THE LETTERS OF RALPH VAUGHAN WILLIAMS

 From R. Vaughan Williams,
10, Hanover Terrace,
Regents Park,
London, N.W.1.

November 10th 1955.

Dear John,

Thank you very much for suggesting doing my new symphony¹ in the cathedral, but I am not at all sure about conducting it myself, it is becoming more and more of a strain to me, and I shall be quite happy if you or David² would like to undertake it, if its not too much for you; or would Meredith³ like to undertake it?  I understand he is becoming a virtuoso conductor.  If⁴ you would like me to appear as a conductor at all shall I conduct the Lark,⁵ which I know very well, and which would be no trouble to me; I am glad Grinke⁶ is going to play it: I admire his playing very much.
Love to Alice
yrs
RVW

1. Symphony no. 8
2. David Willcocks, organist of Worcester Cathedral and conductor of the City of Birmingham Choir.
3. Meredith Davies, who had succeeded Percy Hull as organist of Hereford Cathedral in 1950. He had been studying conducting at the time of this letter in Italy and in 1956 moved to be Organist of New College Oxford, from 1957 combining that with the post of Associate Conductor of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. His subsequent career was largely as a conductor but he became Principal of the Trinity College of Music in 1979.
4. Mistyped as ‘It’ in original.
5. The Lark ascending
6. Frederick Grinke, violinist.