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Albion
Records Launched
Albion Records is the CD subsidiary of the RVW Society. It
released its first CD in October 2007 entitled "The Sky
Shall be Our Roof" featuring 19 rare songs from the operas
of Ralph Vaughan Williams. Visit:
www.albionrecords.org
Ten CDs are planned. |
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Vaughan
Williams speaks!
This BBC page has a profile of RVW plus an audio file of him speaking on a world
service programme in 1956 on the 'glory of the English Hymn'. |
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Philharmonia
Podcasts
A well produced series of podcasts covering Vaughan Williams experience as a
stretcher bearer in the First World War, The Pilgrim's
Progress. Paul Edmund-Davies looks at the Sea
Symphony and Mark van de Wiel, the Philharmonia Orchestra's Joint Principal
clarinettist looks at the London Symphony.
Click here for excellent media page. |
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The
Leith Hill Festival
Vaughan Williams became the first festival
conductor (click to see our page) in 1905, a post which he held
until his retirement in 1955 although he continued to conduct until
the year of his death in 1958. The festival became famous for VW’s
unique interpretations of the Bach 'Passions', a recording of which
is available on the 'Pearl'
label.
Many famous musicians of the day performed at the Dorking venues,
drawn by the VW charisma. The festival, held in Spring, continues
to this very day in much the same format, with a competition for
local choirs, followed by either The St Matthew or St John Passion.
Vaughan Williams wrote "It is better to be vitally parochial
than to be an emasculate cosmopolitan. The great names in music were
at first local and the greatest of them all, John Sebastan Bach remained
a local musician all his life." |
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Faber
A brief biography by Michael Kennedy for Faber. |
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Discovering
Music on Radio 3
Bookmark this superb BBC archive. Excellent analysis of the Tallis
Fantasia and the 5th Symphony and illustrated with musical examples. |
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Musical
Times
From the archives, an Obituary of Vaughan Williams with tributes
from: John Ireland, Sir Adrian Boult, Sir John Barbirolli, Herbert
Howells, Sir Arthur Bliss, Sir Steuart Wilson, Sir George Dyson,
Frank Howes, Norman Demuth, Alun Hoddinott, Michael Kennedy. |
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RVW
Trust
The RVW Trust make grants which support British music of the 20th
and 21st centuries. The Trust cannot support the music of the Founder,
at his insistence. |
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Songs
Text of Vaughan Williams songs. |
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Leopold
Stokowski
Leopold Stokowski was a great advocate of RVW's music. They were
both students at the Royal College of Music although Stokowski was
ten years younger and entered the RCM as RVW was about to leave.
According to Stokowski, Vaughan Williams was influential as a teacher
(probably more as an older student – RVW did not take up teaching
at the college until 1920). "I found him to be a remarkable
man – very profound, very warm".
There were many RVW works in the Stokowski repertoire. Stokowski
conducted the American premiere of the 9th Symphony and he made the
first recording of the 6th but it was the Tallis
Fantasia which he kept returning to. If you visit The University
of Pennsylvannia's site, his manuscript of the Tallis Fantasia score
is illustrated. |
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George
Butterworth
Butterworth was a close friend of Vaughan Williams and encouraged
him to write A London Symphony. |
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Gustav
Holst Website
In the autumn of 1895 Gustav met Ralph Vaughan Williams for the first
time. It was the beginning of a lifelong friendship. It was also
the beginning of their habit of playing their compositions to each
other while they were still working on them and giving each other
honest criticism. See also Holst
Museum |
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Gerald
Finzi
Although of different generations, Finzi and Vaughan Williams were
good friends until the younger man's death from Hodgkinsons in 1951.
The two shared a love of the work of Thomas Hardy. Vaughan Williams
wrote a great part of his 8th Symphony at Finzi's house in Ashmansworth.
Finzi settings of Hardy are among the finest. A biography is also
on Hyperion. |
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Music & Vision
article
Roderick Dunnett talks to Martin Lee-Browne about a newly discovered
Vaughan Williams setting of Walt Whitman. |
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Stainer & Bell
Stainer & Bell catalogue where works can be purchased or hired. |
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Musicweb
Huge site. This particular section decribes backgrounds to VW's film
music but the 'mother site' produces over 300 classical CD reviews
each month. Well over 10,000 reviews are now available on-line. |
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The
English Music Festival
The primary aim of the EMF is to promote the unjustly neglected music of
both well-known and lesser-known British composers. The Festival intends
to bring to live audiences pieces that deserve to be in the repertoire
but that are never, or rarely, played or recorded.
