Ralph Vaughan Williams Catalogue

Ralph Vaughan Williams 

Catalogue

Ralph Vaughan Williams 

Ralph Vaughan Williams was born in Down Ampney, 

Gloucestershire on 12 October 1872. He was related to 

the Darwin and Wedgwood families and grew up in an 

atmosphere of Liberalism, in which he was encouraged to 

pursue his musical interests. He read History at Cambridge 

University and went to the Royal College of Music where 

his teachers were Parry, Wood, and Stanford. He then went 

on to study with Bruch in Berlin, and Ravel in Paris. 

Vaughan Williams’s wide-ranging musical activities 

greatly enhanced English musical life but they have also 

contributed to the mistaken view that his compositional 

output was in some way parochial. He believed in the 

value of music education and wrote practical competition 

pieces and serviceable church music. Additionally, with 

49th Parallel (1940–1) he found a new outlet in writing 

for film. His profoundly disturbing Symphony No.6 (1948) 

received international acclaim with more than a hundred 

performances in a little over two years. 

Although one of his first works to achieve success, Norfolk 

Rhapsody No. 1 (1906), makes use of folksong, he rarely 

incorporated such material directly into his orchestral and 

instrumental compositions. However, his enthusiasm for 

folksong (he collected over 800 examples) undoubtedly 

influenced his compositional language, as did his interest 

in Elizabethan and Jacobean music. 

His sensitivity to the twentieth-century human condition, 

his flexibility in writing for all levels of music-making, and 

his great imagination combine to make him one of the 

key figures in twentieth-century music. Vaughan Williams 

died on 26 August 1958 and his ashes were interred at 

Westminster Abbey. 

ed. David Matthews 

Symphony No. 4 in F minor 

Full orchestra 

3 fl (II+picc, III opt), 3 ob (III+ ca opt), 2 cl, bcl (opt), 2 bn, cbn 

(opt), 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, timp, 2 perc (SD, tri, cym, BD), 

str 

Full score 9780193519671 

Study score 9780193404748 

Score and parts on hire 9780193694118 

Described by Walton as the ‘greatest symphony since 

Beethoven’, Vaughan Williams’s fourth symphony was 

composed in 1935 and is noted for its abrasively dissonant 

harmonic language, unlike much of the composer’s other 

work. 

34 minutes 

ed. Peter Horton 

Symphony No. 5 in D major 


2 fl (II+picc), ob, ca, 2 cl, 2 bn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, timp, str 

Full score 9780193359420 

Study score 9780193368248 


Despite having been composed in the years 1938–43, 

when Europe was ravaged by war, this work radiates peace 

and serenity. It marks the peak of the lyrical modalism of 

works such as the Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis 

(1910), Flos Campi (1925), and Job (1931). Although it is not 

a programme symphony, it draws heavily on John Bunyan’s 

The Pilgrim’s Progress for inspiration, featuring several 

themes that were sketched for, and eventually used in, 

Vaughan Williams’s 1951 opera. In addition, Bunyan’s words 

‘He hath given me rest by his sorrow and life by his death’ 

were originally inscribed over the third movement. 

38 minutes 

Orchestral Works 

ed. David Lloyd-Jones 

Symphony No. 6 in E minor 


3 fl, 2 ob, ca, 2 cl, bcl/tsax, 2 bn, cbn, 4 hn, 3 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, 

timp, 3 perc (SD, BD, tri, cym, xyl), 2 hp (II opt), str 

Full score 9780193376335 

Study score 9780193379497 


Vaughan Williams’s sixth symphony was composed 

immediately after the Second World War and its dramatic, 

at times violent, musical language was long felt to be a 

comment on that conflict (though the composer denied 

it had any programmatic intent). Its power and invention 

were immediately recognized and it has remained part of 

the concert repertoire ever since. 

34 minutes 


Sinfonia Antartica 

(Symphony No. 7) 

Soprano solo, SSA chorus, and full orchestra 

3 fl (III doubling picc.), 3 ob (III doubling cor anglais), 3 cl 

(III doubling bass cl.), 3 bsn (III doubling contra), 4 hn, 3 

tpt, 3 tbn, tba, timp, perc, cel, hp, pno, org, soprano solo, 

women’s voices, str 

Study score 9780193385887 

Scores and parts on hire 9780193694262 

Symphony No. 7, the Sinfonia Antartica, was drawn from 

the music Vaughan Williams provided for the film Scott 

of the Antarctic in 1947 and was completed in 1952. The 

composer skilfully evokes the sparse beauty and grandeur 

of the landscape with a large orchestra and percussion 

section, including—famously—a wind machine, to create a 

work of great power and intensity. 

42 minutes 


This catalogue presents all of the works published by Oxford Unviersity Press, except the hymn tunes and hymn 

books. For more information about these, please contact us at music.enquiry.uk@oup.com. 

Listen to orchestral music by Ralph Vaughan 

Williams on Spotify 

Listen to choral music by Ralph Vaughan Williams 

on Spotify 

2 

3



Symphony No. 8 in D minor 


2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 3 bn (III opt), 2 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, timp, 4-5 perc 

(SD, tri, cym, BD, vib, xyl, glock, tbells, 3 gng or 1 tam), 2 hp, 

cel, str 

Full score 9780193413290 

Study score 9780193413306 


Written between 1953 and 1955, Symphony No. 8 is the 

composer’s shortest symphony and considered by many 

to be his least serious. Aside from a few sombre moments, 

the symphony is optimistic in mood. It displays Vaughan 

Williams’s love for colourful combinations of instruments 

with a percussion section that, he said, employs ‘all the 

‘phones and ‘spiels known to the composer’. 

28 minutes 

ed. Alain Frogley 

Symphony No. 9 in E minor 


3 fl (III+picc), 2 ob, ca, 2 cl, bcl, 2 bn, cbn, 2 asax, tsax, 4 hn, 

fgh, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, timp, perc (BD, cym, tri, TD, tbells, gng, 

xyl, glock), 2 hp, cel, str 

Full score 9780193514119 

Study score 9780193514126 


Symphony No. 9 in E minor was the last symphony 

written by the composer and was premiered by the 

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Sir Malcolm 

Sargent, on 2 April 1958. It is described in The New Grove 

Dictionary of Music and Musicians as ‘the most impressive 

achievement’ of the composer’s final decade. 

33 minutes 

arr. Adrian Williams 

A Road All Paved with Stars 

A symphonic fantasy 


2 fl (II+picc), 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 2 tbn, tba, timp, 

3 perc, hp, str 

Study score 9780193409859 


A Road All Paved with Stars is a single-movement orchestral 

work incorporating the finest music of Vaughan Williams’s 

opera The Poisoned Kiss. Using material from the most 

memorable songs and sections, including ‘Blue larkspur 

in a garden’, ‘Love breaks all rules’, and the ‘Kiss’ climax and 

its aftermath, Adrian Williams has created an orchestral 

synthesis befitting the composer’s own musical vision. 

27 minutes 

ed. Julian Rushton 

Bucolic Suite 


2 fl (II+picc), 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bsn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, timp, 

perc, hp, str 

Study score 9780193379558 


This early work for orchestra, which was completed in 

November 1900 when the composer was 28 years old, 

was first performed by the Bournemouth Municipal 

Orchestra in March 1902. This attractive work is cast in four 

movements and already shows evidence of the composer’s 

emerging musical style and sure grasp of orchestral 

techniques. This edition has been carefully prepared by 

Julian Rushton from the original manuscript. 

20 minutes 

ed. James Francis Brown 

Burley Heath 

Chamber orchestra 

2 fl, ob, ca, 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, timp, str 

Study score 9780193399396 


Originally intended as the first piece in a cycle of four 

impressions entitled In the New Forest, Burley Heath 

was written in 1902 but never finished. The manuscript 

represents a 168-bar fragment, which James Francis Brown, 

the editor of this edition, has completed by inserting a 

recapitulation of the initial material. 

ed. Muir Mathieson and Christopher Palmer 

Coastal Command (Suite) 


2 fl (II + picc), 2 ob (II + ca), 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, 

timp, 3 perc (tri, SD, cym, BD, glock, TD), 2 hp, str 


The 1942 film Coastal Command is a part-documentary, 

part-dramatization about flying boats in the Battle of the 

Atlantic. It followed Vaughan Williams’s score for the 1941 

propaganda film 49th Parallel. This seven-movement suite 

was arranged by Muir Mathieson from Vaughan Williams’s 

original score for the film. 

19 minutes 

Concerto Grosso 

String orchestra and opt. piano 

Concertino group/tutti/ad lib and pno (opt) 


Score and parts* 9780193690257 

Always a strong proponent of widening musical 

participation, Vaughan Williams composed this work for a 

Rural Music Schools Association concert in the Royal Albert 

Hall in 1950. It was premiered by a massed orchestra of 

400 school pupils; the composer declined a place in the 

Royal Box for the performance, preferring to sit among 

the second violins. Although its purpose was in part 

educational, this is nonetheless a distinguished work in 

its own right and thus makes a wonderful introduction to 

orchestral music -making for developing string players. 

The work is notable for the fact that players are divided 

into three groups: ‘Concertino’ (a group of skilled players); 

‘Tutti’ (involving third position and simple double stops); 

and ‘Ad lib.’ (for players who prefer to use only open 

strings). 

*Available from Emerson Wind Music 

17 minutes 

Down Ampney 


2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 2 hn, str 


Vaughan Williams composed the hymn tune ‘Down 

Ampney’ in 1906 for the first edition of The English Hymnal. 

It sets Richard F. Littledale’s translation of the medieval 

mystic Bianco da Siena’s original Italian text. The hymn 

tune is named after the village where the composer was 

born, and where his father was vicar of the local church. 

5 minutes 

arr. Ralph Greaves 

Fantasia on ‘Greensleeves’ 


2 fl (II opt), hp (opt), str 


This exquisite fantasia on the folk song ‘Greensleeves’ was 

arranged by Ralph Greaves based on music from Vaughan 

Williams’s opera Sir John in Love. It features luscious string 

textures and sweeping expressive phrases reminiscent 

of the Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis. The folk tune 

‘Lovely Joan’ is included alongside the ‘Greensleeves’ tune, 

forming the basis of a more animated central section. 

4 minutes 

arr. Martin Yates 

Fat Knight 


2 fl (II+picc), 2 ob (II+ca), 2 cl, 2 bsn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, tbn, timp, 

3 perc (pti, tri, BD, SD, sus cym, glock, xyl, bell, rattles), hp, 

str 

Study score 9780193519718 


Originally the title for Vaughan Williams’s opera Sir John 

in Love, Fat Knight was conceived as a seven-movement 

orchestral suite that drew upon the opera and had, as 

its central character, Shakespeare’s Falstaff. Vaughan 

Williams never completed the work and left only a twopiano 

score. It is from this score that the conductor Martin 

Yates has realised the Fat Knight suite, incorporating the 

orchestration from the completed opera. 

50 minutes 


4.5 minutes 

4 

5


Five Variants of ‘Dives and Lazarus’ 

String orchestra and harp (2 if possible) 

hp, str (violin 1, violin 2, viola 1, viola 2, cello 1, cello 2, 

double bass) 

Study score 9780193690806 


Violin 1 9780193866485 

Violin 2 9780193866492 

Viola 1 9780193866508 

Viola 2 9780193866287 

Cello 1 9780193866515 

Cello 2 9780193866522 

Double bass 9780193866539 

Harp 9780193866546 

Vaughan Williams first encountered the old English 

folk song ‘Dives and Lazarus’ when he was 21, and here 

presents five variants that are, in his own words, ‘not exact 

replicas of traditional tunes but rather reminiscences of 

various versions in my own collection and those of others’. 

The work was premiered in Carnegie Hall as part of the 

1939 New York World’s Fair, and is a wonderful example 

of the composer’s use of sumptuous string textures and 

modal tonalities. 

10 minutes 

ed. by Stephen Gregson 

Five Variants of ‘Dives and Lazarus’ 

Concert band 

Score 9780193865297 

Parts 9780193865303 

Available from Emerson Wind Music 

arr. Roy Douglas 

Flourish for Wind 

Orchestral wind and brass 

3 fl (III opt), ob, ca, ob III (opt), 2 cl, bcl (opt), 2 bn, cbn (opt), 

4 hn, 3 tpt, 2 tbn, btbn, tba, timp, 3 perc (SD, BD, cym), db 

Percussion: SD, BD, cym 


This brief piece was originally composed for wind band in 

1939 to open a pageant at the Royal Albert Hall. Simple but 

highly effective, it opens with a rousing fanfare that gives 

way to a stirring chorale-like passage, before the fanfare 

returns to close the piece. This version for orchestral wind 

and brass was premiered by Tunbridge Wells Symphony 

Orchestra in 1974. 

Flourish for Glorious John 


picc, 2 fl, 2 ob, ca, 2 cl, bcl, 2 bn, cbn, 4 hn, 3 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, 

timp, perc (cym, SD, BD, glock, bells), hp, pn, org, str 


This work was written for Sir John Barbirolli to open the 

100th season of the Hallé Orchestra in 1957. It is a short yet 

colourful work, well-crafted and celebratory in nature. 

2.5 minutes 


Folk Songs of the Four Seasons 

Suite 

Full orchestra or string orchestra and piano 

2 fl (II + picc), 2 ob (II + ca), 2 cl, 2 bn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, timp, 

perc (glock, cym, tri, BD, SD), hp, str; OR pn, str 


This suite was arranged by Roy Douglas, allowing an 

orchestral performance of Vaughan Williams’s charming 

choral cantata. Nine of the cantata’s sixteen folk song 

settings are incorporated into the suite, and Douglas 

maintains all of their original appeal in his orchestrations. 

