an agonized figure against a blood red sky...
, which is shown on the wall of Fenby’s room. - In one scene, Delius, JelkaJelka RosenHelena Sophie Emilie "Jelka" Delius was a painter, and wife of composer Frederick Delius.-Life and work:...
and Fenby listen to a recording of his Appalachia on a gramophone record, but this music was not first recorded until four years after Delius's death. - Jelka puts on a recording of The Walk to the Paradise Garden from his opera A Village Romeo and JulietA Village Romeo and JulietA Village Romeo and Juliet is an opera by Frederick Delius, the fourth of his six operas. The composer himself, with his wife Jelka, wrote the English-language libretto based on the short story Romeo und Julia auf dem Dorfe by the Swiss author Gottfried Keller. The first performance was at the...
, accidentally starting on side 2. When Delius rudely corrects her, she apologises and puts on side 1, but what we hear is music that actually starts six bars later than the music she put on first.
Principals
- Director and writer: Ken RussellKen RussellHenry Kenneth Alfred "Ken" Russell was an English film director, known for his pioneering work in television and film and for his flamboyant and controversial style. He attracted criticism as being obsessed with sexuality and the church...
- Frederick DeliusFrederick DeliusFrederick Theodore Albert Delius, CH was an English composer. Born in the north of England to a prosperous mercantile family of German extraction, he resisted attempts to recruit him to commerce...
: Max AdrianMax AdrianMax Adrian was a Northern Irish stage, film and television actor and singer. He was a founding member of both the Royal Shakespeare Company and the National Theatre.... - Eric FenbyEric FenbyEric William Fenby OBE was an English composer and teacher who is best known for being Frederick Delius's amanuensis from 1928 to 1934. He helped Delius realise a number of works that would not otherwise have been forthcoming....
: Christopher GableChristopher GableChristopher Gable, CBE was an English ballet dancer, choreographer, and actor.Born in London, Gable studied at the Royal Ballet School, joining the Sadler's Wells Royal Ballet in 1957... - Jelka DeliusJelka RosenHelena Sophie Emilie "Jelka" Delius was a painter, and wife of composer Frederick Delius.-Life and work:...
: Maureen PryorMaureen PryorMaureen Pryor was an Irish-born English character actress. She appeared on stage, screen and television.-Early life:Maureen Pryor was born Maureen Pook in 1922 in Limerick, Ireland, to a Cockney father and an Irish mother... - Percy GraingerPercy GraingerGeorge Percy Aldridge Grainger , known as Percy Grainger, was an Australian-born composer, arranger and pianist. In the course of a long and innovative career he played a prominent role in the revival of interest in British folk music in the early years of the 20th century. He also made many...
: David CollingsDavid CollingsDavid Collings is a British actor. He has played many different roles on various television programmes, including the leading dramatic role in Fyodor Dostoyevsky's Crime and Punishment in 1964.... - Minor roles are played by:
- Roger Worrod (Bruder, the German servant, who reads NietzscheFriedrich NietzscheFriedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche was a 19th-century German philosopher, poet, composer and classical philologist...
to Delius, feeds him, and carries him from room to room) - Geraldine Sherman (girl next door)
- Elizabeth Ercy (maid)
- Norman James (doctor)
- Roger Worrod (Bruder, the German servant, who reads Nietzsche