EMF 2008 – Dates have been confirmed:
23-27th May |
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Naxos
The RVW Society is proud to be working closely with Naxos, particularly
on world premiere recordings of rare Vaughan Williams' music. 'Willow
Wood' has been a notable success and we are hoping that future projects
will enjoy similar acclaim. |
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Discography
A BBC page containing a full listing of all VW albums with track
details and sound clips. |
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Ivor
Gurney
Gurney was regarded as one of the most promising men of his generation,
both in music and poetry. However, in 1922 the manic depressive
illness that had plagued him from early adulthood prompted his family
to have him declared insane. Throughout Gurney's years of confinement
as well as getting his works published or performed, Vaughan Williams
used to visit and send him books and maps which he loved. |
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The
Bach Choir
Vaughan Williams was one of a succession of outstanding Musical Directors. |
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Classical
Net
Classical Net features more than 6800 files including more than 5000
CD, SACD, DVD and book reviews and over 5300 links. Of interest to
RVW Society members are the excellent VW critical reviews by Steve
Schwartz. |
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Rebecca
Clarke
Composer and viola player, she sang in an Early Music ensemble of
which Butterworth was also a member, called 'The Palestrina Society'.
Vaughan Williams was their conductor. |
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Hodie
More personal views from 'Flying Inkpot', this time Vaughan Williams
Christmas oratorio, Hodie, conducted
by Wilcocks. |
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Arts
in Residence
Musical weekends in country houses and small country hotels with
good food, wine and friendly ambience. Guests need only the ability
to enjoy music; no technical knowledge is required. |
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Elgar
Society
Vaughan Williams had enormous respect for Elgar. The Society website
is a superb resource. One of the best of its kind. |
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The
British Library
Vaughan Williams' wife Ursula, donated most of the composer's manuscripts
to the British Museum. If you want to study the originals, illegible
scrawl and all, then this is the place! |
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The
49th Parallel
Vaughan Williams was 69 when he wrote the music for the film, The
49th Parallel. Society member Rolf Jordan wrote the article. |
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Chandos
Chandos have produced some superb Vaughan Williams recordings with
Hickox conducting. |
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Hyperion
Records
Some of the finest Vaughan Williams recordings have come from this
label, including The Early Chamber Music. |
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UK
Cathedral Music Links
For a supposed atheist or even agnostic, Vaughan Williams produced
a remarkable amount of church music. This site links you to the websites
of our great cathedral, abbeys, collegiate churches and college chapels – 'Britain's
choral heritage online'. |
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Sir
Roger Norrington
This is the fan club page of the great conductor and interpreter
of historic music as well as of course, Ralph Vaughan Williams. |
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Sir
Granville Bantock
"Sir Granville Bantock probably has the unenviable distinction - with less
than a handful of other arguable challengers - of being the most unreasonably
neglected composer in the whole pitiable chronicle of neglected 20th century
British music."
So writes Vincent Budd in his introduction to the Bantock Society
web site. "In his short musical autobiography Vaughan Williams
noted his regret in not having become his pupil, as Elgar had suggested,
since 'what Bantock did not know about the orchestra is not worth
knowing'.". |
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The
Arthur Bliss Society
Sir Arthur Bliss (1891-1975) was one of the most important figures
in British musical life from the early 1920s (when he was regarded
as an enfant terrible) through to his later life when he was a revolutionary
Master of the Queen's Music. |
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Documents
on line
If you are curious to see on-line documents from the National Archives
such as Vaughan Willams' Acceptance for admission to Officer Cadet
School, his next of kin form, medical card, an extract from certificate
of recommendation for admission to an Officer Unit, then visit this
site. Fascinating. |
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The
British Music Society
The British Music Society was founded in 1979 by enthusiasts who believed
an organisation was needed to stem the indifferent attitude generally displayed
towards the music of many British composers. |
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