One of the final major works by George Whitefield Chadwick, The Angel of Death was written in 1918. The symphonic poem was …
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The Metropolitan Museum says with regard to the carving from which Chadwick took inspiration: "The Milmore Memorial was a funerary commission from the family of the Boston sculptor Martin Milmore (1844–1883) to honor his memory and that of his brother, Joseph (1841–1886). The original bronze was erected in Forest Hills Cemetery, Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts, in 1893; this marble version was commissioned by the Metropolitan. The memorial represents the moment when the Angel of Death interrupts the sculptor’s work, staying the chisel in his left hand. She also holds a bunch of poppies, symbolizing eternal sleep. The poetic content of the sculpture, as well as French’s successful integration of real and ideal elements, makes the memorial a profound statement on the creation of art and the cessation of life."
The Metropolitan Museum says with regard to the carving from which Chadwick took inspiration: "The Milmore Memorial was a funerary commission from the family of the Boston sculptor Martin Milmore (1844–1883) to honor his memory and that of his brother, Joseph (1841–1886). The original bronze was erected in Forest Hills Cemetery, Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts, in 1893; this marble version was commissioned by the Metropolitan. The memorial represents the moment when the Angel of Death interrupts the sculptor’s work, staying the chisel in his left hand. She also holds a bunch of poppies, symbolizing eternal sleep. The poetic content of the sculpture, as well as French’s successful integration of real and ideal elements, makes the memorial a profound statement on the creation of art and the cessation of life."
Very dramatic work. There's a good deal of R. Strauss in this. It's very very good.