Vaughan Williams's Veranda

[vandermolen]

Vaughan Williams: Symphony No 5      Royal Liverpool PO/Handley

Twice this morning!     Even my wife became quite interested in the symphony. Like you mentioned, Jeffrey, this is a great gateway to Vaughan Williams's music. It has such a rich soundscape evoking numerous emotions and somehow resonates with individual memories and experiences. There are a few passages which have a degree of disharmony, but I think that the unique harmony of Vaughan Williams' tends to dominate. The Tony Palmer film suggested that Symphony No 5 was linked to his emotional journey with Ursula Wood. This could of course be true, but it is simply an hypothesis and nothing more. Actually, I thought that Palmer's film overemphasized Vaughan Williams' relationships over his music which was a bit surprising.  Surely, Vaughan Williams' mind must have had numerous other dimensions than his interest in women?
Regardless, Symphony No 5 is a beauty and a pleasure to listen to.  Was No 5 your gateway to the symphonies or did you go the route of the Sea Symphony?

Peter

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No Peter, it certainly was not A Sea Symphony which I did not really appreciate at all until listening to the Haitink recording about a year ago, which was a revelation. My first VW LP was Morton Gould and his Orchestra performing the Tallis Fantasia, Greensleves and the English Folksong Suite on RCA. This I enjoyed but it was not until, on my way home from school, I picked up a Decca Eclipse LP of Boult conducting Symphony No. 6 that I became more or less obsessed with the music. I was 17 at the time. It is the same performance as in your new box set with the charming speech by the composer at the end 'I want to thank you most heartily...' For a long time I found it difficult to hear Symphony 6 without hearing the speech at the end. It is in my view the greatest performance of Vaughan Williams's greatest symphony (a synthesis of the violent No 4 and spiritual No 5). Your Decca box also features an Everest recording of Symphony 9 recorded on the day of the composer's death (he died suddenly during the night and had been due to attend the recording session in the morning). Boult makes a moving speech. I love the Decca box as it was my earliest entry point into the symphonies, although I also had the EMI later Boult set on LP. As for the lesser known works I recommend the craggy Fantasia on the Old 104th, Epithalamion, and Job. I was very moved by a performance of 'The Pilgrim's Progress' in London a few years ago. In my wide eyed youthful obsession with the music of Vaughan Williams I wrote to his wife (Ursula) and received a nice letter back and a book of the composer's essays which she inscribed to me and which is a treasured possession. There is also a TV documentary called 'The Loves of Vaughan Willliams' which is even more obsessed with this side of the composers life.
Best wishes, Jeffrey

[Moonfish]

VW enjoyed his records as well.. 

[vandermolen]

VW enjoyed his records as well.. 

Yes, that's a great photo of the old man.

[Moonfish]

Definitely need to *bump* this thread!   

Vaughan Williams: Symphony No 5          London PO/Haitink

I couldn't resist the symphony. I have always liked RVW's 5th, but this time I sensed a greater depth and warmth within it than in previous listening sessions. I tend to enjoy the more pastoral side of RVW and the 5th fits the bill.  Haitink did a fine job here, but I sense the need to return to Boult and Handley's recording for further immersion.  There is quite a bit of variation between the soundscapes within the different symphonies.  Regardless, what is your favorite 5th?

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[vandermolen]

Definitely need to *bump* this thread!   

Vaughan Williams: Symphony No 5          London PO/Haitink

I couldn't resist the symphony. I have always liked RVW's 5th, but this time I sensed a greater depth and warmth within it than in previous listening sessions. I tend to enjoy the more pastoral side of RVW and the 5th fits the bill.  Haitink did a fine job here, but I sense the need to return to Boult and Handley's recording for further immersion.  There is quite a bit of variation between the soundscapes within the different symphonies.  Regardless, what is your favorite 5th?

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Well, three come to mind. I love the EMI Barbirolli version for its humanity and warmth. The Hickox version is very fine too and has some great accompanying rarities such as the 'Pilgrim's Pavement' and a while back a recording of VW conducting the work at the 1952 Proms was issued. This is a great performance and features a terrific coupling of 'Dona Nobis Pacem', also conducted by the composer. The recording is obviously a historic one but I actually prefer this to VW's own recording of his 4th Symphony.
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[vandermolen]

Very well reviewed in Sunday Times (UK) today. Live performances:
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[Archaic Torso of Apollo]

Very well reviewed in Sunday Times (UK) today. Live performances:

Hey, looks good. I like the Jurowski/LPO combo - heard them live last year.

[vandermolen]

Hey, looks good. I like the Jurowski/LPO combo - heard them live last year.

Me too, except a few years ago performing Miaskovsky's 6th Symphony. I was introduced to Jurowski before a rehearsal. He was exceptionally welcoming and friendly.