To the Ploughboy and May Song • The Green Meadow 

and An Acre of Land • The Sprig of thyme and The Lark in 

the Morning • The Cuckoo • Wassail Song and Children’s 

Christmas Song 

13 minutes 

arr. by David Stone 

Greensleeves 

Orchestra 

2 fl or drec & trec, ob, 2 cl, bsn, 2 hn, gtr, pno or hp, and str 

Available from Goodmusic: Score, Violin 1, 2, 3, Viola, cello, 

double Bass, des. rec, treble rec., wind set, and full set 

Bach, arr. by Vaughan Willians and Arnold Foster 

The Giant Fugue 

String orchestra 

A transcription by Ralph Vaughan Williams and Arnold 

Foster for string orchestra of J. S. Bach’s ‘Giant’ Fugue Wir 

glauben all an einen Gott (BWV 680), one of his chorale 

preludes for organ. 

Available from Goodmusic 

arr. Helen Glatz 

Hymn Tune Prelude on Song 13 

String Orchestra 

This piece, based on a hymn tune (Song 13) written by 

Orlando Gibbons (1583-1625), was originally written for 

piano solo. Vaughan Williams was an intimate life long 

friend of the famous British pianist Harriet Cohen. Cohen 

premiered the Hymn Tune Prelude in 1930, which he 

dedicated to her. 



Harnham Down 


2 fl, ob, ca, 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, str 

Study score 9780193399402 


Vaughan Williams started composing Harnham Down in 

1904, completing the work in 1907. Over four decades later 

Vaughan Williams recalled the main theme of the work 

in his Oxford Elegy, which sets the Matthew Arnold poem 

(‘The Scholar Gypsy’) that was prefaced in the original 

score to Harnham Down. 

7 minutes 

Household Music: Three Preludes 

on Welsh Hymn Tunes 


2 fl, ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, timp, 2 perc (SD, tri), str 


Crug-y-bar (Fantasia) • St Denio (Scherzo) • Aberystwyth 

(Variations) 

15 minutes 

Norfolk Rhapsody No. 1 


2 fl (II + picc), 2 ob, ca, 2 cl, Eb cl (opt), 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 

tbn, tba, timp, SD, hp, str 


Score* 9780193403413 

This work was composed in 1906, based on folk songs that 

Vaughan Williams had collected at a fishing port in the 

English county of Norfolk the previous year. Having been 

premiered in the year of its composition at the Proms in 

London, the work was substantially revised in 1914 into its 

current form. From a captivatingly soft opening, the music 

slowly builds to an expansive and emotive climax, before 

the tone changes entirely to one of animation and vigour 

in the faster central section. This soon gives way, however, 

to a return of the softer material of the opening, with the 

piece ending as quietly and mesmerizingly as it began. 


10 minutes 

arr. O’Brien 

Wind band 

fl, ob, cor ang, bsn, cl, acl, bcl, c-acl, cbcl, asax, tsax, bsax, 

tpt, hn, tbn, bar, euph, tba, str bs, timp, perc, hp 

Score and parts 9780193854512 


ed. Stephen Hogger 

Norfolk Rhapsody No. 2 


2 fl, 2 ob, ca, 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 2 tbn, btbn, tba, timp, tri, 

hp, str 

Study score 9780193403413 


Vaughan Williams originally wrote three Norfolk 

Rhapsodies with the intention of turning them into a 

three-movement Norfolk Symphony. This, the second 

rhapsody, is a telescoped slow movement and scherzo, 

which has been completed and edited by Stephen Hogger. 

The first has long been in the repertoire, but the Rhapsody 

No. 3 manuscript has not survived since its premiere in 

1914. 

10 minutes 


2 minutes 

6 

7


Overture to ‘The Poisoned Kiss’ 


2 fl (II + picc), ob (+ ca), 2 cl, bn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, tbn, timp, 2 perc 

(BD, SD, gng, clash cym, tam, sus cym, tri, xyl), hp, str 


The Poisoned Kiss is a stage work subtitled ‘A Romantic 

Extravaganza’ that falls somewhere between serious 

opera and comic operetta. Its overture may be described 

in the same way, with expressive melodies set alongside 

witty parodies. The orchestration is vivid and colourful, 

punctuating the overture’s comic moments and lending 

a luscious quality to the more Romantic passages. This 

combination of tunefulness, wit, and colour makes the 

overture a delightful addition to an orchestral concert 

programme. 

6 minutes 

Partita for Double String Orchestra 

Double string orchestra 

double str (min: vln 8, 4 vla, 4 vc, 2 db) 


This work is a revisiting of the 1938 Double Trio for string 

sextet with increased forces and a completely new finale. 

It is in four movements: a Prelude marked ‘Andante 

tranquillo’, a rhythmically complex Scherzo ostinato, an 

Intermezzo that remains light in tone despite occasional 

hints at the macabre, and a furious Fantasia. The work’s 

virtuosity and idiosyncrasies make it a fine contrast to 

some of the composer’s more placid pastoral works. 

20 minutes 

Prelude and Fugue in C minor 


picc, 2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, cbn, 4 hn, 3 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, timp, 

perc (BD, cym, SD, tri), hp, str 


In this work, Vaughan Williams explores the possibilities 

of translating a form long associated with keyboard music 

into an orchestral work. Originally published in versions for 

both organ and orchestra, it features all of the sustained 

lines, drama, and grandeur that the organ so excels at, 

while also taking advantage of the added bursts of colour 

that the orchestral palette provides. Also available as an 

arrangement for organ. 

10 minutes 

Prelude on an Old Carol Tune 


2 fl, ob, 2 cl, bn, 2 hn, timp, str 


This prelude based on ‘On Christmas night the joy-bells 

ring’ ebbs and flows between sombre ruminations and 

impassioned waves of sound. It is adapted from incidental 

music for a radio serialization of Thomas Hardy’s novel The 

Mayor of Casterbridge. 

8 minutes 

Prelude 49th Parallel 


2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, timp, cym, hp, str 


Score and parts* 

49th Parallel (entitled The Invaders in the USA) was a 

1941 British war film (featuring Laurence Olivier) about a 

German U-boat crew becoming stranded in Canada. The 

musical style of the Prelude is quintessentially English, with 

sweeping string lines and a warm yet melancholic tone. It 

is also available in an adapted form for SATB chorus and 

orchestra under the title The New Commonwealth. 


2 minutes 

ed. Roy Douglas 

String orchestra 


2 minutes 


Brass band 

sop cor in Eb, 3 solo cor in Bb, rep cor in Bb, 4 cor in Bb, 

flugel, solo hn, 2 hn, 2 bar, 2 tbn, btbn, 2 euph, 2 Eb bass, 2 

Bb bass, timp, cym 

Score 9780193691773 

Parts 9780193691780 


2 minutes 

The Running Set 


2 fl, 2 ob (II opt), 2 cl, 2 bn, 2 hn (II opt), 2 tpt, perc (SD, tri), 

pno (opt), str 


The ‘Running Set’ was a folk dance of British origin that at 

the time of this work’s composition could still be found 

in areas of the United States. Vaughan Williams wrote this 

piece for a massed performance of the dance at the Royal 

Albert Hall as part of the 1934 National Folk Dance Festival. 

Founded on traditional dance tunes, it draws heavily on 

Gaelic fiddle music, brilliantly capturing its merry, spirited 

nature. The four tunes featured are ‘Barrack Hill’, ‘The 

Blackthorn Stick’, ‘Irish Reel’, and ‘Cock o’ the North’. 

5 minutes 

ed. Martin Yates 

Scott of the Antarctic 


3fl(III+picc), 2ob, ca, 2cl, bcl, 2bsn, cbsn, 4hn, 3tpt, 3ct, 

euph, 3tbn, tba, timp, perc, hp, pno, cel, org, solo sop, 

chorus (SA), str 

Study score 9780193519701 


The film Scott of the Antarctic was produced by Ealing 

Studios and released in 1948. It tells the story of Robert 

Falcon Scott’s ill-fated second expedition to the Antarctic in 

1910–3. The film is well known for its score, which was later 

reworked to create Sinfonia Antartica. Vaughan Williams’s 

original score for the film was heavily edited in the studio 

and halved in length in order to create the final edit. It is 

now presented in its full, unedited form, allowing listeners 

to hear the full grandeur of the composer’s original 

composition for the first time. 

80 minutes 

Scott of the Antarctic - The 

Composer’s Cut 


This version provides the unique opportunity to present 

the original score played live in sync with the film Scott of 

the Antarctic. The materials also include a specially created 

overture comprised of previously unheard music written 

for the film from the complete unedited score. 

For more information and to request a technical rider, 

please visit 

www.bigscreen.live/films/scott-of-the-antarctic/ . 

Overture 10 minutes 

Film 42 minutes 


Serenade in A minor 


2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bsn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, timp, str 

Study score 9780193379565 


This is the first publication of Vaughan Williams’s earliest 

substantial work for orchestra, composed 1897–8 and 

premiered in April 1901. This attractive work already shows 

evidence of the composer’s emerging musical style and 

sure grasp of orchestral techniques. Its five movements 

display much variety and a sense of overall architecture, 

with a sombre opening Prelude, a fleet-footed Scherzo, a 

graceful Intermezzo and Trio, a delicate Romance, and a 

boisterous Finale. 

30 minutes 

Serenade to Music 


vln solo, 2 fl, ob, ca, 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, timp, 

tri, hp, str 

Score and parts on hire - orchestra 9780193693852 

This meditation on the nature of music and its power to 

enrapture was originally composed for 16 soloists and 

orchestra, setting a text from Shakespeare’s The Merchant 

of Venice. This orchestral arrangement was premiered in 

1940 by the London Symphony Orchestra, and conducted 

by Sir Henry Wood. 

13 minutes 


8 

9



The Solent 


2 fl, ob, ca, 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 2 tbn, btbn, tba, timp, str 

Study score 9780193399419 


This edition is the first publication of an early work for 

chamber orchestra, composed in 1903. The main theme 

from this work will be recognizable to many listeners, 

as it later found its way into both the Sea Symphony and 

the Ninth Symphony, albeit in a somewhat altered form. 

This duplication has intrigued many Vaughan Williams’s 

scholars, as has the Philip Marston quotation that prefaces 

the scores: ‘Passion and sorrow in the deep sea’s voice, A 

mighty mystery saddening all the wind?’. 

10 minutes 

Story of Flemish Farm (Suite) 


2 fl, 2 ob, ca, 2 bn, cbn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, timp, 2 perc 

(cym, SD, glock, BD, tri, gong), hp, str 


Flemish Farm was a 1943 film about the recovery of a 

Belgian RAF squadron’s flag from a farm in occupied 

Belgium, for which Vaughan Williams wrote the score. 

This score was adapted into a suite that was premiered at 

the Proms by the London Symphony Orchestra under the 

composer’s own baton in 1945. Despite moments of both 

grandeur and tranquillity, the general tone of the seven 

movements is darkly atmospheric, with the musical style 

drawing heavily on Vaughan Williams’s symphonic writing. 

In fact, the composer stated that two of the themes for his 

Sixth Symphony (composed 1944–7) stemmed from ideas 

originally intended for the score to Flemish Farm. 

26 minutes 

ed. Muir Mathieson 

Three Portraits from ‘The England 

of Elizabeth’ Suite 


2 fl (II + picc), ob, ca, 2 cl, bn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, timp, 

2-4 perc (tri, cym, SD, gong, glock, BD), hp, cel (opt), str 


The England of Elizabeth is a 1957 documentary film about 

Elizabethan England, for which Vaughan Williams provided 

the soundtrack. In the years following its release Muir 

Mathieson arranged the music into this suite to allow 

concert performance, grouping disparate sections into 

three cohesive movements: ‘Explorer’ (Sir Francis Drake), 

‘Poet’(William Shakespeare), and ‘Queen’ (Queen 

Elizabeth II). 

Two Hymn Tune Preludes 


fl, ob, cl, bn, hn, str 


In this work, Vaughan Williams arranges Eventide by W.H. 

Monk (1823–89) and Dominus regit me by J.B. Dykes to 

create an enchanting pair of orchestral preludes. The first 

is quietly radiant, with sustained strings and an expressive 

oboe solo. The second features gentle interplay between 

the instrumental lines, building slightly in intensity as more 

parts join the texture while maintaining an imperturbable 

sense of tranquility. 

Eventide • Dominus regit me 

6 minutes 

Two Shakespeare Sketches 

Orchestra 

2 fl, ob, 2 cl, bsn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, timp, perc (tab, sidedrum, 

tri), pno, hp, str 

These Sketches make use of two well-known tunes of 

Shakespeare’s time: ‘When that I was and a little tiny 

boy’ and Thomas Morley’s ‘It was a lover and his lass’. The 

music has been taken from that composed in 1955 for the 

documentary film, The England of Elizabeth. 


arr. Gordon Jacob 

Variations for Orchestra 


2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, timp, 2 perc 

(glock, SD, BD, cym, tri, cel (opt)), str 


This work was originally composed as Variations for Brass 

Band, and only later arranged for orchestra. In its original 

form, it served as a test piece for the National Brass Band 

Competition of Great Britain in 1957. Each of the variations 

has a distinctive character, and they combine to form an 

engaging and appealing work. 

12 minutes 


Concerto for Bass Tuba and 

Orchestra 

Solo tuba and orchestra 

tba solo, 2 fl, ob, 2 cl, bn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, 2 tbn, timp, 2 perc (SD, 

cym, tri, BD), str 

Study score 9780193386754 


Arrangement for tuba and piano 9780193386761 

Full score* 9780193694545 

The Concerto for bass tuba and orchestra was composed 

1953–4 to mark the 50th anniversary of the formation of 

the London Symphony Orchestra and was written for the 

orchestra’s principal tuba player, Philip Catelinet. It was the 

first major concerto to be written for the instrument, and 

remains today the outstanding work of its kind. 


13 minutes 

arr. David Childs and Rodney Newton 

Concerto for Tenor Tuba 

Solo Tenor Tuba (Euphonium) and Orchestra 

Tenor Tba solo, Fl 1&2, Ob, Clar 1&2, Bsn, Hn 1&2, Tpt 1&2, 

Trbn, Timp, Perc, Solo Eup, Str. 


