Vaughan Williams - Choral and Organ Works

My recent post of Coronation choral music elicited a request for this elusive 1976 LP by the same forces - a set of choral and organ works by Ralph Vaughan Williams.

As before, the performers are the Exultate Singers led by Garrett O'Brien, with organist Timothy Farrell. RCA UK issued this disc; the previous item came out on Vista, producer Michael Smythe's own label. The recording location was London's Southwark Cathedral, where O'Brien was assistant organist.

Southwark Cathedral

The LP opens with one of the composer's apocalyptic compositions, A Vision of Aeroplanes from 1929. The work is a setting of a text from Chapter 1 of Ezekiel in which the prophet describes an overwhelming vision of God. The text is frightening in its intensity, which Vaughan Williams captures in both the organ and choral passages. 

The other choral works include the motet O vos omnes from 1922, A Choral Flourish from 1956 (a setting of Psalm 32), and The Hundredth Psalm from 1929.

The LP closes with The Voice Out of the Whirlwind from 1947. The "voice out of the whirlwind" is God's, as captured in a passage from the book of Job. The work includes music related to the composer's ballet Job. 

Texts of the choral works were not supplied with the album, but I've pulled them together because they are essential to understanding the composer's intent, particularly with A Vision of Aeroplanes.

The choral works are interspersed with organ preludes on Welsh tunes as set by Vaughan Williams in 1920 (Three Preludes on Welsh Hymn-Tunes) and 1956 (Two Preludes on Welsh Folk-Songs).

The Exultate Singers never made a huge impact, but they did make some excellent records in the mid to late 1970s. I will be presenting a few more later on.