Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles
Letter No. VWL3712
Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles
Letter No.: VWL3712
THE WHITE GATES,
WESTCOTT ROAD,
DORKING.
Monday [February 5 1934]
Dear Maud
I’ve never thanked you for your letter – I wish I cd have heard your lecture. Now we are almost certainly coming up to London for 10 days next Monday & I have rehearsals & concerts nearly every day.
By the way in case you want to know there is Job at Q.H.1 on Wed 14th B.B.C. studio concert (alas without the running set – no time) on Sunday 18th.2
London symph (Phil) Feb 22nd (special revised version with some of the bad bits cut out)3
– How I am to fit this in with the RCM concert at C # House4 I don’t know
By the way I don’t know any of the addresses of Irish F.S.5 societies
Sorry
yrs
RVW
1. Queen’s Hall
2. The broadcast concert on 18 February 1934 mentioned here is the one discussed in VWL1181, VWL1182 and VWL1184.
3. A London Symphony, first performance of this revised version, by the London Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Sir Thomas Beecham, at the Queen’s Hall, London
4. Cecil Sharp House, the home of the English Folk Dance and Song Society.
5. Folk Song
-
To:
-
From:
-
Scribe:
-
Names:
-
Musical Works:
-
Format:
-
General Notes:
This letter is cited in Catalogue of Works p.69 in connection with the reference in it to A London Symphony (Catalogue of Works, 1913/5), dated ‘Monday April 5th 1933’. This cannot be right (it is possible that ‘April 5th’ was added later) since the only year in this period in which April 5th was a Monday is 1937 (by when RVW was using different writing paper). Monday February 5th 1934 would fit all dates given in the letter: 14th February was a Wednesday, the 18th a Sunday and it makes sense of the reference to the London Symphony being performed on Feb 22, which otherwise would be nearly a year ahead and very unlikely to be mentioned by VW in this context. The date is also borne out by VWL1185 to Diana Awdry in which he says ‘we are in town as I have to be up for “Job” – & then I’ve got to conduct some me at the B.B.C. tomorrow (Sunday) & then several things next week’, and the context in the BL files. The performance of Job on 14 February 1934, Job was by the BBC Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Adrian Boult, at the Queen’s Hall, London (see Nigel Simeone, Ralph Vaughan Williams and Adrian Boult, p. 248).
-
Location Of Original:
-
Shelfmark:MS Mus. 1714/2/3/1, ff. 135-138
