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Classical Composer:	Vaughan Williams, Ralph
Lyricist:	Whitman, Walt
Work:	Symphony No. 1, "A Sea Symphony"
Year Composed:	1923
Instrumentation:	2+1, 2+1, 2+Eb, 2+1 - 4, 3, 3, 1, timp, perc, 2hp, org, str, soli MzT, mx chor [alt ww: 2d1, 1+1, 2, 2]
Publishers:	Edwin F. Kalmus Stainer & Bell
Duration:	01:06:00
Period:	20th Century
Work Category:	Orchestral

Work Information

Work Analysis

Available Recording(s)

Several first symphonies have caused their composers much trouble, not least that by Brahms, who laboured for over two decades to bring his C minor Symphony to fruition. The difficulty, in that instance, of furthering an Austro-German symphonic tradition still under the shadow of Beethoven is pertinent when considering A Sea Symphony, the first symphony (though not designated as such) by Ralph Vaughan Williams. When he began it in 1903, the composer was in his early thirties, with a number of songs, chamber works and short orchestral pieces to his name, and little in the way of a national reputation. Completed in 1909, and successfully performed for the first time at the Leeds Festival the following year, the work, together with the Tallis Fantasia, first performed at the Three Choirs Festival only weeks before, confirmed the arrival of Vaughan Williams on the national stage.

Parallel to the composer's evolving of a personal musical idiom went his desire to free English music from the Austro-German framework still prevalent in the music of Parry, Stanford and Elgar. The influence of Parry's choral odes, as well as Stanford's Songs of the Sea and Elgar's Sea Pictures, is intermittently evident, while the latter's The Dream of Gerontius had set a new precedent for a symphonically conceived oratorio, but the combining of high art and folk-inflected music in A Sea Symphony marks a radical departure, while the setting of verses by Walt Whitman (Leaves of Grass in the first three movements, Passage to India in the finale) reinforces the sense of an artistic new dawn such as remained constant in Vaughan Williams' thinking for the next half century.

A choral symphony in the lineage of Mendelssohn rather than Beethoven, the formal construction of A Sea Symphony, with its four movements and sense of tonal closure, nonetheless draws directly on symphonic precedent. The first movement, A Song for all Seas, all Ships, starts with a choral paragraph of breathtaking immediacy, the feeling of new vistas effortlessly evoked. The main part begins with the "rude brief recitative" sung by the baritone in shanty-like strains and enthusiastically echoed by the chorus. Contrast follows with the lyrical "chant for the sailors", rising in intensity until the opening brass fanfare is recalled and the soprano makes a dramatic entrance at 'Flaunt out O seas' - marking the onset of the opulent central section. A pensive choral passage centred on the 'Tokens of all brave captains' heralds a reprise of the opening music, soloists and chorus in a series of intensifying exchanges which culminate in the reiterated statement 'one flag above all the rest'. The close, however, recollects the universality of Whitman's message in a mood of tranquillity.

A ruminative calm persists through the second movement, On the Beach at Night alone, a nocturne whose harmonic ambiguity provides a sombre context for this setting entrusted to the baritone. A more robust central section, its main theme warmly set out by horns over pizzicato strings, reaches an affirmative choral climax, before the introspective opening is recalled in largely orchestral terms.

The third movement, The Waves, is a Scherzo which makes considerable demands on the chorus in its contrapuntal intricacy. The work's opening fanfare is recalled, and two folk-songs, The Golden Vanity and The Bold Princess Royal, are alluded to in this scintillating depiction of the sea as a natural phenomenon. A noble theme evoking a great sea-going vessel twice provides contrast, before the movement drives to its defiant conclusion.

