Kevin Sutton wrote:

>David Stewart wrote:
>
>>I bought the Dream of Gerontius as recommended by many of you.  I got the
>>Boult recording as I was told it is reliable.  I have listened to it with
>>and without the score but I am pretty sure most of it is going over my
>>head.  There are bits which I can relate to but I don't think I am quite
>>getting the rest.
>
>David, I think that you would understand this work better if you take into
>account that it is very, very Catholic (large C) in its scope.  If you are
>not yourself a Roman Catholic, you might do a little research into Cardinal
>Newman (who wrote the text) and to Catholic theology in general.  Perhaps
>if you reviewed the poem with a Priest, you might glean some insights.
>It is a stunning work!  Stick with it and it will reward you greatly!

As I remember it, the work is a touching contemplation and acceptance of
death after having lived a full life.  As such, it might not strike too
responsive a chord in a seventeen-year old (as I think David described
himself) even if he's a precocious seventeen-year old.

Walter Meyer