Albert Herring
After completing Paul Bunyan, Peter Grimes and The Rape of Lucretia, Benjamin Britten decided he should write a comedy. He called on Eric Crozier to provide him with a libretto who had directed Britten's first opera, Peter Grimes, at Sadler's Wells in 1945. Crozier founded the English Opera Group in 1947, and co-founded (with Britten) the Aldeburgh Festival in 1948. For Albert Herring, Crozier chose to relocate to Sussex a short story by Maupassant. In the story Madame Husson, is promoting chastity in her town by seeking to crown a rosière (i.e. Rose Queen, a girl of unimpeachable virtue). However, no girl can stand up to the investigations that take place, and Madame
Husson crowns the village idiot, Isidore, as the 'rosier' (Rose King). He uses his reward to "slum it" in Paris. In this version Madame Husson becomes Lady Billows and the village idiot, Albert Herring, a naive young man working at a green grocers.
The opera was first performed on 20 June 1947 at Glyndebourne, conducted by the Britten. Initially it was not received well but appreciation has grown considerably over the years. Among the cast members were Joan Cross and Peter Pears. Joan Cross was a well known operatic soprano doing both Italian and German roles and was also the director of the Sadler Wells Opera Company. Peter Pears, a tenor, was Britten’s partner and one of the founders of the Aldeburgh festival along with Britten. Many of Britten’s works were written for him. He suggested to Britten that the section of George Crabbe's collection of narrative poems The Borough about the fisherman Peter Grimes would make a good subject for an opera. He was Peter Grimes in the premiere, along with Cross as Ellen Orford.
Benjamin Britten and Eric Crozier
Peter Pears as Albert Herring in the premiere.
Albert Herring Act II
In the opera, a committee meets in Act I to choose a May Queen. According to Wikipedia, “The May Queen is also known as The Maiden, the goddess of spring, flower bride, queen of the faeries, and the lady of the flowers. The May Queen is a symbol of the stillness of nature around which everything revolves. She stands for purity, strength and the potential for growth, as the plants grow in May. She is one of many personifications of the energy of the earth.
She was once also known as Maid Marian in the medieval plays of Robin Hood and of the May Games - she is the young village girl, crowned with blossom, attended by children with garlands and white dresses. Some folklorists have drawn parallels between her and Maia, the Roman Goddess of Springtime, of Growth and Increase whose very name may be the root of "May".”
Unfortunately, Lady Billows’ housekeeper, Florence Pike has investigated all of the likely candidates among the young ladies of the neighborhood, and has found evidence which has ruled out any of them as the virginal May Queen. The local policeman Inspector Budd suggests Albert Herring to be instead a May King, because he assures everyone he is certainly virginal. The committee eventually agrees, and though Albert balks at the honor, his mother insists as she is interest in the 25 pounds.
In Act II the festival day arrives. The committee is setting up the tables and the kids are very excited, especially about the food that is being put out. They run around the table calling out the names of the dishes.
EMMIE, CIS, HARRY (whispering) Blimey! Jelly!
CIS Pink blancmange! Seedy cake! Seedy cake!
EMMIE, CIS, HARRY With icing on!
…
HARRY (whispering) Treacle tart!
CIS Sausagey rolls!
EMMIE Trifle! Trifle!
EMMIE, CIS, HARRY In a big bowl!
…
EMMIE Chicken and ham!
CIS Cheesey straws!
HARRY And marzipan!
The opera is set in April or May of 1900. Using Google books I was able to find several English cookbooks from around that date that had recipes for several of those dishes from that era.
Household Cookery Recipes - Mabel A.Rotherman
Longman's Green and Company - 39 Paternoster Row, London - 1901
Blancmange - Click here to see the recipe
From Larouse Gastronomique: “In classic cuisine a much-prized jellied almond cream. One of the oldest desserts, it was said by Grimod de La Reyniere to have originated in Languedoc. In the Middle Ages blancmange was both a white meat jelly made of pounded capon or veal and a dessert made from honey and almonds. Although the modern word is used to embrace milk jellies, often based on cornflour (cornstarch), traditional blancmanage is made with sweet almonds and a few bitter almonds that are pounded, pressed, sweetened and mixed with a flavouring and gelling agent. The latter was originally grated stag’s horn, subsequently replaced by beef or mutton juice, isinglass and finally gelatine. This dessert was often regarded as difficult to make because it had to be white and perfectly smooth.”