Arrangement for tenor tuba and piano Publishing 2022 

Vaughan Williams’s Concerto for Bass Tuba and Orchestra 

was the first major concerto to be written for the 

instrument. It was composed in 1953–4 to mark the 

50th anniversary of the LSO, and was premiered by the 

orchestra’s principal tuba player, Philip Catelinet. The 

original plan to transpose it for Euphonium was not 

realised during the composer’s lifetime, and only now, 

in this transcription by David Childs, has that goal been 

attained, with Vaughan Williams’s orchestration deftly 

transposed and rearranged by Rodney Newton to allow 

this characteristic work to enter the repertoire of many 

more players. 

14 minutes 

Works for Solo & Orchestra 

Concerto for Oboe and Strings 

Solo oboe and string orchestra 

ob solo and str 


Oboe solo and piano reduction 9780193692312 

Study score* 9780193692305 

A capricious, lyrical, and nostalgic work, it is often 

considered to be Vaughan Williams’s most successful work 

in this form. The first movement is pastoral in feeling. The 

second movement begins with a minuet, light and staccato 

in nature, with a middle section featuring a musette’s 

characteristic long-held drone played by the oboe with the 

melody in the strings. The third movement is a scherzo and 

two trios. 


17 minutes 

Concerto for Violin 

Concerto Accademico 

Solo violin and string orchestra 

vln solo, str 


Arrangement for violin and piano* 9780193695221 

Concerto for Violin was composed 1924–5 at a time when 

neo-classicism was being explored by many of the leading 

composers of the day. It seamlessly combines references to 

the baroque style with Vaughan Williams’s own distinctive 

vein of pastoral violin writing, so beautifully demonstrated 

in the earlier The Lark Ascending. The work comprises three 

movements, each featuring contrasts in mood. The first 

movement juxtaposes heavy orchestral passages with 

elegant ones that bring the soloist to the fore. The central 

slow movement blends tranquil pastoralism with more 

sombre moments, while the Presto sets nimble melodies 

alongside jagged ones in a virtuosic close to the work. 


16 minutes 


16 minutes 

10 

11


Concerto for 1 or 2 Pianos and 

Orchestra 

Solo piano or two pianos and orchestra 

1 or 2 pno soli, 2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, 

timp, perc (tri, SD, cym, BD, tam), org (opt), str 


Study score* 9780193692732 

The first two movements (‘Toccata’ and ‘Romanza’) of this 

powerful and dramatically expressive work were composed 

in 1926, with the third (‘Fuga chromatica, con finale alla 

tedesca’) added in 1930-1 following the composition of 

Job and Symphony No. 4. It was initially scored for only one 

solo pianist; the composer’s close friend Harriet Cohen was 

the soloist at the premiere. Over a decade after the work’s 

first performance, the composer collaborated with Joseph 

Cooper to create a version for two pianos and orchestra, 

with the aim of making the difficult solo piano part more 

accessible. This two-piano version was premiered in 1946 

at the Royal Albert Hall. It has an adapted ending but is 

otherwise much the same as the single-piano version. 


25 minutes 

ed. Graham Parlett 

Fantasia for Piano and Orchestra 

Solo piano and orchestra, or 2 pianos 

2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, timp, perc, str 

Study score 9780193388253 


Reduction for two pianos 9780193388260 

Vaughan Williams began this work—his earliest known 

piece for a solo instrument with orchestra—in 1896, 

shortly after returning to the Royal College of Music 

to study composition with Stanford, and completed it 

in 1904. After his death, the manuscript was donated 

to the British Library, and it was here that the pianist 

Mark Bebbington rediscovered it in 2010, subsequently 

recording it for Somm Records. The work shows influences 

of late nineteenth-century composers, but also hallmarks 

of the composer’s later style and maturity. As such, it offers 

a fascinating glimpse into the composer’s development, as 

well as being a powerful work in its own right. 

25 minutes 

Fantasia on Sussex Folk Tunes 

Solo cello or viola and chamber orchestra 

2 fl, ob, 2 cl, 2 bsn, 2 hn, tpt, timp, str 

Study score 9780193407732 


Cello and piano reduction 9780193408401 

Viola and piano reduction 9780193524644 

In this engaging work, the composer takes advantage 

of the expressive possibilities of the cello, ranging 

from wistful and melancholic to lively and jovial. It was 

composed in 1929 and premiered the following year by its 

dedicatee, the legendary Spanish cellist Pablo Casals. The 

five folk songs on which the work is founded are ‘Salisbury 

Plain’, ‘The Long Whip’, ‘Low down in the broom’, ‘Bristol 

Town’, and ‘I’ve been to France’. The arrangement by Martin 

Outram for solo viola and piano is compatible with the 

original orchestral accompaniment. 

15 minutes 


Flos campi 

Solo viola, SATB wordless choir, and orchestra 

vla solo, fl (+picc), ob, cl, bn, hn, tpt, 2 perc, cel, hp, str 

(Percussion: BD, cym, tri, tabor or tamb w/out jingles) 

Vocal score 9780193399433 

Study score 9780193399426 

Viola part 9780193399440 

Vocal score on hire 9780193399587 


A suite for solo viola, wordless choir (SATB), and small 

orchestra, Flos Campi is one of Vaughan Williams’s most 

enigmatic pieces. Although the six movements all borrow 

their titles from the Old Testament’s Song of Solomon, the 

choir never articulates a single word. Instead, it serves as a 

section of the orchestra, creating an elegant vocal texture 

and backdrop to the viola’s haunting solo lines. The work 

was premiered in October 1925 by the violist Lionel Tertis, 

singers from the RCM, and the Queen’s Hall Orchestra, 

directed by Sir Henry Wood. 

20 minutes 

orch. Anthony Payne 

Four Last Songs 

Mezzo-soprano or baritone and chamber orchestra 

2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 3 hn, perc, hp, str 


These songs were composed in the years 1954–8, the 

last four years of Vaughan Williams’s life, and set texts by 

his wife Ursula. The first, ‘Procris’, is a bleak meditation on 

the tragic Greek mythological figure of the title who is 

accidentally killed by her husband. ‘Tired’ also deals with 

the subject of death, as the singer tenderly tells a loved one 

to ‘sleep’ in a beautiful, moving setting. ‘Hand, Eyes, and 

Heart’ is the shortest of the set, but nonetheless conveys 

a deep sense of love and devotion. The final song returns 

to Greek mythology for its subject, specifically the Spartan 

King Menelaus. It is more mystical in character after the 

melancholy Romanticism of the previous songs, and 

quietly optimistic in tone. This orchestral accompaniment 

was created by the editor. The songs are available with 

their original piano accompaniment in the first volume of 

Collected Songs. 

Procris • Tired • Hand, Eyes, and Heart • Menelaus 

11 minutes 

In the Fen Country 

Solo violin and full orchestra 

vln solo, 3 fl, 2 ob, ca, 2 cl, bcl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, 

timp, str 


Study score* 9780193691902 

This work is inspired by the English countryside, specifically 

the flat, marshy fens of eastern England. It was a landscape 

he returned to in his Norfolk Rhapsodies and Fen and Flood. 

Although this ‘Symphonic Impression’, as the composer 

called it, features moments of the pastoral warmth that 

has come to define him, there are also darker passages, 

reflecting the bleak emptiness of the fens. Originally 

completed in 1904 (making it the earliest work not 

withdrawn by the composer), it shows Vaughan Williams’s 

later style coming into fruition, but with lingering 

Romantic influences. 


14 minutes 

The Lark Ascending 

Romance for violin and orchestra 

Solo violin and orchestra or piano 

vln solo, fl, ob, cl, bn, hn, tri, str 

Full score 9780193692039 

Violin and piano 9780193360099 


Score and parts on hire - reduced 9780193512689 

This serene romance is one of Vaughan Williams’s most 

popular works. Taking its title from a poem by George 

Meredith, the music perfectly evokes the lark’s ‘chirrup, 

whistle, slur, and shake’. The edition of the violin and piano 

score includes a preface by Michael Kennedy. 

16 minutes 

Romance in D flat for Harmonica 

Harmonica, strings, and piano 

hca solo, pn, str 


Arrangement for harmonica and piano* 9780193693258 

This whimsical piece for harmonica accompanied by string 

orchestra and piano was written for the great harmonica 

player Larry Adler. It was premiered by Adler in New York in 

1952, a performance that was swiftly followed by another 

at the Proms under the baton of Sir Malcolm Sargent. 

Vaughan Williams writes idiomatically for the instrument 

without sacrificing his own distinctive compositional style, 

exploiting its expressive possibilities and showcasing the 

virtuosity of the soloist. 


6 minutes 

Johann Sebastian Bach arr. Ralph Vaughan 

Williams 

Schmucke Dich, O Liebe Seele 

Solo cello and string orchestra 


Vaughan Williams was a great admirer of the music of J.S. 

Bach, conducting annual performances of the St Matthew 

Passion in his home town of Dorking, Surrey. He made this 

arrangement of the composer’s organ chorale-prelude 

Schmucke Dich, O Liebe Seele for a concert to raise money 

for the 80th birthday of renowned cellist Pablo Casals in 

1956. It is an expressive and meditative work well-suited to 

the soulful tone of the cello. 


6 minutes 

12 

13


Suite de Ballet 

Solo flute and string orchestra 


Reduction for flute and piano 9780193851054 

This four-movement work for flute, discovered among 

Vaughan Williams’s manuscripts after his death, seems to 

have been composed in 1913 for the French flautist Louis 

Fleury. It shows the composer beginning to experiment 

with the bitonality that would flavour his later works. The 

flute part is by turn expressive and virtuosic, making it an 

excellent showcase for more advanced flautists, especially 

those looking for British repertoire. 

Improvisation • Humoresque • Gavotte • Passepied 

6 minutes 

Suite for Viola and Small Orchestra 

Solo viola and chamber orchestra 

vla solo, 2 fl, ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, timp, perc (tri, cel, SD), 

hp, str 


Viola and piano reduction 9780193694057 

Study score* 9780193694002 

This eight movement work is divided into three groups of 

movements (see below). It was composed in 1934 for the 

great viola player Lionel Tetris, for whom the composer 

had written Flos Campi almost a decade earlier. Pastoral 

lyricism is punctuated by passages of spirited virtuosity, 

skilfully exhibiting the abilities of both the instrument and 

the player. 

Group 1: 1. Prelude • 2. Carol • 3. Christmas Dance • Group 2: 

1. Ballad • 2. Moto Perpetuo • Group 3: 1. Musette • 2. Polka 

Melancolique • 3. Galop 


23 minutes 

ed. Robert Hare 

Concerto for Bass Tuba 

Solo tuba and wind band 

tba solo, picc, 2 fl, ob, 2 bn, 5 cl, 4 sax, 2 tpt, 2 hn, 2 tbn, 

timp, perc (SD, cym, BD, tri), db 


The Concerto for Bass Tuba and Orchestra was composed 

1953-4 to mark the 50th anniversary of the formation of 

the LSO and was written for the orchestra’s principal tuba 

player, Philip Catelinet. It was the first major concerto to be 

written for the instrument. 

14 minutes 

England’s Pleasant Land 

SATB and military band 

Music for a pageant, England’s Pleasant Land was first 

performed in Milton Court, Surrey, in 1938 and contains 

music by various composers. Vaughan Williams wrote 

music for Act II, scene i: ‘Exit of the Ghosts of the Past’ and 

‘The Funeral March for the old order’. 

Available from Bandmusicpdf.net 

Flourish 

Works for Band 

Wind band 

fl, Eb cl, 2 Bb cl, alt cl, contra-alt cl, bcl, contra-bass cl, bn, 

alt sax, Bb sax, bari sax, hns, cornets, tpts, tbns, euph, 

basses, str bass, timp, perc 

Full score 9780195366051 


This brief piece for wind band, composed in 1939 to open 

a pageant at the Royal Albert Hall, is simple but highly 

effective. It opens with a rousing brass fanfare, which 

gives way to a stirring, chorale-like passage in which the 

woodwind come to the fore, before giving way to the 

returning brass fanfare. 


Brass band 

sop cor in Eb, 3 solo cor in Bb, rep cor in Bb, 2 cor, flugel, 

solo hn, 2 hn, 2 bar, 2 tbn, btbn, 2 euph, 2 Eb bass, 2 Bb 

bass, timp (opt), perc (BD (opt), SD, cym) 

Score and parts on hire - brass band 9780193695924 

2 minutes 


Three Christmas Tunes 

Brass Quartet 

Score 9780193592971 

Parts 9780193592988 


Works for Band 

2 minutes 

arr. by Roy Douglas 

Wind band 

fl, Eb cl, 2 Bb cl, alt cl, contra-alt cl, bcl, contra-bass cl, bn, 

alt sax, Bb sax, bari sax, hns, cornets, tpts, tbns, euph, 

basses, str bass, timp, perc 

Score 9780193695900 

Parts 9780193695917 


14 

15

Works for Ensemble 


Cavatina 

from Symphony no. 8 

Strings 

Score, vln 1, vln 2, vla, vc, db 


Household Music: Three Preludes 

on Welsh Hymn Tunes 

String quartet or alternative instruments, and horn 

ad lib 

2 vln, vla, vc or alternative instruments 


String quartet score and parts* 9780193592506 

Alternative instrument parts* 

Although these Preludes were composed with string 

quartet in mind, the composer envisaged their being 

played by any combination of instruments that could 

be gathered together. The first Prelude, ‘Crug-y-bar’, is 

an atmospheric Fantasia; the second, ‘St Denio’, is a lively 

Scherzo; and the third, ‘Aberystwyth’, is a more substantial 

set of variations. As a set, they make an engaging addition 

to either a concert or an evening of private music-making. 

Alternative instruments - Oboe, clarinet, flute, saxophone, 

cornet, bassoon, bass clarinet, recorder, B flat saxophone, 

or euphonium may serve as a substitute for strings. 

Crug-y-bar (Fantasia) • St Denio (Scherzo) • Aberystwyth 

(Variations) 


17 minutes 

arr. Martin Gerigk 


String quartet 

Score 9780193519602 

Set of parts 9780193519626 

In this beautiful arrangement of The Lark Ascending 

violinists can perform the original solo line as part of a 

string quartet, while also joining the other players for 

the longer tutti sections. Perfect as a rehearsal tool in 

preparation for a larger-scale orchestral concert, the 

arrangement is also ideal for a chamber recital. 

