To celebrate this Diamond Jubilee weekend for Queen Elizabeth II, I present here two records from the year before her accession to the throne. The opening of the Royal Festival Hall in 1951 included Handel’s Coronation Anthem “Zadok the Priest,” which was also heard during the Queen’s Coronation in June 1953. The 1951 concert also included Elgar’s Pomp and Circumstance March No.1, a staple, of course, of British patriotic events.

Handel – Zadok the Priest
Elgar – Pomp and Circumstance March No.1 in D major Op.39 “Land of Hope and Glory”
Royal Festival Orchestra and Chorus, Sir Malcolm Sargent

Handel – Zadok the Priest – RFH, Sargent

Elgar – Pomp and Circumstance No.1 – RFH, Sargent

(mp3 files – click to play, or right click the link, then select “Save as”)

His Master’s Voice Records DA 1980, 1981
Matrices 0EA 15573-1C, 15574-1C, 15575-1A, 15576-1A
Recorded live on 3rd May 1951 at the Ceremonial Opening Concert of the Royal Festival Hall, London