List of compositions by Ralph Vaughan Williams


This is a list of compositions by Ralph Vaughan Williams.

Operas

  • Hugh the Drover, or Love in the Stocks. Romantic ballad opera in 2 acts, with libretto by Harold Child
  • *A Cotswold Romance, Cantata for tenor, soprano, baritone, chorus and orchestra, adapted from Hugh the Drover by M. Jackson
  • Sir John in Love. Opera in 4 acts, based on The Merry Wives of Windsor by Shakespeare with interpolations from other authors.
  • *In Windsor Forest, Cantata for chorus and orchestra, adapted from Sir John in Love
  • *Fantasia on "Greensleeves" for strings and harp, adapted from Sir John in Love by Ralph Greaves in 1934;
  • The Poisoned Kiss, or The Empress and the Necromancer. Romantic Extravaganza in 3 acts, with libretto by Evelyn Sharp
  • Riders to the Sea, from the play by J. M. Synge
  • The Pilgrim's Progress. Morality in Prologue, 4 acts and Epilogue, based on John Bunyan's allegory
  • *The Shepherds of the Delectable Mountains. Libretto: Ralph Vaughan Williams
  • *"Seven Songs from The Pilgrim's Progress" for voice and piano
  • *"The 23rd Psalm" for soprano and chorus, arranged by John Churchill
  • *Pilgrim's Journey, Cantata for soprano, tenor, baritone, chorus and orchestra adapted from The Pilgrim's Progress by Christopher Morris and Roy Douglas
  • Thomas the Rhymer, Opera in 3 acts to libretto by Ursula Vaughan Williams, based on traditional ballads Thomas the Rhymer and Tam Lin. Uncompleted.

Incidental music

The Wasps : to Aristophanes's play The Wasps, Overture and 17 items
  • * Aristophanic Suite for orchestra The Bacchae : to Euripides's tragedy
  • The Death of Tintagiles : to Maurice Maeterlinck's 1894 play
  • Incidental music to Shakespeare's plays : The Merry Wives of Windsor; Richard II, Henry IV Part 2, Richard III, Henry V
  • The First Nowell : nativity play adapted from medieval pageants by Simona Pakenham; score completed by Roy Douglas

Ballets

  • Old King Cole for orchestra and optional chorus
  • On Christmas Night : masque adapted from A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
  • Job: A Masque for Dancing
  • * The Voice out of the Whirlwind, Motet for mixed choir and organ or orchestra; adapted from "Galliard of the Sons of the Morning" from Job
  • The Running Set : Traditional Dance Tunes for orchestra
  • The Bridal Day : masque founded on Epithalamion by Edmund Spenser
  • *Revised as Epithalamion, Cantata for baritone, chorus and small orchestra

Orchestral

Concertante

Choral

Hymn tunes and carols

Vaughan Williams was the musical editor of the English Hymnal of 1906, and the co-editor with Martin Shaw of Songs of Praise of 1925 and the Oxford Book of Carols of 1928, all in collaboration with Percy Dearmer. In addition to arranging many pre-existing hymn tunes and creating hymn tunes based on folk songs, he wrote several original hymn tunes:
  • Original hymn tunes included in The English Hymnal
  • * "Come Down, O Love Divine": entitled Down Ampney in honour of Vaughan Williams's birthplace
  • * "God Be With You Till We Meet Again"
  • * "Hail Thee, Festival day"
  • * "For All the Saints"
  • Original hymn tunes included in Songs of Praise
  • * "Saviour, again to Thy dear name"
  • * "The night is come like to the day"
  • * "Servants of God"
  • * "England Arise! the long, long night is over"
  • * "At the Name of Jesus"
  • Original tunes included in Oxford Book of Carols
  • * The Golden Carol
  • * Wither's Rocking Hymn
  • * Snow in the Street
  • * Blake's Cradle Song
  • Extra original hymn tunes included in the enlarged edition of Songs of Praise
  • * "Into the woods my master went"
  • * "Servants of the great adventure"
  • * "I vow to thee my country"
  • * "Let us now praise famous men"
  • * "Fierce raged the tempest"