16 minutes 

arr. Martin Gerigk 


String sextet 

vln solo, vln 1, vln 2, vla, vc, db 

Score 9780193519619 

Set of parts 9780193519633 

Vaughan Williams’s famous romance for solo violin and 

orchestra is given new life in this beautiful arrangement, 

which features the original solo line as part of a string 

sextet. Suitable both as a rehearsal tool in preparation for a 

larger-scale orchestral concert, and also for performance in 

a chamber recital. 

16 minutes 

Scherzo alla Marcia 

Second movement from Symphony No. 8 

Wind ensemble 

picc, fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 3 bn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn 


When composing his Eighth Symphony, Vaughan Williams 

took the unusual decision to score this movement 

for woodwind and brass only. It is full of wit, though 

its dark key (C minor) and chromatic lines lend it an 

intensity and edge. Featuring several solo passages for 

various instruments, it is a compelling showcase for its 

performers. 

4 minutes 

String Quartet in A minor 

String quartet 

Set of parts 9780193592742 

Score* 9780193592759 

This quartet was written upon the request of Jean Stewart, 

a professional viola player, and in light of this the viola part 

is prominent throughout. The first three movements are 

among the composer’s darkest output: turbulent, bleak, 

and menacing. The final movement, however, reaches a 

sound world of warmth and serenity reminiscent of the 

finale of the Fifth Symphony (the composition of this 

work fell between the Fifth and Sixth Symphonies, a fact 

that is reflected in the musical language). The quartet is 

also influenced by Vaughan Williams’s film music: the final 

movement is subtitled ‘Greetings from Joan to Jean’, in 

reference to the fact that the main theme was originally 

intended for the score of a film about Joan of Arc. The 

second movement, meanwhile, takes its theme from music 

for an escape scene in 49th Parallel. 


20 minutes 


arr. Alan Frank 

Greensleeves 

Treble recorder(s) and piano 

Score 9780193593046 

Set of parts 9780193592858 

Suite for Pipes 

Descant, treble, tenor, and bass recorders 

Available from Recorder Music Mail 

11 minutes 


16 

17

Dramatic Works 

The Bridal Day 

Narrator, baritone soloist, chorus, and small 

orchestra 

picc, fl, pn, str OR fl, pno 

Vocal and instrumental scores on hire 9780193388338 

The Bridal Day is a masque founded on Edmund Spenser’s 

Epithalamion, an ode to his bride on their wedding day. 

The poem was suggested to Vaughan Williams by Ursula 

Wood, whom he later married. The masque comprises a 

combination of dances, choruses, solo singing, and spoken 

word, with the music reflecting the joyful, untroubled 

nature of the words. Vaughan Williams later used the work 

as the basis for the cantata Epithalamion. 

45 minutes 


The Death of Tintagiles 

Spirituals 



ob, cl, hn, str 

This melancholic and darkly atmospheric score was 

composed as incidental music for a 1913 production of 

the Belgian playwright Maurice Maeterlinck’s play The 

Death of Tintagiles. In the play, Tintagiles’s family have been 

murdered by the Queen and, although he tries to escape, 

he is ultimately murdered by the Queen too. Marionettes 

are used in place of actors in order, demonstrating that 

the characters are merely puppets of fate. Despite the 

generally morose tone, the music still has moments 

of warmth and tenderness, and does not display the 

violence and abrasiveness of some of the composer’s later 

works. 

15 minutes 



Job 

A Masque for Dancing 


Orchestral version: 3 fl (III + picc & afl, III opt), 2 ob (II opt), 

ca, 3 cl (III opt), bcl, asax (opt), 2 bn, cbn (opt), 4 hn, 3 tpt (III 

opt), 3 tbn, tba, 2 hp (II hp), org, timp, perc, str 

Study score 9780193514324 


Piano Reduction* 9780193512757 

The one-act ballet Job has been described as one of 

Vaughan Williams’s mightiest achievements. It is a work 

which, in a full production, combines painting, literature, 

music, and dance. The work was inspired by William Blake’s 

Illustrations of the Book of Job , and includes quotations 

from the King James Bible. The result is a musical 

masterpiece, combining the ancient and the modern: 

Vaughan Williams’s earlier style is in evidence, including 

tranquil pastoral melodies, but the work also anticipates 

the composer’s later style. 

*Available from Banks Music Publications 

45 minutes 

arr. Constant Lambert 

Job 

A Masque for Dancing 


Theatre version: 2 fl (II + picc), ob, 2 cl, asax (opt), bn, 2 hn, 

2 tpt, tbn, 3 perc (glock, timp, xyl, tri, cym, SD, BD, tam), 

timp, hp, str 

Study score 9780193514324 

Score and parts for hire - theatre orch 9780193691827 

45 minutes 

The Pilgrim’s Progress 

A Morality 

34 soli, chorus, and full orchestra 

2 fl (II+picc), 2 ob (II+ca), 2 cl, 2 bn, cbn (opt), 4 hn, 2 tpt, 2 

tpt on stage (opt), 3 tbn, tba, euph (opt), timp, perc (SD, TD, 

BD, cym, gong, tri, xylo, glock, bell), hp, cel (opt), str 


Chorus scores on hire 9780193392267 

Vocal score* 9780193392250 

John Bunyan’s 1678 allegory The Pilgrim’s Progress 

fascinated Vaughan Williams throughout his career. He 

returned to the text several times in different forms, 

but it wasn’t until 1951 that this stage work was finally 

completed. Reflecting its long gestation, it encompasses 

the whole of the composer’s stylistic gamut: there is serene 

lyricism, mystical exoticism, turbulence, violence, and 

noble grandeur. The opera was first performed at the Royal 

Opera House in 1951. 


120 minutes 

The Poisoned Kiss 

A Romantic Extravaganza 

12 soloists, chorus, 2 speaking roles, and full 

orchestra 

2 fl (II+picc), ob, ca, 2 cl, bn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, tbn, timp, 

2 perc (BD, SD, gong, clash cym, tamb, sus cym, tri, xyl), hp 

or pn, str 


This stage work is based on a fairytale-like story by Richard 

Garnett, with lyrics by Evelyn Sharp and passages of 

dialogue by Ursula Vaughan Williams. The most notable 

feature of the score is the strength of its melodic invention, 

which ranges from gentle and lilting to raucous and 

boisterous. In 2016, Adrian Williams arranged music from 

the opera into a single movement work for orchestra 

entitled A Road All Paved with Stars, showcasing the finest 

passages. The overture of the opera is available to hire 

separately. 

120 minutes 

Riders to the Sea 

5 soloists, upper-voice chorus and orchestra 

2 fl (II+picc), ob, ca, bcl (or cl & bcl), bn, 2 hn, tpt, timp, BD, 

sea machine, str 


Chorus scores on hire 9780193393325 

Study score* 9780193393356 

This one act opera, from a play by J.M. Synge, is the story of 

a family’s lament for sons lost at sea off the Donegal coast. 

It is notable for the orchestral portraits of the sea and the 

wind, which ultimately led to the Sinfonia Antartica, and 

many consider it to be Vaughan Williams’s finest theatrical 

work. 

*Available from Archive 

42 minutes 

The Shepherds of Delectable 

Mountains 

STTBarBB soli, SA chorus, and chamber orchestra 

2 fl, ob, ca, str; off stage: 2 tpt, hp, 3 bells 


This ‘pastoral episode’ was composed as an independent 

stage work in 1922, but was later incorporated into The 

Pilgrim’s Progress (1951) with its final scene omitted. The 

tranquil music reflects the rural setting, with expressive 

solo instrumental lines adorning mellow vocal melodies. 

The work features six solo singing roles, an offstage 

women’s chorus, and chamber orchestra. 

23 minutes 


Sir John in Love 

Second Edition 

Soli, SATB chorus, and full orchestra 

2 fl, 2 ob (+ca), 2 cl, 2 bn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, tbn, timp, perc (rattle, 

bell, cym, SD, BD, tri, tam, sus cym, glock, xyl), hp, str 


Study Score 9780193524682 


Vaughan Williams turned to William Shakespeare for 

inspiration on many occasions, and such was the case 

with his opera Sir John in Love. The libretto, written by 

the composer, is based on The Merry Wives of Windsor, 

with texts by contemporaries of Shakespeare such as 

Christopher Marlowe, Ben Jonson, and Thomas Campion 

interpolated. Characteristically, Vaughan Williams 

incorporates folksongs into the score, most notably 

‘Greensleeves’. For this comprehensive new edition, the 

editor (and conductor) David Lloyd-Jones has drawn on all 

available sources, providing an authoritative full score with 

critical commentary. 

125 minutes 

18 

19

Works for Chorus and Orchestra 


Benedicite 

Soprano solo, SATB or upper voices, and full/ 

reduced orchestra/strings, organ and/or piano 

Full version: 2 fl (II+picc), 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, 

timp, perc (cym, clash cym, tri, BD, SD), cel (opt), pno, str; 

Reduced version: 2 fl, 1 ob, 2 cl, bn, 2 hn, tpt, tbn, pno, str 

SATB vocal score 9780193851597 

Score and parts on hire - full/reduced orch 9780193388048 

Score and parts on hire - str & org/pno 9780193388031 

Upper voices vocal score* 9780193406568 

Published in 1929, Benedicite is a substantial setting of 

texts from the ‘Song of the Three Holy Children’ (part of the 

Apocrypha) and John Austin’s hymn text ‘Hark, my soul, 

how everything’. Forceful and dynamic passages with thick 

choral-orchestral textures are juxtaposed against more 

solemn passages. The version for upper voices is arranged 

by Jean Storry. 


15 minutes 

Dona Nobis Pacem 

Soprano and baritone soloists, SATB, and full 

orchestra/string orchestra and piano/reduced 

orchestra 

Full orchestra: 3 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, cbn, 4 hn, 4 tpt (2 opt), 5 

tbn (2 opt), tba, timp, 3 perc (BD, TD, SD, cym, tam-tam, tri, 

tamb, glock, bells), hp, org (opt), str 

Reduced orchestra: fl, ob, 2 hn, trp, timp, hp, org, str 

Full score - full orch 9780193850682 

Scores and parts on hire - full orch 9780193388635 

Scores and parts on hire - str orch & pno 9780193388642 

Scores and parts on hire - reduced orch 9780193522572 

Drawing upon parts of the Bible, sections from the Mass, 

and poems by Walt Whitman, this is a powerful musical 

evocation of the destruction and death brought about 

through war and violence, with an overarching message 

of peace and reconciliation. It was composed in 1936, a 

time when war was threatening to engulf Europe once 

again, and the title, which translates as ‘Give us peace’, is 

as relevant now as it was when the work was premiered in 

1936. Featuring some of the composer’s most potent music 

(both serene and violent), it makes an affecting plea. 

England, my England 

Baritone soloist, double choir, unison voices, and 

orchestra 

2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 3 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, timp, cym, org, str 


This work sets W.E. Henley’s patriotic poem ‘Pro rege 

nostro’, which after initial popularity in the First World War 

came to represent the dangers of nationalistic thought. 

Vaughan Williams, however, took the poem at face value, 

and chose to set it when the BBC commissioned him to 

write a patriotic song during the World War II. It was one of 

the many works that the composer wrote as a contribution 

to the war effort. 

40 minutes 

Epithalamion 

Baritone soloist, SATB, flute, piano, and strings 


Vocal score* 

Epithalamion is a beautiful, expressive, and often ethereal 

cantata based on Vaughan Williams’s earlier masque The 

Bridal Day. The words are from Edmund Spenser’s poem of 

the same name, which he wrote to celebrate his wedding 

in 1594. It was the composer’s own future wife, Ursula 

Wood, who initially suggested the concept. Luscious 

orchestral harmonies and exotic melodic lines bring the 

joyful text richly to life, evoking the mythological world of 

Ancient Greece and Rome that is referenced throughout 

the text. 


40 minutes 

Fantasia on the Old 104th Psalm 

Solo piano, SATB choir and full orchestra/chamber 

orchestra/string orchestra and organ 

Full orch: pno solo, 2 fl (II+picc), 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 

tbn, tba, timp, perc, org (opt except when no ww), str 

Chamber orch: pno solo, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, org, str; 


Vocal score* 9780193800625 

Study score* 9780193389229 

This work from 1949 is a dynamic re-rendering of the ‘Old 

104th’ psalm tune. It features the unusual combination 

of solo piano accompanied not only by an orchestra but 

also by a mixed choir. Long passages for solo piano are 

interspersed with fuller choral and orchestral textures. 


15 minutes 

Patrick Hadley arr. Ralph Vaughan Williams 

Fen and Flood 

Soprano and baritone soli, SATB choir, orchestra 

2 fl (II+picc), 2 ob (II+ca), 2 cl, 2 bn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, 2 tbn, btbn, 

timp, 3 perc (tri, tam, SD, cym, BD, wind machine), hp, str 


Vocal material on hire 9780193366053 

After flooding caused over 300 deaths in the fens of 

Eastern England in 1953, the composer Patrick Hadley 

wrote the cantata Fen and Flood as his musical response. 

It sets the disaster in the context of the history of the 

fens, beginning in primeval times. Vaughan Williams 

made an arrangement the work for mixed chorus, and in 

Hadley’s words ‘superimposed a magic that wasn’t there 

before’. At the premiere of Vaughan Williams’s version, the 

Superintendent of Police who had directed rescue efforts 

during the floods performed a section of the baritone solo, 

singing words that he had spoken at the time. 

32 minutes 

Five Tudor Portraits 

Alto/mezzo-soprano and baritone solists, SATB 

choir, string orchestra and piano, or full orchestra 

3 fl (III opt), 2 ob (II+ca, or sep ca), 2 cl, 2 bn, cbn (opt), 4 hn 

(2 opt), 2 tpt, 3 tbn, tba (opt), timp, 2 perc (cym, SD, BD, tri, 

xylo, gong, glock (opt)), hp, str 

Scores and parts on hire - str orch & pno 9780193389823 


Vocal score* 9780193389816 

Study score* 9780193389809 

This choral suite is founded on poems by the early Tudor 

poet and rector John Skelton and responds inventively to 

the poet’s colourful language. Vaughan Williams sketches 

vivid and often witty depictions of his chosen characters to 

create a highly imaginative work for choir and orchestra. 

