Delius: Paris / Brigg Fair / Eventyr / Irmelin / La Calinda

Frederick Delius was born in the Northern English industrial city of Bradford in 1862 into a family of German extraction, and joined his father's business, once his schooling was over. Unsuited to the career his father had intended for him, he borrowed from his father enough money to set himself up in a business of his own, as an orange plantation owner in Florida. Here he was able to further his musical interests, notably with lessons from Thomas Ward in Jacksonville and by contact with the various musicians either living there or visiting the town in the winter months. He later moved to Danville in Virginia, abandoning his plantation and seeking now to earn a living as a musician. It was at this time that his father agreed to allow him to train as a musician at Leipzig Conservatory, which Delius entered in the summer of 1886, studying with Reinecke, Jadassohn and Sitte and forming an important friendship with Grieg. It was through the latter that paternal support was extended to Delius, allowing him to move to Paris and settle there as a composer. His meeting with the young painter Jelka Rosen led to a liaison. In 1897 they set up house together in Grez-sur-Loing and married in 1903.