The
Viola Concerto by
William Walton was written in 1929 for the violist
Lionel Tertis at the suggestion of Sir
Thomas Beecham. The concerto carries the dedication "To Christabel" (Christabel McLaren, Lady Aberconway). When Tertis rejected the manuscript, composer and violist
Paul Hindemith gave the first performance. 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. Tertis soon changed his mind and took the work up.