Ballad - The Tunning of Elinor Rumming • Intermezzo - My 

pretty Bess • Burlesca - Epitaph on John Jayberd of Diss • 

Romanza - Jane Scroop (her lament for Philip Sparrow) • 

Scherzo - Jolly Rutterkin 

* Vocal score available from Banks Music Publications, 

Study score available from Emerson Wind Music 

45 minutes 

Flourish for a Coronation 

SATB and full orchestra or reduced orchestra 

Full orchestra: 4 fl, 2 ob, 3 cl, asax, 2 bn, cbn, 8 hn, 6 tpt, 3 

tbn, euph, tba, timp, 2 perc (SD, cym, tamb, tri, BD, glock, 

bells), 2 hp, org, pn, str 

Reduced orchestra: 2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, 

tba, str 


This work was composed to celebrate the coronation 

of George VI in 1937 and is accordingly dynamic and 

celebratory in mood. It is a more substantial work that the 

word ‘flourish’ implies, comprising three movements. The 

first sets words from the Bible, the second takes its text 

from Geoffrey Chaucer’s Lake of Stedfastnesse, and the third 

is based on words from the patriotic Agincourt Song, an 

early fifteenth-century English folk song. 

Allegro moderato • Lento ma non troppo • Lento ma non 

troppo - Tempo I 

13 minutes 


40 minutes 

20 

21


ed. Graham Parlett 


Upper voices and orchestra/chamber orchestra/ 

strings and piano 

Original orch: 2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, 

timp, 2 perc (SD, tri, TD, BD, cym, glock, bells), hp, cel, org, 

str 

Chamber orch: 2 fl, ob, 2 cl, bn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, timp, hp, org, str 

Vocal score (2nd ed.) 9780193533561 

Study score (2nd ed.) 9780193533578 

Chorus part (1st ed.) 9780193871007 

Scores and parts on hire - original (1st ed.) 9780193390881 

Scores and parts on hire - chamber orch 9780193691414 

Scores and parts on hire - str & pno 9780193390898 

This cantata features sixteen highly-varied folk song 

settings, bound together in seasonal groupings to take 

the listener on an engaging journey through the year 

from Spring to Winter. The prologue implores us to ‘sing 

and be merry’, and many of the songs facilitate this with 

their charmingly light-hearted melodies and imaginative 

orchestral accompaniment. There are also darker moments, 

such as the haunting and heart-rending setting of ‘The 

Unquiet Grave’ in ‘Autumn’. For this comprehensive new 

edition, the editor Graham Parlett has drawn on all 

available sources, providing an authoritative full score with 

critical commentary. The new second edition also makes 

available new materials for the version for string orchestra 

and piano, and a new vocal score. 

45 minutes 

In Windsor Forest 

SATB or SSA, full orchestra or string orchestra and 

piano 

2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, tbn, timp, perc (tri, cym, SD), 

hp, str 



SSA vocal score* 9780193391222 

This cantata was adapted by the composer from music 

from his opera Sir John in Love. Comprising five choral 

songs, it features texts by Shakespeare (from Much Ado 

About Nothing) and his near contemporaries Thomas 

Ravenscroft, John Lyly, and Thomas Campion. 

There is also an SSA version available. 

The Conspiracy • Drinking Song • Falstaff and the Fairies • 

Wedding Chorus • Epilogue 

Magnificat 

Alto/mezzo-soprano solo, SA choir, and full 

orchestra/chamber orchestra/flute and piano 

Full orch: 2 fl, 2 ob, ca, 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, timp, hp, cel, 2 

perc, org, str 

Chamber orch: 2 flutes, harp, celeste, and strings 

2 fl, hp, cel, str 

Vocal score 9780193391543 



This is an unusual setting of the well-known text. After 

an ethereal opening, a contralto/mezzo-soprano soloist 

sings the Magnificat text while the upper-voice choir 

interpolates with other texts in praise of the Virgin Mary. 

The rhapsodic lines of the soloist contrast with the more 

reflective tone of the choir, while a prominent solo flute 

part evokes the otherworldly in a manner reminiscent of 

Debussy. This setting is not for liturgical use. 

12 minutes 

An Oxford Elegy 

Narrator, SATB choir, and chamber orchestra or 

string orchestra and piano 

Chamber version: fl, ob, ca, 2 cl, bn, 2 hn, str 

Vocal score 9780193392052 

Scores and parts on hire - str orch 9780193392083 


Study score* 9780193392069 

An Oxford Elegy combines adapted versions of The Scholar 

Gypsy and Thyrsis by Victorian poet Matthew Arnold to 

convey the story of an Oxford scholar who abandons his 

friends and studies to live in the countryside surrounding 

the city as a gypsy. The work is unusual in that the text is 

largely spoken by a narrator, with the chorus providing 

mostly wordless accompaniment. The result is a highly 

atmospheric and evocative work that combines pastoral 

simplicity with darker, more melancholic passages. 


25 minutes 

arr. Roy Douglas and Christopher Morris 

The Pilgrim’s Journey 

STBar soloists, SATB, and strings and piano, or 

orchestra 

2 fl (II+picc), 2 ob (II+ca), 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, timp, 

perc (SD, tri, cym, BD, gong (opt), glock (opt), xyl (opt)), hp 

OR pno, str 

Scores and parts on hire - str & pno 9780193392663 

Scores and parts on hire - orch 9780193392670 

Vocal score* 9780193392656 

This cantata is devised from music from Vaughan Williams’s 

well-known stage work The Pilgrim’s Progress, based on 

John Bunyan’s allegory of the same name. The composer 

never allowed concert or church performances of The 

Pilgrim’s Progress, so after his death Christopher Morris and 

Roy Douglas devised this cantata (with the endorsement 

of the composer’s widow) to allow a selection of the work’s 

music to be performed in non-stage settings. Comprising 

eight movements, it features some of the most powerful 

and affecting music from one of Vaughan Williams’s 

defining works. 

1: Cast Thy Burden Upon the Lord • 2: Into Thy Hands, O 

Lord (baritone solo) • 3: Who Would True Valour See • 4: 

Unto Him That Overcometh • 5: Vanity Fair • 6: He That is 

Down • 7: The Lord is my Shepherd • 8: Alleluia 


40 minutes 

arr. Christopher Palmer 

The Pilgrim’s Progress 

A Bunyan Sequence 

2 speakers, soprano soloist, SATB, and orchestra 

3 fl (all+picc), 2 ob (II+ca), 2 cl, Ebcl, 2 bn, cbn, 4 hn, 3 tpt, 3 

tbn, tba, timp, 4 perc (sus cym, tam, BD, SD, clash cym, xylo, 

tamb, tri, TD, tbells), 2 hp, str 


John Bunyan’s 1678 allegory The Pilgrims Progress 

fascinated Vaughan Williams throughout his career. 

This Bunyan Sequence is based on music written for the 

BBC’s 1943 radio adaptation of John Bunyan’s book. It 

encompasses the whole of the composer’s stylistic gamut: 

there is serene lyricism, mystical exoticism, turbulence, 

violence, and noble grandeur. 

50 minutes 

Serenade to Music 

Vocal soloists or SATB choir and orchestra/reduced 

orchestra/strings and piano 

Original: 2fl(2nd+picc), ob, ca, 2cl, 2bn, 4hn, 2tpt, 3 tbn, 

tba, timp, perc, hp, str 

Reduced: 2fl(2nd+picc), ob, ca, 2cl, 2bn, 2hn, 2tpt, timp, 

perc, hp, str 

Vocal score 9780193360020 

Score and parts on hire - original orch 9780193393585 

Score and parts on hire - reduced orch 9780193393547 

Score and parts on hire - str & pno 9780193393530 

Study score* 9780193393554 

This choral meditation on the nature of music and its 

power to enrapture is a setting of text from Shakespeare’s 

The Merchant of Venice. This tender and much-loved work 

was composed in 1938 in honour of Sir Henry Wood. It was 

written for 16 soloists and orchestra but may also be sung 

by four soloists and choir, or by mixed-voice choir. 


13 minutes 

A Song of Thanksgiving 

Soprano solo, speaker, SATB, and full orchestra or 

reduced orchestra 

Full: 2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, bcl (opt), 2 bn, cbn (opt), 4 hn (2 opt), 3 

tpt (III opt), 3 tbn, tba (opt), timp, perc (SD, tri, cym, BD), hp 

Reduced: 3 tpt, timp, perc, hp or pno, org, str 

Vocal score 9780193870871 

Score and parts on hire - full orch 9780193394575 


Originally entitled Thanksgiving for Victory, A Song 

of Thanksgiving is a powerful and moving work that 

celebrates the Allies’ victory in World War II. It was first 

recorded in 1944 while the war was still ongoing, but was 

not broadcast until victory had been achieved in May of 

the following year. Comprising seven movements, it sets 

texts from the Bible alongside words by Shakespeare and 

Kipling, lending the work a sense of timelessness and 

grandeur. 

15 minutes 



16 minutes 

22 

23


The Sons of Light 

SATB and orchestra 

picc (opt), 2 fl, 2 ob (II opt), 3 cl (III opt), 2 bn (II opt), asax 

(opt), tsx (opt), barsx (opt), 2 hn, 3 tpt (III opt), 3 tbn (III opt), 

tba (or euph), timp, pn, str 

Vocal score 9780193395015 


Scores and parts on hire - simplified orch 9780193395022 

This three movement work was premiered at the Royal 

Albert Hall in 1951 by a massed choir of 1150 school 

students under the direction of Sir Adrian Boult. Vaughan 

Williams made no concession to the youth of his singers, 

producing a powerful work that moves between musical 

darkness and light. The poems are by Ursula Wood, 

who later became the composer’s wife, and are entitled 

‘Darkness and Light’, ‘The Song of the Zodiac’, and ‘The 

Messengers of Speech’. Music from the work was later 

adapted into the song cycle Sun, Moon, Stars, and Man. 

25 minutes 

Sun, Moon, Stars, and Man 

Unison voices and string orchestra 


Vocal score* 

Sun, Moon, Stars, and Man is based on music from the 

cantata The Sons of Light. It sets four poems by Ursula 

Vaughan Williams, one on each of the subjects set out in 

the title. The outer movements are bold and energetic, 

while the inner movements are haunting and detached, 

conveying the chill emptiness of space before returning to 

the warmth of ‘man’ in the final movement. 

The Horses of the Sun • The Rising of the Moon • The 

Procession of the Stars • The Song of the Sons of Light 


20 minutes 

arr. Michael Mullinar 


Violin and piano 

Score 9780193593077 

4.5 minutes 

arr. Watson Forbes 


Viola or cello, and piano 

Score 9780193593015 

4.5 minutes 

arr. Hector Quine 

Greensleeves 

Guitar 

Solo Instrumental 

Score 9780193593091 

Available from June Emerson Wind Music 

ed. Julian Lloyd Webber and John Lenehan 

Fantasia on Sussex Folk Tunes 

Cello or viola and piano 

Cello and piano 9780193408401 

Viola and piano 9780193524644 

In this engaging work Vaughan Williams takes advantage 

of the expressive possibilities of the cello or viola, ranging 

from wistful and melancholic to lively and jovial. It was 

composed in 1929 and premiered the following year by its 

dedicatee, the legendary Spanish cellist Pablo Casals. The 

five folk songs on which the work is founded are ‘Salisbury 

Plain’, ‘The Long Whip’, ‘Low down in the broom’, ‘Bristol 

Town’, and ‘I’ve been to France’. These scores for cello/viola 

and piano are reductions of the original for solo cello/viola 

and chamber orchestra . 

Magnificat 

Flute 

Score 9780193391529 

Available from June Emerson Wind Music 

ed. Bernard Shore and Eric Gritton 

Romance for Viola and Piano 

Viola and piano 

Score 9780193592711 

This soulful piece was discovered among the composer’s 

manuscripts upon his death in 1958 and published 

posthumously in 1962. As a result, little is known about 

it, though it may have been written for the great viola 

player Lionel Tetris, for whom he composed Flos Campi 

in 1925. The opening and closing ‘Andante’ sections are 

melancholic and expressive, while in the central ‘poco 

animato’ section the piece grows in intensity and anguish. 

6.5 minutes 

Sonata in A minor for violin and 

piano 

Violin and piano 

Score 9780193592735 



15 minutes 

24 

25


arr. Herbert Byard 

Aberystwyth 

Organ 

Solo Instrumental - Piano and 

organ solo and duet 

Score 9780193759435 

Available from Banks Music Publications 

arr. Hubert Foss 

Fantasia on Greensleeves 

Piano duet 

Score 9780193853522 

This exquisite Fantasia on the timeless English folk song 

‘Greensleeves’ was arranged for piano duet and based on 

music from Vaughan Williams’s opera Sir John in Love. It 

features sweeping expressive phrases reminiscent of the 

Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis. The folk tune ‘Lovely 

Joan’ is included alongside the ‘Greensleeves’ tune, forming 

the basis of a more animated central section. 

4.5 minutes 

arr. Hubert Foss 


Two pianos 

Score 9780193739529 


A Little Piano Book 

Piano 

Score 9780193739567 

This collection features six pieces for intermediate pianists 

(around grades 3-5). A waltz, nocturne, and canon are 

supplemented by three two-part inventions that draw on 

J.S. Bach’s compositions in the form. 

Valse Lente • Nocturne • Canon • Two-part Invention in F • 

Two-part Invention in E flat • Two-part Invention in G 

A Vaughan Williams Organ Album 

Organ 

Score 9780193850149 

This album contains the best of Vaughan Williams’s own 

short pieces for organ, together with a selection of his 

popular compositions arranged by others. The eight pieces 

are characterful without being overly difficult and cover a 

range of occasions. 

