Description
Book SynopsisThe Choral-Orchestral Works of Ralph Vaughan Williams: Autographs, Context, Discourse combines contextual knowledge, a musical commentary, an inventory of the holograph manuscripts, and a critical assessment of the opus to create substantial and meticulous examinations of Ralph Vaughan Williams’ choral-orchestral works. The contents include an equitable choice of pieces from the various stages in the life of the composer and an analysis of pieces from the various stages of Williams’ life. The earliest are taken from the pre-World War I years, when Vaughan Williams was constructing his identity as an academic and musician—Vexilla Regis (1894), Mass (1899), and A Sea Symphony (1910). The middle group are chosen from the interwar period—Sancta Civitas (1925), Benedicite (1929), Magnificat (1932), Five Tudor Portraits (1935), Dona nobis pacem (1936)—written after Vaughan Williams had found his mature voice. The last cluster—Thanksgiving for Victory (1944), Fantasia (Quasi Variazione) on the ‘Old 104’ Psalm Tune (1949), Sons of Light (1950), Hodie (1954), The Bridal Day/Epithalamion (1938/1957)—typify the works finished or revisited during the final years of the composer’s life, near the end of the Second World War and immediately before or after his second marriage (1953).
Table of ContentsChapter One: Vexilla Regis Chapter Two: Mass Chapter Three: A Sea Symphony Chapter Four: Sancta Civitas Chapter Five: Benedicite Chapter Six: Magnificat Chapter Seven: Five Tudor Portraits Chapter Eight: Dona Nobis Pacem Chapter Nine: Thanksgiving for Victory/A Song of Thanksgiving Chapter Ten: Fantasia (Quasi Variazione) on the ‘Old 104th’ Psalm Tune Chapter Eleven: The Sons of Light Chapter Twelve: Hodie (This Day) Chapter Thirteen: The Bridal Day/Epithalamion Chapter Thirteen Appendix: The Bridal Day and Epithalamion as Set by Ralph Vaughan Williams