The Explorers is an apt title for the large-scale fourth movement, a heartfelt summation of the composer's musical and spiritual development. The opening, featuring the words 'O vast Rondure swimming in space', sets the exalted tone of much that follows. A modal processional evokes the creation of man, leading to a rarefied setting of 'Wherefore unsatisfied soul' and the determined response 'Yet soul be sure', together defining the philosophical goal of the whole work. A triumphal culmination is built around the word 'singing', the soloists entering impulsively at 'O we can wait no longer' to add a more human dimension. The chorus re-enters at 'O thou transcendent', then at 'Away O Soul' the music irrupts in a frenzy of shanty rhythms as the ship/soul sets sail. Yet the outburst is cut short: the work ending with a calm depiction of the ship vanishing over the horizon, and the implicit journeying of the soul toward those unknown regions on earth as of the human mind.

Analysis by	:	Peter J. Parfitt
Reference	:	8.557059 Tracks 1-4

Note: It would be a good idea to consult the chapters on ‘The Symphony’ and ‘Music of the Twentieth Century’ in the Study Area before studying this analysis.

Background and Overview

Ralph Vaughan Williams’ quintessential Englishness is deeply imbedded in his musical style, and this is clearly evident in his Sea Symphony, written between 1903 and 1908. It started work as a collection of songs of the sea, following an earlier model by Stanford, but developed over the period of its composition into a choral symphony, drawing on the huge legacy of large scale choral and orchestral writing provided by composers such as Parry and Elgar (Parry and Stanford had both been teachers of Vaughan Williams, who also studied with Max Bruch in Berlin and with Ravel in Paris).

Known as a prolific collector of folk songs from around the British Isles, Vaughan Williams’ writing is imbued with their melodic and harmonic idioms. A number of his works (e.g. Fantasia On Greensleeves, Three Norfolk Rhapsodies) draw directly from folksong, whilst others, (e.g. In The Fen Country) contain original melodies, which were written to sound as though they are folk songs. It was Vaughan Williams’ refusal to imitate contemporary foreign models of form and structure, and his desire to continue the regeneration of English music, which led him to the re-discovery and exploitation of native resources.

Nationalism is widely evident in his music, not only through his preoccupation with folksong, but also through his almost impressionist musical portrayal of English landscapes and scenes. Works such as On Wenlock Edge (1909), The London Symphony (1913), The Lark Ascending (1920), The Pastoral Symphony (1931), In The Fen Country (1935), as well as a huge number of English Songs set to the words of Shakespeare, Bunyan, Rosetti, Chaucer and Tennyson, amongst others, all betray the continuation of the English revival. The music of Elgar, Delius, Holst, Parry and Stanford all influenced Vaughan Williams, and helped forge a new, British nationalistic style which was adopted and furthered by the next generation of British composers including Gurney, Howells, Bax, Quilter, Head and, to some extent, Walton and Britten. Vaughan Williams in many ways bridged the gap between these two generations.

The words of A Sea Symphony are by the American poet Walt Whitman. The work is divided into four movements: A Song for All Seas, All Ships; On the Beach at Night Alone; The Waves; The Explorers.

The first performance was given at the Leeds Festival in 1910 with the composer conducting. It was the first item in the programme – the second item was a performance by Rachmaninov of his own Piano Concerto No.2. The critics were unanimous in their praise of the work. The Times stated “It will not be surprising if the 1910 festival is known as the festival of the Sea Symphony ... It was a pleasure to recognise the poetical grasp with which Mr Vaughan Williams has handled his subject. Poet and musician marvellously akin.” Given its warm reception it is surprising to note that the first London performance was not given until 1913 in the Queen’s Hall. The work was published in 1909.

When Vaughan Williams began work on his songs of the sea in 1903 it was perhaps unsurprising that he had no intention of writing a symphony - after all, no Englishman had ever written one of any importance (Elgar’s First did not appear until 1908). Its symphonic proportions appear to have evolved naturally over the period of its composition. Hurd states that the work is “broad and spacious in conception [ and ] deals not only with the varying moods of the sea, but also with its symbolic, mystical significance for man. It is therefore one of the earliest of his works which prompts the listener to search for meanings.”¹ Hurd goes on to make the point that, whilst Elgar’s music was largely concerned with looking inwards and the reflecting of his own emotions, Vaughan Williams, on the contrary, looks outward and draws inspiration from the world around him.

