The Black Knight, Op. 25 is a symphony/cantata for orchestra and chorus written by Edward Elgar in 1889–93. The librettist borrows from Longfellow's translation of the ballad Der schwarze Ritter by Ludwig Uhland.
Elgar was motivated to complete work on The Black Knight when offered a performance at the Worcester Festival. Cantatas were favoured by choral societies of the time. However, Elgar's desire to organize the loose format of the cantata by shaping it to a more rigid form is apparent. For example, Elgar divides the text into four contrasting scenes corresponding to the four movements of a typical symphony. Basil Maine, a leading Elgar biographer, believes the purpose of the work is to create a close mix of vocal and instrumental tones.[1]