THE LETTERS OF RALPH VAUGHAN WILLIAMS

St. Paul’s Girls’ School,
Brook Green, Hammersmith, W.6.

Nov 11, [1925]

Dear R
It was good to read and re-read your letter today.  One of the reasons for its goodness being that it contains much that I felt but failed to get into words about ‘Flos’.¹
The only point in which I differ from you is about the fear of drifting apart musically or in any other way.  I expect it is the result of my old flair for Hindu philosophy and it is difficult to put simply.
It concerns the difference between unity and uniformity which is the difference between life and death which means that occasionally drifting is necessary to keeping our stock fresh and sweet.  It alas means a lot more but that’s enough for one go.
Of course there’s another side and about this I am absolutely in the dark.  I mean the real value of either Flos, the KS², Beethoven’s 9^th or anything else – barring things like the B minor^3.  During the last two years I have learnt that I don’t know good music from bad or, rather, good from less good.
And I’m not at all sure that the KS is good at all.  Just at present I believe I like it which is more that I can say about most of my things.  I’m quite sure that I like the Mass⁴and PS⁵ best of all your things.  I couldn’t get hold of Flos a bit and was therefore disappointed with it and me.  But I’m not disappointed in Flos’s composer because he has not repeated himself.  Therefore it is probably either an improvement or something that will lead to one.  Which seems identical with your feelings about the KS.

I am now longing to apologise for all this rigmarole but I see you call your letter one and if getting all this off my chest gives you a quarter of the pleasure that your letter gave me it will have been well worth writing.
I was very very sorry to miss the violin concerto.⁶  So far I’ve only heard Vally’s⁷ account which was glowing.  She also surprised herself by liking van Dieren.
yr
G
P.S. I am seriously contemplating giving up all lecturing and conducting after this season.  I’ve spouted and waggled quite enough!

1. Flos Campi
2. i.e. ‘Keats Symphony’ = Holst’s Choral Symphony.
3. J.S. Bach’s Mass in B minor
3.  Mass in G minor.
4.  Pastoral Symphony.
5. Concerto Accademico, later renamed as the Violin Concerto, had its first performance at the Queen’s Hall on 10 October 1925.
6. Vally Lasker, musician, conductor, and at this time assistant to Holst at St Paul’s Girls School.