The Sea Symphony was the work that put Vaughan Williams on the musical map before the outbreak of the First World War. On Wenlock Edge and Fantasia on a Theme of Thomas Tallis also date from the same period, but in terms of music on a grand scale, the Sea Symphony made the biggest impact.

Analysis

First Movement: A Song For All Seas, All Ships.

TIME	THE TEXT	THE MUSIC
0.00	Behold, the sea itself,	A brass fanfare in Bb minor heralds the opening lines. The chorus enters, unaccompanied, and there is a dramatic harmonic change on the word “sea” (0.13) to D major. The orchestra joins, tutti, one beat later. This most arresting of openings immediately and effectively depicts the vastness, majesty and grandeur of the sea (See Ex. 1).
0.33	and on its limitless, heaving breast, the ships; see, where their white sails, bellying in the wind, speckle the green and blue,	The chorus is mostly divided into two parts here; basses and altos in unison and sopranos and tenors in unison. In D major, this is a flowing passage where a three-against-two rhythm prevails, and a restless, shifting harmonic pulse underpins, both reflecting the random surge and swell of the sea. The harps are prominent in the orchestral texture and the melody is played in the upper strings. An accelerando comes at the end of the passage.
1.08	see, the steamers coming and going, steaming in or out of port, see, dusky and undulating, the long pennants of smoke. Behold, the sea itself, and on its limitless, heaving breast, the ships.	The tempo is quicker here, reflecting the busy action on the sea. Again the chorus is divided into two, with sopranos and altos singing antiphonally with tenors and basses. The accompaniment consists of insistent, repeating triplets in the strings and a strong countermelody in the bass. The music starts in C# major at 1.08 and falls successively to Bb major at 1.17 and Ab major at 1.29. The passage ends with a descending unison orchestral passage, which leads back into Bb minor for a reprise of the material of the opening bars.
2.36	Orchestral interlude	Over a pedal point in D major, and supported by gentle, tremolando strings, the mood becomes much calmer. A solo violin introduces a melodic fragment which features a falling triplet motif, and this is taken up in turn by clarinet, oboe, cor Anglais and French horn. The pedal point drops a semitone at 2.58 and, at 3.11, in D minor, a new melody played on the cellos, and imitated by the bassoon, leads into a faster passage reminiscent of a sea shanty. This is, in fact, a reference to the folk song “Tarry Trowsers” (Ex. 2).
3.27	Today a rude brief recitative, of ships sailing the seas, each with its special flag or ship signal, of unnamed heroes in the ships – of waves spreading and spreading far as the eye can reach,	The music moves to A minor and the baritone soloist enters with a lively setting of the text (Ex. 3) A jaunty, staccato accompaniment, scored for woodwind and strings, (sometimes pizzicato) perpetuates the feel of the shanty. Harmonically the music moves in blocks; 3.26 – A minor, 3.36 – G major, 3.44 – F minor, 3.48 – Eb minor, 3.54 – Bb major, 3.56 – C minor, 3.58 – C major. This seemingly random shifting of the tonal centre, without preparatory modulation, is a hallmark of Vaughan Williams’ style.
4.03	of dashing spray, and the winds piping and blowing. Today a rude brief recitative, of ships sailing the seas, each with its special flag or ship signal, of unnamed heroes in the ships – of waves (4.36) spreading and spreading far as the eye can reach of dashing spray, and the winds piping and blowing.	The chorus enter, again sopranos and tenors in unison singing against altos and basses in unison. At 4.21 the chorus take up the melody introduced by the baritone and sing it in unison accompanied by full orchestra. Word painting (the deliberate illustration of the text by a musical feature) occurs at 4.36 when the chorus split into four separate parts, entering one after the other from the bass part upwards, and thereby creating the illusion of waves spreading out, each on top of the last. Cymbals and triangle are both prominent throughout the orchestral texture; both illustrative of water.
5.24	And out of these a chant for the sailors of all nations,	A quieter passage, accompanied by a suspended string tremolando and harp, and sung, almost like a hymn, by the baritone followed by the chorus (Ex. 4).
