THE LETTERS OF RALPH VAUGHAN WILLIAMS

[Ithaca, NY]

November 23rd [1954]

Dear Frank,

Please send a full set of P.P. songs¹ to Miss Balmforth, Walsingham House, the Cottage, Ely; with my compliments.
Thank you for your letter about Kipling & Rostand. As regards Rostand – I think we can do without a translation, because what we want to do, if at all, is to adapt the play freely as an opera: & I daresay this will not be allowed!²
We are having a very good time but almost too hectic.
Very good performance of Benedicite³ at Cornell on Wednesday. By the way, the full score they sent me to conduct off is a scandal!
Yours,

RVW

1. Seven Songs from The Pilgrim’s Progress (Catalogue of Works 1951/1a).
2. On Kipling see VWL2884. VW had earlier asked Frank to find an English translation of Edmond Rostand’s Les Romanesques, but none was found to exist.
3. Benedicite for soprano solo, mixed chorus and orchestra, Catalogue of Works 1929/1.