[Moonfish]

Vaughan Williams: Symphony No 7 (Sinfonia Antartica)          Burrowes/London P Choir & O/Boult

This is definitely one of my favorite RVW symphonies and Boult is shaping a soundscape that truly shines in this performance. Wonderful! Full of mystery and texture!   0:)
The 7th seems so different compared to the other symphonies and strangely it was the one that made me more interested in his other symphonies. The choral portion of the work is full of such frosty whisperings that I feel quite cold and imagine enormous fields of ice filling my field of vision to the horizon. Great music!

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[Rons_talking]

No Peter, it certainly was not A Sea Symphony which I did not really appreciate at all until listening to the Haitink recording about a year ago, which was a revelation. My first VW LP was Morton Gould and his Orchestra performing the Tallis Fantasia, Greensleves and the English Folksong Suite on RCA. This I enjoyed but it was not until, on my way home from school, I picked up a Decca Eclipse LP of Boult conducting Symphony No. 6 that I became more or less obsessed with the music. I was 17 at the time. It is the same performance as in your new box set with the charming speech by the composer at the end 'I want to thank you most heartily...' For a long time I found it difficult to hear Symphony 6 without hearing the speech at the end. It is in my view the greatest performance of Vaughan Williams's greatest symphony (a synthesis of the violent No 4 and spiritual No 5). Your Decca box also features an Everest recording of Symphony 9 recorded on the day of the composer's death (he died suddenly during the night and had been due to attend the recording session in the morning). Boult makes a moving speech. I love the Decca box as it was my earliest entry point into the symphonies, although I also had the EMI later Boult set on LP. As for the lesser known works I recommend the craggy Fantasia on the Old 104th, Epithalamion, and Job. I was very moved by a performance of 'The Pilgrim's Progress' in London a few years ago. In my wide eyed youthful obsession with the music of Vaughan Williams I wrote to his wife (Ursula) and received a nice letter back and a book of the composer's essays which she inscribed to me and which is a treasured possession. There is also a TV documentary called 'The Loves of Vaughan Willliams' which is even more obsessed with this side of the composers life.
Best wishes, Jeffrey

I agree about the Barn
Yes, that's a great photo of the old man.

The Barbirolli recording of S5 is my favorite recording of my favorite RVW piece. Just gorgeous! It literally changed my musical life...

[Rons_talking]

I've streaming this (LSO-Thomson)wonderful recording of the 8th. Wow! This piece is a gem! It has the ideal balance of lively vs. serene. And the colors...The string cavatina is beautiful. They say percussion is the domain of the young composer; RVW proves this wrong big-time. I really like this Bryden Thomson record. And to think, I have missed his late works all these years...

[vandermolen]

I've streaming this (LSO-Thomson)wonderful recording of the 8th. Wow! This piece is a gem! It has the ideal balance of lively vs. serene. And the colors...The string cavatina is beautiful. They say percussion is the domain of the young composer; RVW proves this wrong big-time. I really like this Bryden Thomson record. And to think, I have missed his late works all these years...

I've been enjoying the new Jurowski of Symphony 8. I think that the work has a magical quality about it - as does the much darker No. 9, which I find very moving. Do you know it?

[Karl Henning]

The Eighth was one of the first of the symphonies to win me over.  So, as it turned out, the thin edge of the wedge 

[vandermolen]

The Eighth was one of the first of the symphonies to win me over.  So, as it turned out, the thin edge of the wedge 

As a tinsy teenager I heard Boult conduct the 8th live at the Royal Festival Hall in London on 12th October 1972, the 100th anniversary of Vaughan Williams's birth. It was with 'Job' which I had never heard before. A great experience for me.

[Moonfish]

As a tinsy teenager I heard Boult conduct the 8th live at the Royal Festival Hall in London on 12th October 1972, the 100th anniversary of Vaughan Williams's birth. It was with 'Job' which I had never heard before. A great experience for me.

Was your interest in classical music already going as a teenager? I wonder how many teenagers today that would be awed by RVW's "Job"?

[vandermolen]

Was your interest in classical music already going as a teenager? I wonder how many teenagers today that would be awed by RVW's "Job"?

Well, I have a seven year older brother who was very keen on classical music, especially Bruckner, when I was growing up so, I guess that he was a big influence on me. I grew up quite near to the Albert Hall in London, so we would often walk to the Proms concerts. Buying the LP of Vaughan Williams's Symphony 6 (LPO Boult) was the turning point for me and it was just before the Vaughan Williams Centenary in 1972 when there was a lot of interest in his music. However, I still listened to Jimi Hendrix and my jazz/rock LPs too! 

[North Star]

Was your interest in classical music already going as a teenager? I wonder how many teenagers today that would be awed by RVW's "Job"?

I was a teenager when I joined this place.

