The Ralph Vaughan Williams Society, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, is proud to announce that Richard Hickox CBE was awarded its first International Medal of Honour for his remarkable contribution to the music of Vaughan Williams.
The Award was presented to Richard at a Philharmonia Orchestra concert as part of the Three Choirs Festival on 8th August 2004 in Gloucester Cathedral. Richard was conducting the original version of Vaughan Williams's A London Symphony for which he received the Gramophone Record of the Year Award 2001.
Stephen Connock MBE, Chairman of the Ralph Vaughan Williams Society, said "We are delighted to mark Richard’s achievements on behalf of Vaughan Williams with our first Medal of Honour. He understands the colours and contours of Vaughan Williams’s music and, most importantly, draws out the heart-warming nobility of spirit which is the essence of Vaughan Williams."
Richard Hickox said "I am thrilled to receive this honour. Vaughan Williams’s music has always been very close to my heart. I regard him as a composer of international stature and I hope that, through my recordings and performances, I have contributed to increasing recognition of his work."
When the news was announced, Bernard Day, Chairman of the Gloucester Three Choirs Festival, said "It is excellent news that the Three Choirs Festival’s concert on the 8th August 2004 has been chosen as the opportunity to make this Award to Richard Hickox. This concert is one of the highlights of our week long season and we all look forward to hearing Richard in his moving interpretation of the original version of A London Symphony.
