DESCRIPTION:
Ralph Vaughan Williams, OM (pron.: /ˌreɪf ˌvɔːn ˈwɪljəmz/; 12 October 1872 -- 26 August 1958), was an English composer of symphonies, chamber music, opera, choral music, and film scores. He was also a collector of English folk music and song: this activity both influenced his editorial approach to the English Hymnal, beginning in 1904, in which he included many folk song arrangements, and also influenced several of his own original compositions... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralph_Vaughan_Williams

Vaughan Williams provided the music for the film Scott of the Antarctic in 1947, and was so inspired by the subject that he incorporated much of the music into a symphony. The piece was begun in 1949, and composition completed in 1952, with a dedication to Ernest Irving. The first performance took place on 14 January 1953 in Manchester with Sir John Barbirolli conducting the Hallé Orchestra; the soprano soloist was Margaret Ritchie. The first American performance was given by Rafael Kubelík and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra on 2 April 1953... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinfonia_antartica

The British National Antarctic Expedition, 1901--04, generally known as the Discovery Expedition, was the first official British exploration of the Antarctic regions since James Clark Ross's voyage sixty years earlier. Organized on a large scale under a joint committee of the Royal Society and the Royal Geographical Society (RGS), the new expedition aimed to carry out scientific research and geographical exploration in what was then largely an untouched continent. It launched the Antarctic careers of many who would become leading figures in the Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration, including Robert Falcon Scott who led the expedition, Ernest Shackleton, Edward Wilson, Frank Wild, Tom Crean and William Lashly... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discovery_Expedition


A link to a comprehensive discography of Vaughan william's compositions: http://www.allmusic.com/artist/ralph-vaughan-williams-mn0000204681


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