[Christo]

Well, I have a seven year older brother who was very keen on classical music, especially Bruckner, when I was growing up so, I guess that he was a big influence on me. I grew up quite near to the Albert Hall in London, so we would often walk to the Proms concerts. Buying the LP of Vaughan Williams's Symphony 6 (LPO Boult) was the turning point for me and it was just before the Vaughan Williams Centenary in 1972 when there was a lot of interest in his music. However, I still listened to Jimi Hendrix and my jazz/rock LPs too! 

Great story, many thanks for sharing it! :-) I think we both know that we had a comparable Vaughan Williams 'conversion' in our teens (I'm a bit younger). My turning point came when I heard Boult's A Pastoral Symphony around 1977, when I was 15. There was some classical music in the house, mostly baroque, but since we were real countrysiders (farming family), we had no connection with any music culture, not even in a nearby village. I remember strolling alone in the nature with A Pastoral Symphony in my head (no 'walkman' yet, in those days, to put it ON my head :-), so for me the mystic landscape of my youth is forever connected to this music. The real breakthrough came when I was 16 and allowed to hire LP's in a public library in a provincial town. They had a fine collection, among them many great Lyrita recordings, and I didn't even have to smuggle guys like Havergal Brian, Holst or Rubbra into our farming house. :-)
However, I listened to bands like Japan, Ultravox or Visage too; and still do. :-)

[vandermolen]

Great story, many thanks for sharing it! :-) I think we both know that we had a comparable Vaughan Williams 'conversion' in our teens (I'm a bit younger). My turning point came when I heard Boult's A Pastoral Symphony around 1977, when I was 15. There was some classical music in the house, mostly baroque, but since we were real countrysiders (farming family), we had no connection with any music culture, not even in a nearby village. I remember strolling alone in the nature with A Pastoral Symphony in my head (no 'walkman' yet, in those days, to put it ON my head :-), so for me the mystic landscape of my youth is forever connected to this music. The real breakthrough came when I was 16 and allowed to hire LP's in a public library in a provincial town. They had a fine collection, among them many great Lyrita recordings, and I didn't even have to smuggle guys like Havergal Brian, Holst or Rubbra into our farming house. :-)
However, I listened to bands like Japan, Ultravox or Visage too; and still do. :-)

That's a great story too! Yes, our experiences are not dissimilar. After my eureka VW conversion experience I worked on a farm for six weeks in Zeeland near Bergen op Zoom in your home country. This was between school and university, so I was 18. I remember driving the farmer's tractor (at top speed  ) around the fields with Vaughan Williams's 9th Symphony going through me head (no Walkman for me either!) You probably know this already, so now you can get back to answering my question on the Kinsella thread. The record library in High Street Kensington was a god send for me in those days. I even made my Frank Sinatra loving father join so I could use his tickets. I remember taking Boult's EMI LP out with Symphony 8 and the
Piano Concerto on featuring Sir Gerald Kelly's wonderful painting of the old composer on the front. Other discoveries were the Lyritas of Patrick Hadley, Cyril Scott, John Ireland + Klaus Egge Symphony 1, Miaskovsky Symphony 6, Janis Ivanovs, Allan Pettersson etcetc - enough nostalgia for today.

[Moonfish]

That's a great story too! Yes, our experiences are not dissimilar. After my eureka VW conversion experience I worked on a farm for six weeks in Zeeland near Bergen op Zoom in your home country. This was between school and university, so I was 18. I remember driving the farmer's tractor (at top speed  ) around the fields with Vaughan Williams's 9th Symphony going through me head (no Walkman for me either!) You probably know this already, so now you can get back to answering my question on the Kinsella thread. The record library in High Street Kensington was a god send for me in those days. I even made my Frank Sinatra loving father join so I could use his tickets. I remember taking Boult's EMI LP out with Symphony 8 and the
Piano Concerto on featuring Sir Gerald Kelly's wonderful painting of the old composer on the front. Other discoveries were the Lyritas of Patrick Hadley, Cyril Scott, John Ireland + Klaus Egge Symphony 1, Miaskovsky Symphony 6, Janis Ivanovs, Allan Pettersson etcetc - enough nostalgia for today.

Ahh, I like your stories! I suspect that my family home never has had the experience of RVW's music filling its rooms. I had some minor classical music drifting through my life when I was a kid. The real fire for classical music did not really grow in me until I was in my mid-20s going to graduate school. RVW's music was brought into my life by my girl friend at the time. I had fallen in love with her and couldn't imagine a life without her (ah, so naive one can be at times). I remember one morning waking up with her and she insisted on us listening to "The Lark Ascending" (which I had never heard). I still remember laying in bed snuggled up to the greatest love of my life listening to the intricate beauty of the violin soaring towards the skies. Such beauty!  I was so in love with this woman so I forever associate the music of The Lark Ascending with her existence and our time together.  The music brings back so many memories of her spark and intrinsic beauty. She and RVW made a fan on me that day...