Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult
From R. Vaughan Williams,
The White Gates,
Westcott Road,
Dorking.
dictated
Dear Adrian
On the whole I prefer ‘Job’.1 For one thing I want to make a few slight revisions in the Symph2 and would therefore like, if the occasion arises, to hear it again in England before we shove it off on the foreigners.
Also, I feel that Job is less like what they are accustomed to, which I feel is what we ought to give them – but do as you like really. These considerations are not important.
I am not quite happy about the rest of your programme – but daresay that is inevitable.
Could you not do Bax 3rd Symphony instead of Tintagel – and the P.F. Ballet3 or Egdon Heath or Hammersmith instead of the Fugal Overture – which is not one of my favourite works.4
Yrs
RVW
1. Catalogue of Works, 1930/5.
2. Symphony (No. 4) in F Minor (Catalogue of Works 1934/13).
3. The Perfect Fool.
4. Boult was performing a concert of British music at Salzburg. For Boult’s reply see VWL350422.
Subjects:
Musical works:
- Vaughan Williams, Ralph, 1872-1958. Job
- Vaughan Williams, Ralph, 1872-1958. Symphonies, no. 4, F minor
- Vaughan Williams, Ralph, 1872-1958. Symphonies, no. 3 (Pastoral symphony)
- Bax, Arnold Edward Trevor, 1883-1953. Tintagel
- Bax, Arnold Edward Trevor, 1883-1953. Symphonies, no. 3
- Holst, Gustav, 1874-1934. Hammersmith
- Holst, Gustav, 1874-1934. The Perfect Fool
- Holst, Gustav, 1874-1934. Egdon Heath
- Holst, Gustav, 1874-1934. Fugal concerto
Location of original letter:
Date year taken from receipt stamp. In the hand of AVW, signed by VW.