Carol • Greensleeves • Land of our Birth • Musette • Prelude 

‘The New Commonwealth’ • Romanze ‘The White Rock’ • 

Toccata ‘St David’s Day’ • A Wedding Tune for Ann 

Hymn tune Prelude on ‘Song 13’ by 

Orlando Gibbons 

Piano 

Score 9780193739536 


arr. E. Stanley Roper 

Hymn tune Prelude on ‘Song 13’ by 

Orlando Gibbons 

Organ 

Score 9780193759459 


The Lake in the Mountains 

Piano 

Score 9780193739550 


Prelude and Fugue in C minor 

Organ 

Score 9780193759442 

Digital 9780193551275 

Prelude and Fugue in C minor (1921) is characterized by a 

sense of drama and punctuated by bristling dissonances. 

The Prelude's ritornello-like alternation of chordal grandeur 

and rapid imitative sections recalls Bach's great organ 

Prelude and Fugue in the same key. 



10 minutes 

Piano 

Score 9780193739505 


arr. Vally Lasker and Helen Bidder 

The Running Set 

Two pianos 

arr. E. Stanley Roper 


Greensleeves 

arr. Herbert Sumsion 

Organ 

Score 9780193759404 


Two Hymn-Tune Preludes 

Organ 

Score 9780193395190 

Introduction and Fugue for Two 

Pianofortes 


Two pianos 

Score 9780193739543 


26

Sacred Choral Music 

All hail the power 

SATB, congregation, and organ/orchestra/brass 

ensemble 

Orchestral version: 2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 3 bn, 4 hn, 3 tpt, 3 tbn, 1 

tba, timp, perc, org, str 

Brass version: 3 tpt, 3 tbn, timp 

Vocal score 9780193803329 

Score and parts on hire (both versions) 9780193546813 

Vaughan Williams’s arrangement of this eighteenthcentury 

English hymn, sometimes referred to as the 

national anthem of Christendom, is regal and stately. The 

text is by Edward Perronet (1726-92), a clergyman who 

worked closely with the Methodists John and Charles 

Wesley, and the original music by the organist William 

Shrubsole. 

6 minutes 

At the name of Jesus 

SATB, congregation, and brass quintet, opt. 

timpani, and opt. organ 

3 tpt, 2 tbn, timp (opt), org 

Vocal score 9780193851016 


This hymn, also known by the name ‘King’s Weston’, 

was composed for the 1925 hymn book Songs of Praise. 

It features an appealing melody and makes a rousing 

addition to any service. 

4.5 minutes 

A Choral Flourish 

SATB, congregation with trumpets or organ 

introduction 

Vocal score 9780193853836 

This striking anthem sets the Latin text of Psalm 33 

(an English singing translation is included). Dynamic 

melismatic vocal lines feature throughout, with the texture 

switching between homophony and polyphony. It was 

first performed in 1956, the same year as the composer’s 

similarly lively motet A Vision of Aeroplanes. 

1.5 minutes 


Communion Service in D minor 

Evening Service in D minor 

Unison voices, SATB, and organ 


Festival Te Deum 

SATB, full orchestra, and organ, or brass and 

percussion 

Orchestra: 3 fl (III opt), 3 ob (III opt), 2 cl, bcl (opt), 2 bn, cbn, 

4 hn, 3 tpt (III opt), 3 tbn, tuba, timp, 2 perc, org, str 

Brass, ed. Bavicchi: 3 tpt, 2 tbn, tba or btbn, timp, perc 

Vocal score 9780193515307 


Score and parts on hire - brass 9780193397842 

Score and parts - brass* 9780193855854 

The Festival Te Deum was composed for the Coronation 

of King George VI in 1937 and sets the Te Deum text in 

its English translation from the Book of Common Prayer. 

It is suitably majestic and celebratory in style, though 

the grand tone does briefly give way to a solemn central 

section. 


6 minutes 

For all the saints 

SATB and organ or orchestra 

Original: 2 fl (II+picc), 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, 

timp, perc (BD, cym), str 

H. G. Ley version: 2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, 1 tba, 

perc, org, str 

Vocal score 9780193802018 

Score and parts on hire - original 9780193546950 

Score and parts on hire - Ley version 9780193547018 

Vaughan Williams wrote the hymn tune ‘Sine Nomine’ 

in 1906 for The English Hymnal, setting Bishop W.W. 

How’s existing hymn text. Its gently rousing simplicity 

has firmly established it as a popular processional hymn 

across various denominations. Two different orchestral 

accompaniments are available as alternatives to the 

organ accompaniment: Vaughan William’s orginal and an 

arrangement by H. G. Ley and W. V. Todd. 

6 minutes 

arr. Sir Ernest Bullock 

For all the Saints 

SAB and organ 

God Bless the Master 

SATB or unison and opt. descant unaccompanied 

Unison vocal score 9780193437944 

SATB vocal score 


He that is down need fear no fall 

Unison voices and piano, and opt. recorder/flute/ 

clarinet 

Vocal score 9780193419506 

This is an adaptation of the music from Act 4, Scene 1 

of The Pilgrim’s Progress for concert performance. It is 

simple and expressive, bringing focus to the profundity 

of John Bunyan’s text. Recorder, flute, or clarinet may be 

incorporated into the piano accompaniment, as indicated 

in the score. 

1.5 minutes 

arr. Brian Judge 

Soprano or baritone soloist, SATB and obbligato for 

flute, oboe, or organ 

Score 9780193511231 

Into the woods my master went 

SATB unaccompanied with opt. intro 

Vocal score 9780193863323 


Morning Service in D minor 

Unison voices or SATB and organ 


Unison vocal score 


My Soul Praise the Lord 

SATB, unison and organ or strings and organ 

Vocal score 9780193535053 


O how amiable 

SATB and organ/brass, percussion, and organ/ 

strings and organ 

Brass version, arr. Jerry Brubaker: 2 tpt, hn, tbn, tba, perc, 

organ 

String version: str, org 

Vocal score 9780193851245 

Score and parts on hire - string orch 9780193540668 

Score and set of parts - brass 9780193862500 

This simple anthem was composed for a pageant in aid of 

the church of Abinger in 1934. The homophonic texture 

and inclusion of the first verse of O God our help in ages past 

at the end of the piece make it an accessible and inclusive 

work and a rousing addition to any service, concert, or 

community occasion. 

5 minutes 

O taste and see 

SATB or SSA unaccompanied, with opt. organ 


SSA vocal score 9780193535121 

Despite being composed for the grand Coronation 

of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953, this motet is tender 

and reflective. Setting text from Psalm 34: 8, the 

composer opens the piece with the quiet beauty of an 

unaccompanied treble/soprano solo. After this the lower 

voices are gently introduced in an imitative texture, in 

which the simplicity of the rhythms and melodic lines 

creates a sense of peace and stillness. The motet is 

particularly suited to performance during communion, the 

point at which it was performed in the Coronation service. 

1.5 minutes 


Unison voices, SATB, and organ 

Vocal score 9780193510661 

Vocal score 9780193515390 


28 

29


The Old Hundredth Psalm Tune 

All People that on Earth do Dwell 

SATB, congregation, and full orchestra, or organ 

with brass fanfare 

Original full orch version: 3 fl, 3 ob, 2 cl, bcl, 2 bn, cbn, 4 hn, 

3 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, timp, 2 perc (cym, BD, SD), org, str; 

Fanfare: 4 tpt, 3 tbn, SD 


Score and parts on hire - original 9780193547216 

Congregation part* 9780193535091 

Vaughan Williams provided music for royal ceremonies 

several times during his long career; this arrangement 

was for the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953. It 

is a gloriously majestic setting of the hymn ‘All people 

that on earth do dwell’ with spectacular brass fanfares 

and opportunities for congregational singing. There are 

also calmer moments: verse 4, for example, borrows from 

John Dowland’s setting of the psalm, harking back to 

the previous Elizabethan age. The work was given its first 

concert performance by the Hallé Orchestra under Sir 

John Barbirolli in 1957, and a year later was sung at the 

composer’s own funeral at Westminster Abbey. 


6 minutes 


SATB and reduced orchestra or brass 

Douglas reduced orch: 2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 3 tpt, 3 tbn, 

tuba, timp, 2-3 perc (SD, cym, BD), str 

Douglas large brass ensemble: 4 tpt, hn (opt), 4 tbn (IV tbn 

or tba), timp, org 

Douglas small brass ensemble: 3 tpt, timp (opt), org 


Score and parts on hire - large brass 9780193695290 

Score and parts on hire - small brass 9780193695283 

arr. Robert Washburn 

SATB and concert band 

2 fl, 2 ob, 1 bn, Eb cl, 3 Bb cl, Eb alcl, Bb bass cl, Eb contraalto 

cl, Bb contra bass, 2 Eb asax, Bb tsax, Eb bari sax, 3 Bb 

tpt, 4 hn, 3 tbn, euph, tba, str bass, timp, perc, org 

Score and parts on hire - concert band 9780193375314 

Score and parts - concert band* 


6 minutes 

The Pilgrim Pavement 

SATB 

Vocal score 9780193398764 


Prayer to the Father of Heaven 

SATB unaccompanied 

Vocal score 9780195366105 

In this unaccompanied motet, Vaughan Williams sets a text 

by the English poet John Skelton (c.1463–1529). The music 

captures the spirituality of the text with floating choral 

lines and a sophisticated harmonic language, employing 

eerie dissonances to create a sense of otherworldliness. 

The work carries the following dedication: ‘To the memory 

of my master Hubert Parry not as an attempt palely to 

reflect his incomparable art, but in the hope that he would 

have found in this motet (to use his own words) ‘something 

characteristic’ .’ 

4.5 minutes 

Te Deum and Benedictus 

Unison voices or SATB and organ, harmonium or 

piano 

Te Deum in G 

SATB (with divisions), opt. congregation, and 

organ/orchestra/strings and organ or piano 

Orch: 2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn (2 opt), 2 tpt, 3 tbn, tba (opt), 

timp, cym, str 

Vocal score 9780193535213 


Composed for the enthronement of Dr Cosmo Lang 

as the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1928, much of this 

striking setting is permeated by emphatically forwardmoving 

crotchets. Tonal exploration adds to this sense 

of momentum, as does the building of the texture in 

the opening passage from powerful choral unison to 

resplendent imitation between SATB Decani and Cantoris 

voices. Unusually, the piece does not continue to build in 

intensity throughout but instead gradually takes on a more 

reflective character, with a soft pianissimo chord bringing 

it to a restful close. Orchestral and strings accompaniments 

arranged by Arnold Foster. 

7 minutes 

The Song of the Tree of Life 

Unison or two-part voices and piano 

Vocal score 9780195365610 

Adapted from music from The Pilgrim’s Progress, this setting 

of words from Revelation 2 is profound and mystical. 

Flowing melodies, atmospheric harmonic shifts, and 

hushed dynamics give the piece an ethereal quality that 

powerfully evokes the religious transcendence described 

in the text. 

3 minutes 

The souls of the righteous 

STB soloists and SATB unaccompanied 

Vocal score 9780195366068 

This unaccompanied motet was first performed at the 

dedication of the Battle of Britain Chapel in Westminster 

Abbey, London, and has an accordingly sombre tone. It 

opens with a haunting soprano solo, and this ethereal 

atmosphere continues with unexpected harmonic shifts 

and hushed vocal writing. The words are taken from The 

Wisdom of Solomon (3: 1–5) and convey death as peaceful 

for those who have been ‘righteous’. This motet would be 

particularly well suited to funeral or memorial services. 

3 minutes 

The Twenty-third Psalm 

Solo soprano and SATB unaccompanied 

Vocal score 9780193535244 


Two Chorals from ‘Hodie’ 


Vocal score 9780193853850 

These two chorals are taken from Vaughan Williams’s 

1954 Christmas Cantata Hodie (This Day) - his last major 

composition for choir and orchestra. ‘The blessed son of 

God’ is the fifth movement of the original work, and is a 

hushed, tender setting of Miles Coverdale’s translation of a 

hymn by Martin Luther. The second choral, ‘No sad thought 

his soul affright’, is the penultimate movement of the work, 

and introduces moments of mystical discordance to the 

gentle tone set in the first choral. 

The blessed son of God • No sad though his soul affright 

5 minutes 


Score and parts (3 tpts, timp, and org) 9780193850293 

Vocal score 9780193535183 

6 minutes 

arr. C. Hazell 

This setting of the Te Deum and Benedictus texts employs 

well-known metrical psalm tunes, including Old 104th, 

Song 13, and Magdalen College. 

SATB and brass 

Hazell brass: 3 tpt, 3 tbn, perc (timp, SD), org 

Score and parts on hire - brass ensemble 9780193547230 

6 minutes 

arr. David Stone 


Stone orch : 2 fl (opt), ob (opt), 2 cl (opt), bn (opt), 2 hn 

(opt), 2 tpt (opt), tbn (opt), timp, perc (BD, SD, glock), pn, str 

Score and parts on hire - full orchestral 9780193695528 

6 minutes 

31


Valiant-for-truth 

SATB with organ or opt. piano introduction 

Vocal score 9780193535299 

This motet sets a text from John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s 

Progress, in which Mr Valiant-for-Truth poignantly 

meditates on the subject of his own approaching death. 

The work concludes with the protagonist passing into 

heaven with the choir emulating ‘the trumpets [sounding] 

for him on the other side’. In 1951, over a decade after the 

publication of Valiant-for-truth, Vaughan Williams’s operatic 

adaptation of The Pilgrim’s Progress was performed for the 

first time, reflecting his continued interest in Bunyan’s tale. 

6 minutes 

arr. John Leavitt 

Vaughan Williams for Choirs 

Book 1 

SATB and piano 

Vocal score 9780193532090 

Book 1 of this two-part collection of new arrangements 

and editions features well-loved and lesser-known sacred 

Vaughan Williams songs, anthems, and carols - for today’s 

mixed-voice choir. It presents unison or treble pieces 

scored for SATB, creating new repertoire, and provides 

new accompaniment options and durations that widen 

the appeal of the pieces for church or concert use. The 

adaptations may introduce or give new light to the 

repertoire, yet are complementary to the original settings 

published as single pieces. 