King Edward's Cookery Book - Florence A. George
London -Edward Arnold 37 Bedford Street. - Strand, W.C.1901
Florence George - “I have been induced to write this book because from my experience as mistress of cookery in King Edward's High School for Girls, Birmingham, I have felt the great need of a suitable text-book. My aim is to write a clear, concise, and methodical manual, which will contain everything that the ordinary Englishwoman of middle class need know about cookery.”
Sausage roll - Click here to see the recipe
From Wikipedia- “The wrapping of meat or other foodstuffs into dough can be traced back to the Classical Greek or Roman eras. However sausage rolls in the modern sense of meat surrounded by rolled pastry, appear to have been conceived at the beginning of the 19th century in France. From the beginning, use was made of flaky pastry, which in turn originated with the Hungarian croissant of the late 17th century. Early versions of the roll with pork as a filling proved popular in London during the Napoleonic Wars and it became identified as an English dish.”
Trifle - Click here to see the recipe
From the Encyclopedia Britannica - “Trifle, a common English dessert traditionally consisting of sponge cake soaked in brandy, sherry, or white wine that is layered with custard, fruit, or jam and then topped with whipped cream and slivered almonds or glacé cherries. It is typically served in glass dessert cups, revealing its colourful layers. Recipes for trifles date as far back as the 1590s. Trifles are often made at home, particularly at Christmas. They are light, simple affairs (hence their name). Owing to their alcohol content, they are also sometimes known as “tipsy cakes.””
Lemon Jelly - Click here to see the recipe
Jellies and other gelatine based foods like aspics are not very fashionable today. They seem artificial and usually take a great deal of time to prepare. In the past however, jellies and creams were often the crowning glories of the table. From Wikipedia. “In the eighteenth century, gelatin from calf's feet, isinglass and hartshorn was colored blue with violet juice, yellow with saffron, red with cochineal and green with spinach and allowed to set in layers in small, narrow glasses. It was flavored with sugar, lemon juice and mixed spices. This preparation was called jelly; English cookery writer Hannah Glasse was the first to record the use of this jelly in trifle in her book The Art of Cookery, first published in 1747. Preparations on making jelly (including illustrations) appear in the best selling cookbooks of English writers Eliza Acton and Isabella Beeton in the 19th century.”
The Day-by-Day Cookery Book - A. N. Whybrow
London, Sands & Company.1900
Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner Menus for every day of the year. It was published in 1900 the year in which the opera is set and contains many recipes that might have been found on the table at the May Festival. The entire book contains only recipes, but A. N. Whybrow writes a little conclusion.
“After one year’s pleasurable toil I put FINIS to my book with a reluctant hand, as it has given me many pleasant hours whilst writing it. I must crave the kind indulgence of my readers, and only hope that it will not be “Love’s labour lost.””
Treacle tart - Click here to see the recipe
“What Is Black Treacle? - Before the 17th century, treacle was used in medicine—the name stems from this use in Middle English. It was thought to be an antidote for poison and snakebites, among other ailments. It's made with the uncrystallized syrup that remains after sugar is refined.
Black treacle is a thick, dark, sugar syrup containing sugarcane molasses to create a somewhat bitter flavor. The term "treacle" is used generally to describe uncrystallized syrup in Britain and typically refers to the dark syrup. However, "light treacle" has been adopted when referring to golden syrup, another staple in British cooking. It's also a product of sugar refining, has a honey-like color and is much sweeter than black treacle. Both syrups are famously made by the Tate & Lyle company, the biggest producer and easiest brand to find. They can be used directly out of the tin and tend to be more expensive than other syrups.” - Spruce Eats
Treacle tart is a traditional British dessert. The earliest known recipe for the dessert is from English author Mary Jewry in her cookbooks from the late 19th century. - Wikipedia
The Practice of Cookery and Pastry Adapted to The Business of Everyday Life - Mrs I. Williamson
Edinburgh Printed by John Grieg and Son, Lawnmarket 1854
Seedy Cake - Click here to see the recipe
Seedy cakes figure prominently in the Unexpected Party that Bilbo hosts for the band of dwarves that come knocking at his door in The Hobbit. ““Gandalf Tea Wednesday. Or at least this is what Bilbo should have written down … Some called for ale, and some for porter, and one for coffee, and all of them for cakes . . . A big jug of coffee had just been set in the hearth, the seed-cakes were gone, and the dwarves were starting on a round of buttered scones”
Seed(y) cake is actually a very traditional cake which goes way back in British history. It was very popular in Victorian times, and a good seed cake recipe would have been included in most cookery books of that era. This cake is flavored with caraway or other flavorful seeds. Caraway seeds have been long used in British cookery, and at one time caraway-seed biscuits were prepared to mark the end of the sowing of the spring wheat