Vocal

  • "Summum bonum", song, setting text by Browning
  • "To daffodils", song, setting text by Herrick
  • "Dirge for Fidele", duet, setting text by Shakespeare from Cymbeline, published 1922
  • "Rondel", song, setting text by Swinburne
  • "How can the tree but wither", song, setting text by Thomas, Lord Vaux
  • "Claribel", song, setting text by Tennyson
  • "Linden Lea", song ; from the William Barnes poem “My Orcha’d in Lindèn Lea”
  • "Blackmwore by the Stour", song ; from the William Barnes poem “Blackmwore Maïdens”
  • "Boy Johnny", song, setting text by Christina Rossetti
  • "Whither Must I Wander", song
  • "If I were a Queen", duet, setting text by Christina Rossetti
  • "When I am dead, my dearest", song, setting text by Christina Rossetti
  • "Tears, idle tears", song, setting text by Tennyson
  • "The Splendour Falls", song, setting text by Tennyson
  • "The Winter's Willow", song ; from the William Barnes poem of the same name
  • "Adieu", duet, translated from German by Arthur Foxton Ferguson
  • "Think of Me", duet, translated from German by Arthur Foxton Ferguson
  • "Orpheus with his Lute", song, setting text by Shakespeare
  • The House of Life, six sonnets by Dante Gabriel Rossetti : 1. Lovesight; 2. Silent noon; 3. Love's minstrels; 4. Heart's haven; 5. Death-in-Love; 6. Love's last gift
  • Two Vocal Duets, for soprano, baritone and violin with piano, setting texts by Walt Whitman
  • Songs of Travel, song cycle for baritone and piano, setting texts by R. L. Stevenson. Includes "The Vagabond".
  • * Songs 1 3 8 arranged for baritone and orchestra
  • *"I have trod the upward and the downward slope" was added to the original eight songs in 1960, after the composer's death
  • * Songs 2 4 5 6 7 9 arranged for baritone & orchestra by Roy Douglas
  • "Dreamland", song, setting text by Christina Rossetti
  • "Nocturne", for baritone and orchestra, setting of "Whispers of Heavenly Death" by Walt Whitman
  • "The Sky Above The Roof", song, setting translation by Mabel Dearmer of Paul Verlaine poem 'Le ciel est pardessus le toit'
  • On Wenlock Edge, song cycle for tenor, piano and string quartet, setting texts by A. E. Housman
  • Four Hymns: for tenor and piano with viola obbligato
  • Merciless Beauty, three rondels for tenor, two violins and cello Four Poems by Fredegond Shove: for baritone and piano : 1. Motion and Stillness; 2. Four Nights; 3. The New Ghost; 4. The Water MillTwo Poems by Seumas O'Sullivan : 1. The Twilight People; 2. A Piper;
  • Three Songs from Shakespeare : 1. Take, O take those lips away; 2. When icicles hang by the wall; 3. Orpheus with his lute
  • Three Poems by Walt Whitman for baritone and piano : 1. Nocturne; 2. A Clear Midnight; 3. Joy, Shipmate, Joy!
  • "Along the Field", for tenor and violin, setting texts by A. E. Housman
  • "In the Spring", song ; from the William Barnes poem of the same name
  • Ten Blake Songs, song cycle for high voice and oboe, written for film The Vision of William Blake
  • Four Last Songs to poems of Ursula Vaughan Williams: 1. Procris; 2. Tired; 3. Hands, Eyes and Heart; 4. MenelausThree Vocalises for soprano and clarinet

Chamber

  • String Quartet in C minor
  • Quintet in D major for clarinet, horn, violin, cello, and piano
  • Piano Quintet in C minor for violin, viola, cello, double bass and piano
  • Scherzo for string quintet
  • Nocturne & Scherzo for string quintet
  • String Quartet No. 1 in G minor
  • Phantasy Quintet for 2 violins, 2 violas, and cello
  • Suite de Ballet for flute and piano
  • Romance and Pastorale for violin and piano
  • Romance for viola and piano
  • Six Studies in English Folk Song, for cello and piano
  • Double Trio for string sextet : withdrawn and revised as Partita for Double String Orchestra
  • Suite for Pipes
  • Household Music: Three Preludes on Welsh Hymn Tunes for string quartet or other instruments : 1. Fantasia, Crug-y-bar; 2. Scherzo, St. Denio; 3. Variation, Aberystwyth
  • String Quartet No. 2 in A minor
  • Sonata in A minor for violin and piano

Keyboard

  • Pezzo Ostinato for piano
  • Three Preludes for Organ founded on Welsh hymn tunes ; 1. Bryn Calfaria, 2. Rhosymedre, 3. Hyfrydol
  • * No. 2 & No. 3 arranged for orchestra by Arnold Foster
  • * Arranged for two pianos by Leslie Russell
  • Suite of Six Short Pieces for piano
  • * Arranged for string orchestra by James Brown in collaboration with the composer as The Charterhouse Suite
  • Prelude and Fugue in C minor for organ
  • * Version for orchestra Hymn Tune Prelude on 'Song 13' by Orlando Gibbons for piano
  • *Arranged for string orchestra by Helen Glatz
  • Six Teaching Pieces for piano
  • A Wedding Tune for Ann for organ A Winter Piece for piano Introduction and Fugue for two pianos
  • The Old One Hundredth Psalm Tune, harmonisation and arrangement
  • Two Organ Preludes founded on Welsh Folk Songs : 1. Romanza, The White Rock; 2. Toccata, St. David's Day

Film scores

Scores for radio

  • BBC adaptation by Edward Sackville-West of John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress, 1942
  • * Some of this music was later used in the Morality Play The Pilgrim's ProgressRichard II ; not used
  • Incidental music to BBC production of Thomas Hardy's The Mayor of Casterbridge, 1951
  • *Prelude on an Old Carol Tune was adapted from this incidental music

Band

  • Rhosymedre for concert band
  • English Folk Songs, Suite for military band
  • * Arranged for brass band by Gordon Jacob
  • *Arranged for orchestra by Gordon Jacob
  • *Arranged for piano by Michael Mullinar
  • Sea Songs, Quick march for military and brass bands
  • * Arranged by composer for orchestra
  • Toccata Marziale for military band
  • Overture: Henry V for brass band
  • Flourish for Wind Band
  • Prelude on Three Welsh Hymn Tunes for brass band : 1. Ebenezer; 2. Calfaria; 3. Hyfrydol
  • Variations for brass band
  • * Arranged for orchestra by Gordon Jacob