Ralph Vaughan Williams Norfolk Rhapsody No 2 (1906)

Vaughan Williams wrote three
Norfolk
Rhapsodies
in 1905 -- 0 6 , originally intending
to compose a Norfolk Symphony. They were
based on folk-tunes he had collected at King's
Lynn and elsewhere in Norfolk in 1905. There
is no record of their having been performed
together in one concert, although Vaughan
Williams conducted the first performances of
Nos 2 and 3 at the Cardiff Festival on
27 September 1907. These two Rhapsodies
were first played in London in April 1912 but
were then withdrawn (the score of No. 3 no
longer exists). In contrast, Rhapsody No. 1 had
its first performance in London on 23 August
1906 conducted by Henry Wood. It was
drastically revised for 21 May 1914 when the
composer conducted the new version in
Bournemouth. The work as published is
permeated by the hauntingly beautiful melody
of 'The Captain's Apprentice', first hinted at by
the clarinet in the slow introduction -- like a
misty Fenland morning -- and later played in
full by solo viola. A contrast in mood and
tempo is provided by the folksong 'The Basket
of Eggs', while a cor anglais introduces
'A Bold Young Sailor'. This Rhapsody originally
ended brilliantly, but the revision substituted a
return to the misty landscape of the opening.
Norfolk Rhapsody No. 2 had not been
performed since 1914 until this recording was
made. Two pages of the score are missing but
have been recomposed. This Rhapsody also
begins quietly with woodwind playing 'Young
Henry the Poacher' before the tune passes to
violas and cellos. A climax contains hints of the
second subject, the tune 'All on Spurn Point',
introduced in full by a solo horn. The third tune
is 'The Saucy Bold Robber' which provides the
basis for a short scherzo, beginning with
piccolo and oboe. 'Young Henry the Poacher'
returns in a variant and the Rhapsody ends
pianissimo
with a return to 'Spurn Point'.