counter-theme. A development passage leads to the coda that draws the earlier themes into a characteristic Walton fugal treatment, leading to the climactic synthesis of the themes. Critical reception The work was greeted with enthusiasm. It brought Walton to the forefront of British classical music. In The Manchester Guardian, Eric Blom wrote, "This young composer is a born genius" and said that it was tempting to call the concerto the best thing in recent music of any nationality. The musical scholar Sir Donald Tovey wrote: In 1931 the teenage Benjamin Britten, later a friend but not an uncritical admirer of Walton, wrote in his diary about "Walton's wonderful Vla Concerto (beautifully played by Tertis) … a work of genius". A dissenting voice was that of Sir Edward Elgar, who heard the concerto at the Three Choirs Festival in 1932 – the only time the two composers met. Elgar did not like the work and is said to have expressed dismay privately that "such music should be thought fit for a stringed instrument". Ballet In 1972 the choreographer Joe Layton used the concerto for a ballet about Oscar Wilde, O.W., given by the Royal Ballet at Sadler's Wells Theatre, London. The prologue of the ballet was danced to music from Walton's The Quest, and for the main section the Viola Concerto was used. At the premiere Riddle was the viola soloist. Recordings The Riddle, Primrose and Power versions use the original scoring. Source: Naxos Music Library. Notes, references and sources Notes References Sources External links Video – William Walton – Viola Concerto (26:23). Walton Compositions by William Walton 1929 compositions 1961 compositions