Contents: 

The blessed son of God (from the cantata 'Hodie') 

No sad thought his soul affright (from the cantata 'Hodie') 

A Song of Thanksgiving 

This is the truth 

O taste and see 

God rest you merry, gentlemen 

O how amiable 

He that is down need fear no fall 

At the name of Jesus 

Let us now praise famous men 

A virgin most pure 

SATB or TBarB unaccompanied 


TBarB vocal score 


A Vision of Aeroplanes 

SATB and organ 

Vocal score 9780193856783 

This motet is a compelling display of the more 

tempestuous side of Vaughan Williams’s compositional 

style, with a spectacular organ part and turbulent vocal 

writing evoking the ‘whirlwind’ and ‘fire’ of the biblical text, 

taken from Ezekiel 1. The title refers to the fact that some 

believe the strange flying object witnessed by Ezekiel was 

an aeroplane. The work is structured as a single throughcomposed 

movement, with three distinguishable sections: 

Moderato, Alla Marcia, and Più lento. 

10 minutes 

The Airmen’s Hymn 

Unison voices and piano or organ 

Vocal score 9780193385986 


An Acre of Land 

from Folk Songs of the Four Seasons 

Unison voices and piano 

Vocal score 9780193853638 

This setting was originally published as part of Folk Songs 

of the Four Seasons. The attractive melody is set to a lilting 

accompaniment to create a charming arrangement that 

will appeal to choirs and audiences of all ages. 

1.5 minutes 

Beat! Beat! Drums! 

from Dona Nobis Pacem 

SATB and piano or orchestra 

3 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, cbn, 4 hn, 4 tpt (2 opt), 5 tbn (2 opt), tba, 

timp, 3 perc (BD, TD, SD, cym, tam-tam, tri, tamb, glock, 

bells), hp, org (opt), str 

Vocal score 9780193866201 

This movement from Vaughan Williams’s cantata Dona 

Nobis Pacem vividly evokes the brutality of war, drawing 

on the menace and violence of the Walt Whitman poem 

that it sets. This vocal score features a piano reduction of 

the orchestral accompaniment; materials for the complete 

work are available on hire. 

3 minutes 

Secular Choral Music 

arr. Douglas Guest 

The Cloud-Capp’d Towers 

No. 2 from Three Shakespeare Songs 

SSA unaccompanied 

Vocal score 9780193378247 


Dives and Lazarus 

TBarB unaccompanied 


Drinking Song 

from In Windsor Forest 

TTBB and piano/orchestra/piano and strings 

Orch: 2 fl (II+picc), 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, tbn, timp, perc 

(SD, cym), str 

Vocal score 9780195366044 


This hearty song from the cantata In Windsor Forest 

(adapted from the opera Sir John in Love) is full of character. 

With a rollicking ‘oom-pah’ accompaniment and spirited 

vocal writing, it makes a fun and entertaining closing 

number or encore. 

3 minutes 

Early in Spring 


SSA and piano 

Vocal score 9780193854499 

Early in the Spring is the second song in Vaughan Williams’s 

Folk Songs of the Four Seasons. It describes the courtship of 

a young couple in the spring as the cuckoo and nightingale 

sing sweetly—an idyllic pastoral scene matched by the 

music’s simple beauty. 

2 minutes 

Epitaph on John Jayberd of Diss 

from Five Tudor Portraits 

Lower voices and orchestra 


Greensleeves 

SATB (with divisions) unaccompanied or SA and 

piano 


SA vocal score 9780193414044 

Lower voices vocal score* 9780193410053 

The SA setting of the much-loved English folksong 

Greensleeves employs sophisticated harmony to adorn the 

simple melody. The version for mixed choir uses four-part 

scoring to create a continuously flowing texture, with 

hushed dynamics and expressive harmonies bringing a 

sense of timelessness to the setting. 


3.5 minutes (SA) / 5 minutes (SATB) 


Heart’s Music 


Vocal score 9780193428089 

Heart’s Music, with words by Thomas Campion from 

the ‘Book of Ayres’, was first performed at Church of St 

Sepulchre, London, in 1954 by St Thomas’s Hospital Choir. 

3 minutes 

32 

33


I’ll never love thee more 



An Invitation 

No. 3 from Three Children’s Songs 


Vocal score 9780193803596 

This charming setting from Three Children’s Songs invites 

city-dwellers to go and experience the delights of the 

countryside. 

John Barleycorn 


SSA and piano 

Vocal score 9780193860056 

This setting, which opens the Autumn section of the 

Vaughan Williams’s cantata Folk Songs of the Four Seasons, 

uses a combination of pomp and wit to convey the 

gathering of the harvest. The character of John Barleycorn 

personifies the crop barley, and the song is a tongue-incheek 

telling of the indignities that he suffers at the hands 

of his farmers. 

3 minutes 

John Dory 


Vocal score 9780193434721 


Land of Our Birth 

from Thanksgiving for Victory 

Unison or SSA choir, string orchestra, and piano 


Vocal score* 9780193438125 

Land of our birth is taken from the 1944 work Thanksgiving 

for Victory, composed for broadcast upon the occasion of 

allied forces being victorious in the Second World War. It is 

a stately and regal setting of Rudyard Kipling’s ‘Children’s 

Song’, employing sonorous choral-orchestral textures to 

powerful effect. 


6 minutes 

arr. Paul Drayton 


Solo violin and SATB (with divisions) 

Vocal score 9780193528208 

This innovative and imaginative choral arrangement 

of The Lark Ascending has the original solo violin part 

accompanied by mixed choir. It sensitively sets George 

Meredith’s poem (on which the original version is based 

and which features in the autograph’s preface) and 

combines this with wordless vocal lines and vocal solos, 

preserving the texture and timeless effect of the original. 

Commissioned and premiered by the Swedish Chamber 

Choir. 

15 minutes 

The Lark in the morning 

SA unaccompanied 

Vocal score 9780193398382 


The New Commonwealth 



SA vocal score* 9780193522237 

SATB vocal score* 9780193522220 

TTBB vocal score* 9780193438170 

This song is an adaptation of music from Vaughan 

Williams’s Prelude to 49th Parallel, a war film in which a Nazi 

U-Boat crew try to reach the neutral USA from a remote 

area of Canada. It is a tender and moving setting, with 

optimistic words by Harold Child written especially for the 

piece. 


3 minutes 


SATB and full orchestra or strings and piano 

F major: 2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 3 bn, 4 hn, 3 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, timp, 

perc, hp, org, str OR pno and str; 

G Major: 2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, timp, cym, 

hp, pn, str OR strings only 


6 minutes 

Nothing is Here for Tears 

SATB chorus and full or chamber orchestra/strings 

and piano or organ/organ 

Full orch: 2 fl, 2 ob (II opt), 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn (2 opt), 2 tpt, 3 tbn 

(opt), tba (opt), timp, cym, org (opt), str 

Chamber orch (original): 2 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, timp, cym, org, str 


Vocal score* 9780193406865 

This choral song was written in response to the death of 

King George V in 1936 and is suitably solemn and noble. It 

sets words adapted from John Milton’s Samson Agonistes. 


6 minutes 

Orpheus with his Lute 

Unison voices and piano or string orchestra, or 

SATB and string orchestra 


Conductor’s score and parts on hire (SATB) 9780193441224 

A choral arrangement of Vaughan William’s solo song 

setting the text from Shakespeare’s Henry VIII. 

3 minutes 

arr. Douglas Guest 

Over hill, over dale 

No. 3 from Three Shakespeare Songs 

SSAA unaccompanied 

Vocal score 9780193401365 


The Rich Old Lady 


Vocal score 9780193420359 


See the chariot at hand 


Vocal score 9780193870710 

This gentle piece sets a love poem by Ben Jonson (1572– 

1637). It forms the fourth movement of the cantata In 

Windsor Forest, which is based on music from the opera Sir 

John in Love. Lilting and expressive, it would make a serene 

addition to a wedding or concert. 

5 minutes 

She’s Like the Swallow 


Vocal score 9780195366099 


Sigh No More, Ladies 


SSA and piano/string orchestra/full orchestra 

Full orch: picc, fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, tbn, timp, tri, 

str; OR pn, str 

Vocal score 9780193855267 


This is an exuberant and animated chorus from the cantata 

In Windsor Forest, which was itself adapted from the 

opera Sir John in Love. The text is from Act II, Scene 3 of 

Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing, and features the 

women’s chorus gleefully denouncing men as ‘deceivers’. 

3 minutes 

Silence and Music 


Vocal score 9780193870888 

Vaughan Williams composed this setting of a poem by his 

wife Ursula in 1953 to form part of A Garland for the Queen, 

a collection of ten tributes by leading British composers 

and poets to the newly-crowned Queen Elizabeth II. It is 

dedicated ‘to the memory of Charles Villiers Stanford, and 

his Blue Bird’, and reflects Stanford’s masterpiece in its 

harmonic language, floating soprano part, unaccompanied 

scoring, and haunting atmosphere. 

5 minutes 

Sine Nomine 

SATB choir and brass ensemble 

3 tpt, 3 tbn, org; OR 4 tpt, 4 tbn, org 



6 minutes 

34 

35


The Singers 



Vocal score 9780193854765 

The central piece in Three Children’s Songs, this setting of 

words by Frances Farrer is charming and lively. Having sung 

about the various professions to be pursued by their peers, 

the young choir proclaim their love of singing in a joyful 

chorus. 

2 minutes 

Six Choral Songs 

Unison chorus and full orchestra or piano 

2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, cbn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, perc (cym, 

BD), hp, org, str 


Vocal score* 9780193438255 

These songs set words by Percy Bysshe Shelley on the 

topics of ‘courage’, ‘liberty’, ‘healing’, ‘victory’, ‘pity, peace, 

and love’, and ‘the new age’. The set is subtitled ‘To be sung 

in Time of War’, having been written at the beginning of 

the Second World War (a planned premiere at the Proms 

in the summer of 1940 had to be cancelled owing to air 

raids). They are just one of the many examples of Vaughan 

Williams engaging with the topic of war in his work, with 

other notable examples including his Dona nobis pacem 

and A Song of Thanksgiving. 

A Song of Courage • A Song of Liberty • A Song of Healing • 

A Song of Victory • A Song of Pity, Peace and Love • A Song 

of the New Age 


13 minutes 

Spring 



Vocal score 9780193870901 

This heartfelt setting of words by Frances Farrer moves 

through the four seasons, culminating in the optimisitc 

proclamation that ‘Spring holds happiness in store’. Modal 

inflections add harmonic interest to the beautifully simple 

melodic lines. 

2 minutes 

Take, O take, those lips away 

No. 1 from Three Songs from Shakespeare 

Unison voices 

Vocal score 9780193409477 


arr. Arnold Foster 

Three Children’s Songs 

Children’s chorus and piano or string orchestra 


Vocal score* 9780193393622 

These three songs were written for the Leith Hill Music 

Festival, where the composer conducted their premiere 

in May 1930. Reflecting the time of year, the first song is 

entitled ‘Spring’, and the third, ‘An Invitation’, also has a 

nature theme. All three songs masterfully combine musical 

sophistication, character and melodic simplicity, making 

them accessible to young singers. 

Spring • The Singers • An Invitation 

*Off-prints available from Banks Music Publications 

6 minutes 

Three Gaelic Songs 


Vocal score 9780193429093 


Three Shakespeare Songs 

SATB (with divisions) unaccompanied 

Vocal score 9780193438279 

Three Shakespeare Songs comprises three short 

movements setting texts from Shakespeare’s The Tempest 

and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. They were composed 

as test pieces for the 1951 British Federation of Music 

Festivals National Competitive Festival. The atmospheric 

first movement, ‘Full fathom five’, is mystical and beguiling, 

with eerie, hypnotic mimicry of bell tolls in the upper 

voices. ‘The Cloud-Capp’d Towers’, the slower central 

movement, recalls Vaughan Williams’s Symphony No. 

6 in its harmonic language, while the third movement 

‘Over hill, over dale’ is lively conclusion to the set, full of 

harmonic and rhythmic interest. 

7 minutes 

To the ploughboy 


Unison upper voices with SA semi-chorus, and 

piano/orchestra/strings and piano 

Vocal score 9780193857940 

This setting of the folk song To the Ploughboy is delightfully 

light-hearted and carefree, with its spirited melodies, lively 

accompaniment, and repeated appeals to the listener 

to ‘sing and be merry’. It was composed to serve as the 

Prologue to the cantata Folk Songs of the Four Seasons. Full 

and reduced orchestral accompaniments for the complete 

cantata are available on hire—see page 29. 

arr. John Leavitt 

Vaughan Williams for Choirs 

Book 2 


Vocal score 9780193532090 

Book 2 of this two-part collection of new arrangements 

and editions features well-loved and lesser-known secular 

Vaughan Williams songs, anthems, and carols - for today’s 

mixed-voice choir. It presents unison or treble pieces 

scored for SATB, creating new repertoire, and provides 

new accompaniment options and durations that widen 

the appeal of the pieces for church or concert use. The 

adaptations may introduce or give new light to the 

repertoire, yet are complementary to the original settings 

published as single pieces. 

Contents: 

Spring (from Three Children’s Songs) 

The Singers (from Three Children’s Songs) 

An Invitation (from Three Children’s Songs) 

Whether men do laugh or weep 

John Dory 

Nothing is here for tears 

She’s like the swallow (Newfoundland Folk Song) 

Greensleeves 

Silence and Music 

Land of our birth (from ‘A Song of Thanksgiving’) 

The Voice out of the Whirlwind 


picc, 2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 3 bn, 4 hn, 3 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, timp, perc 

(SD, BD, clash cym, gong), hp, str 


Vocal score* 9780193535312 

This buoyant motet is an adaptation of Galliard of the Sons 

of Morning (from Vaughan Williams’s 1931 ballet Job) for 

use as an anthem or concert piece. It was premiered with 

organ accompaniment in 1947 in a St Cecilia’s Day Festival 

Service by singers from the Chapels Royal, Canterbury 

Cathedral, St Paul’s Cathedral, and Westminster Abbey. 


6 minutes 

arr. Alan Bullard 

The Water Mill 

SABar & piano 

Vocal Score 9780193544666 

This well-known song by Vaughan Williams is arranged 

here for mixed voices, with additional lower voice 

parts by Alan Bullard. The pastoral imagery in the lyrics 

is beautifully brought to life by the trademark folkinspired 

melodies, fluid harmonies, and a lively piano 

accompaniment. Originally published in The Oxford Book 

of Flexible Choral Songs. 

3.5 minutes 

Wedding Chorus 


SATB and full orchestra or string orchestra and 

piano 

Full orch: 2 fl, 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, tbn, timp, tri, hp or 

pn; OR pn, str 


This gentle chorus sets a love poem by Ben Jonson 

(1572–1637). It forms the fourth movement of the cantata 

In Windsor Forest, which is based on music from the opera 

Sir John in Love. Lilting and expressive, it would make a 

serene addition to a wedding or concert. 

4 minutes 

When Icicles Hang by the Wall 


Vocal score 9780193401358 


Whether men do laugh or weep 


Vocal score 9780193853645 

This is the final movement (Epilogue) of the cantata In 

Windsor Forest, which is based on music from the opera 

Sir John in Love. It sets a text from The Book of Airs (1601) 

by Philip Rosseter and Thomas Campion, creating a 

celebratory atmosphere with a spirited opening theme 

and rich choral textures. 

2 minutes 


1.5 minutes 

36 

37

Christmas Choral 

As Joseph was a-walking 

TTBB unaccompanied 


Children’s Christmas Song 

Two-part and piano or orchestra 

Vocal score 9780193437920 


The First Nowell 

TBarB unaccompanied 

Vocal score 9780193404519 

4 minutes 


The First Nowell 


Soprano and baritone soloists, SATB choir, and full 

orchestra, or strings, piano and organ 

Full orch: 2 fl, ob, 2 cl, bn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, 2 tbn, timp, hp, str 



(Winter) 

Upper-voice chorus and full orchestra 

2 fl (II + picc), 2 ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 4 hn, 2 tpt, 3 tbn, tba, timp, 2 

perc (glock, tri, SD), hp, cel, org, str 


This is the final part of Vaughan Williams’s appealing 

cantata, featuring four carol settings: ‘Children’s Christmas 

Song’, ‘Wassail Song’, ‘In Bethlehem City’, and ‘God bless the 

Master’. The first song showcases melancholy beauty; the 

second is a hearty Christmas drinking song; the third is a 

tender unaccompanied setting; and the fourth is a warm 

and uplifting hymn-like carol. 

Children’s Christmas Song • Wassail Song • In Bethlehem 

City • God bless the Master 

13 minutes 

God rest you merry, gentlemen 

from English Traditional Carols 

SA and piano 

Vocal score 9780193857209 

This is a rousing setting of the popular Christmas tune. The 

first and fourth verses are in unison, the second and fifth 

feature a gentle descant, and the third and sixth verses are 

in stirring harmony. 

3 minutes 

In Bethlehem City 

SSA unaccompanied 

Vocal score 9780193437968 


Lullaby from Hodie 

Soprano soloist, SSA choir, and piano 

Vocal score 9780193854482 

This tender lullaby sets William Ballet’s well-known text 

‘Sweet was the song the Virgin sang’. 

2.5 minutes 

Nine Carols for male voices 

TTBB unaccompanied 

Vocal score 9780193859401 

This masterfully crafted set of carols features a mixture of 

popular carols and lesser-known but equally enjoyable 

carols such as the Mummer’s Carol. The arrangements were 

made during the Second World War at the request of the 

British Council for performance by H.M. Forces in Iceland. 

God rest you merry, gentlemen • As Joseph was a-walking 

• Mummer’s Carol • The first Nowell • The Lord at first • 

Coventry Carol • I saw three ships • A Virgin most pure • 

Dives and Lazarus 

On Christmas Night 

Mezzo-soprano and baritone solists, SATB choir, 

and chamber orchestra 

fl (+picc), ob, cl, bn, hn, tpt, tbn, 2 perc (timp, SD, sus cym, 

tri, xyl), hp, cel (opt), pn, str; offstage: perc (xyl, bells), pn 


This masque is loosely based on Charles Dickens’ A 

Christmas Carol, conveying an adaptation of the perennially 

popular story through a combination of dancing and 

singing. Well-known Christmas carols are woven into the 

score. The score radiates warmth and humour, making it 

a charming seasonal work for amateur and professional 

groups alike. 

30 minutes 

This is the truth 

from English Traditional Carols 

SA and piano 

Vocal score 9780193857193 

3 minutes 

Two carols 


Vocal score 9780193395459 



Scores and parts on hire - str, pno & org 9780193389540 

Vocal score* 9780193389519 

Libretto* 9780193389526 

Vaughan Williams composed this musical ‘nativity play’ in 

the final year of his life, yet it is full of vitality and Christmas 

spirit, recalling his earlier folk song settings in its musical 

style and lightness of mood. The libretto, written by 

Simona Pakenham, is based on various medieval pageants, 

and the music is founded on traditional Christmas tunes. 

Vaughan Williams’s recastings of these familiar melodies 

are beautifully crafted, ranging from gently expressivity to 

stirring grandeur in tone. The final portion of the work was 

not finished upon the composer’s death, so his amanuensis 

Roy Douglas completed the work on the basis of the 

existing sketches. 

*Available from Banks Music Publishing 

50-minute stage version; 30-minute concert version 

Hodie (This Day) 

Soprano, tenor, and baritone soloists, SATB choir, 

and orchestra 

3 fl (II opt, III+picc), 2 ob (II opt), ca, 2 cl, 2 bn, cbn (opt), 4 hn 

(III&IV opt), 3 tpt (III opt), 3 tbn, tba, timp, 3 perc (SD, BD, TD, 

tri, cym, glock, tbell), cel, hp (opt), pn, org (opt), str 

Vocal score 9780193395510 

Chorus part 9780193870017 


In this Christmas cantata, Vaughan Williams uses a wide 

range of musical styles to create a compelling, vivid, and 

highly original retelling of the Christmas story. Composed 

in 1953-4, Hodie (This Day) was Vaughan Williams’s final 

large-scale choral-orchestral work, and was premiered 

under his own baton in Worcester Cathedral as part 

of the 1954 Three Choirs Festival. It comprises sixteen 

movements, including ‘narrations’ of words from the Bible, 

chorales, and a variety of other forms for both soloists 

and choir. The words are taken from diverse sources, with 

sacred texts from the Vespers of Christmas Day and the 

Bible interspersed with secular texts by poets including 

John Milton, Thomas Hardy, and Ursula Vaughan Williams. 

ed. David Willcocks 

O little town of Bethlehem 

from Carols for Choirs 1 and 100 Carols for 

Choirs 

SATB and piano/brass quintet/strings/chamber 

orchestra 

Brass quintet: 2 tpt, hn, tbn, tba; Chamber orchestra: 2 fl, 2 

ob, 2 cl, 2 bn, 2 hn, 2 tpt, str; OR strings only 

Score and parts on hire - brass quintet 9780193441798 


6 minutes 

O My Dear Heart 

SSSAAA unaccompanied 

Vocal score 9780193364905 

This is a beautiful arrangement of the old German tune 

‘Lasst uns das Kindlein Wiegan’, setting words adapted 

from an old Scots poem by Ursula Wood. 

3 minutes 

Two songs of winter 


Unison voices (with descant) and piano 

Vocal score 9780193857612 

These two settings from the Winter section of Folk Songs of 

the Four Seasons are full of Christmas spirit. ‘God bless the 

master’ is a hymn-like setting of a folk song that Vaughan 

Williams collected in Hampshire in 1909, while ‘Wassail 

Song’ is full of joie de vivre. The latter evokes the merriness 

of wassailing, in which people went from door to door 

singing carols and exchanging mulled cider for gifts. 

God bless the Master • Wassail Song 

6.5 minutes 

We’ve been a while 

from Carols for Choirs 1 

SATB and string orchestra 


6 minutes 

50 minutes 

38 

39

Solo Voice 

Along the Field 

High voice and violin 

Vocal score 9780193459311 

Eight settings of poems by A. E. Houseman with lyric violin 

accompaniment. 


Greensleeves 

High voice and piano 

Vocal score 9780193459342 

Vaughan Willliams made numerous arrangements of the 

old English folk song Greensleeves throughout his career. 

This version, taken from his opera Sir John in Love, is 

transposed to the higher key of A minor. 


Six English Folksongs 

Voice and piano 

Vocal score 9780193377523 


Ten Blake Songs 

High voice and oboe 

Vocal score 9780193850262 

These songs for tenor or soprano and oboe were 

composed for the film The Vision of William Blake, in which 

all except the second and third songs of the set were used 

alongside music from Job to form the soundtrack. The 

settings richly conjure the moods and sentiments of Blake’s 

poems, the first nine of which are from Songs of Innocence 

and of Experience, with the final song setting words from 

his poem Auguries of Experience. The oboe part may 

alternatively be played on the violin or on B-flat clarinet, 

though the composer stated that oboe was preferable. 

Infant Joy • A Poison Tree • The Piper • London • The Lamb • 

The shepherd • Ah! Sun-flower • Cruelty has a human heart 

• The divine image • Eternity 

19 minutes 

Solo Voice 

Three Vocalises 

Soprano and B-flat clarinet 

Vocal score 9780193850279 

This set of three brief vocalises for soprano and clarinet 

comprises a Prelude, Scherzo, and Quasi menuetto. 

The Prelude is otherworldly, with flowing phrases and 

chromatic melodic lines. The Scherzo contrasts in its 

playfulness, while the Quasi menuetto makes an attractive 

ending to the set. They were composed during the final 

year of the composer’s life in 1958, not long after the 

composition of the Ten Blake Songs for voice and oboe. 

Prelude • Scherzo • Quasi Menuetto 

5 minutes 

Two English Folk Songs 

Voice and violin 

Vocal score 9780193459564 


Two French Folk Songs 


Vocal score 9780193386280 


Two Poems by Seumas O’Sullivan 


Vocal score 9780193397682 

Two settings of texts by Seumas O’Sullivan including ‘The 

Twilight People’ (also in Vaughan Williams Collected Songs 

Volume 2) and ‘A Piper’. 




High voice (E flat major) 9780193459588 

Low voice (C major) 9780193459571 

This well-known song sets a text full of pastoral imagery 

by Fredegond Shove, beautifully brought to life by 

Vaughan Williams trademark folk-inspired melodies, 

fluid harmonies, and a lively piano accompaniment. The 

low voice version is also published in Vaughan Williams 

Collected Songs Volume 2. 

Collected Songs 

Collected Songs 

Medium voice and piano 

Volume 1 9780193459274 

Volume 2 9780193853089 

Volume 3 9780193459298 

This three-volume collection comprises the bulk of the 

solo songs that Vaughan Williams published with Oxford 

University Press. They span the whole of his long life, 

ranging from the early ‘How can the Tree but Wither?’ 

(composed around 1896) to the Four Last Songs (from 

1954–8, his final years) and include many of the composer’s 

most popular songs. 

Contents 

Volume 1: 

Three songs from Shakespeare*: 

Take, O Take 

When Icicles Hang by the Wall 

Orpheus with his Lute 

Three poems by Walt Whitman: 

Nocturne 

A Clear Midnight 

Joy, Shipmate, Joy! 

Greensleeves 

Four Last Songs: 

Procris 

Tired 

Hands, Eyes, and Heart 

Menelaus 

*Available individually from Banks Music Publications 

Volume 2: 

Four Poems by Fredegond Shove: 

Motion and Stillness 

Four Nights 

The New Ghost* 


See the Chariot at Hand 

In the Spring 

How can the Tree but Wither?* 

The Twilight People 

Volume 3: 

Seven Songs from `The Pilgrim’s Progess’: 

Watchful’s Song 

The Song of the Pilgrims 

The Pilgrim’s Psalm 

The Song of the Leaves of Life and the Water of Life (duet) 

The Song of Vanity Fair 

The Woodcutter’s Song* 

The Bird’s Song* 

Solo Voice 


When I Am Dead, My Dearest 


Vocal score 9780193409576 


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41

Study Scores 

Study Scores 

A range of paperback full-scores in smaller format, to aid the study and learning of Ralph Vaughan 

Williams’s music, is available from Oxford University Press. Based on new scholarly performing editions 

co-commissioned with The Vaughan Williams Charitable Trust, these study scores are newly engraved and 

contain introductions to the works and detailed textural notes, carefully presented by leading scholars 

and musicians. 

Bucolic Suite ed. Julian Rushton p. 4 

Burley Heath ed. James Francis Brown p. 4 

Concerto for Bass Tuba and Orchestra ed. David Matthews p. 11 

Fantasia for piano and orchestra ed. Graham Parlett p. 12 

Fantasia on Sussex Folk Tunes p. 12 

Fat Knight arr. Martin Yates p. 5 

Five Variants on ‘Dives and Lazarus’ p. 11 

Flos campi ed. Julian Rushton p. 12 

Harnham Down ed. James Francis Brown p. 6 

Job ed. Julian Rushton p. 18 

Norfolk Rhapsody No. 2 ed. Stephen Hogger p. 7 

A Road All Paved with Stars arr. Adrian Williams p. 4 

Scott of the Antarctic ed. Martin Yates p. 9 

Serenade in A minor (1898) ed. Julian Rushton p. 9 

Sir John in Love ed. David Lloyd-Jones p. 19 

The Solent ed. James Francis Brown p. 10 

Symphony No. 4 ed. David Matthews p. 3 

Symphony No. 5 ed. Peter Horton p. 3 

Symphony No. 6 ed. David Lloyd-Jones p. 3 

Sinfonia Antartica (Symphony No. 7) ed. David Matthews p. 3 

Symphony No. 8 ed. David Lloyd-Jones p. 4 

Symphony No. 9 ed. Alain Frogley p. 4 

Study Scores 

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For archive choral, keyboard and solo voice scores: 

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Tel: +44 (0) 1653 628545 

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Website: www.banksmusicpublications.co.uk 

For archive strings, woodwind, brass, chamber 

ensemble and full/ study scores: 

June Emerson Wind Music 

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Ralph Vaughan Williams Catalogue

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