5.54	fitful, like a surge. Of sea captains, young and old, and the mates, and of all intrepid sailors, of the few, very choice, taciturn, whom fate can never surprise nor death dismay, picked sparingly, without noise by thee, old ocean, chosen by thee, thou sea that pickest and cullest the race in time, and unitest the nations, suckled by thee, old husky nurse, embodying thee, indomitable, untamed as thee.	This section is one of dark brooding, alternating with more solemn moments of almost hymn-like simplicity. It is a dialogue between baritone and chorus – sometimes the soloist leading and the chorus imitating (almost Purcellian in style), and sometimes with the chorus accompanying and anticipating the soloist. The chorus always sings homophonically, and the orchestral timbres are mostly low, dark and closely spaced. The harmonic centre shifts constantly and the rhythmic patterns are irregular with changes of time signature and tempo.
8.14	Flaunt out, O sea, your separate flags of nations! Flaunt out visible as ever the various ship-signals!	This section is much more triumphant in style. The soprano soloist enters for the first time at 8.21, and her music, quasi recitative, is preceded by brass fanfares, accompanied by string tremolando, copied by a homophonic chorus and punctuated by fast, descending orchestral passages led by the strings.
9.35	But do you reserve especially for yourself, and for the soul of man one flag above the rest, a spiritual woven signal for all nations,	The soprano leads this flowing section, accompanied by a rich orchestral texture, in which the harp is omnipresent. Her music is imitated polyphonically by the accompanying chorus and the surging nature of the sea is again represented in the harmonic pulse. Word painting is present in the high-pitched phrase given to the soprano as she sings the words “one flag above all the rest” (9.58) high above the choral parts, and also in the highly polyphonic and imitative music given to the chorus as they sing the words “a spiritual woven signal” (10.11).
10.33	Emblem of man elate above death,	All come together for the triumphant end to the passage, accompanied by brass fanfares.
10.46	Token of all brave captains and all intrepid sailors and mates and all that went down doing their duty, reminiscent of them, twined from all intrepid captains young and old,	This section begins with a high, held soprano note, which grows into recitative, and then develops into a lengthy passage full of imitation and choral polyphony. The process begins with the altos (11.06), followed by the sopranos (11.21), tenors (11.34) and basses (11.49), and is almost fugal in style and structure. The accompaniment throughout is built around a pulsating triplet figure and there are shifting countermelodies in the orchestral bass parts. The passage climaxes at 12.38 before becoming more reflective.
14.00	Emblem of man elate above death,	The music rapidly becomes animated at 14.00 for the return of an earlier line in the poem. Brass fanfares and a tutti texture accompany this passage, which builds throughout. The chorus are given short interjections from 14.32, working from the bass part upwards, and the triumphant repeated phrase “above death”, skilfully painted with a fast rising leap, from 14.49, closes this energetic section.
15.06	a pennant universal, subtly waving all time, o’er all brave sailors,	The unanimity of spirit suggested by the words is exploited musically here as full orchestra, chorus and both soloists come together for the first time. The accompaniment is made up of slow and steady chords and swirling strings and harp, and the use of fanfare figures in both chorus and solo parts is alternated with broader music displaying solidarity.
16.17	one flag above all the rest³,	This passage marks the climax of the whole movement. Full orchestra and voices combine boldly before the music subsides and the opening words are reprised.
16.57	behold, the sea itself, and on its limitless heaving breast the ships.	The setting of these words is quite different here. The music is marked mysterioso, and the soprano chorus and tenors imitate each other in a soft rising phrase, in thirds, against tremolando strings and cor Anglais, before the soprano soloist takes over the words.
17.37	[ behold, the sea itself ] [ one flag above all the rest ] all seas, all ships.	The final passage is accompanied only by a timpani roll pedal point and combines, in nine part chorus and soloists, the final three lines of the poem in a tranquil and beautiful phrase which rises before settling into a pianissimo D major.

¹Michael Hurd – Ralph Vaughan Williams (Faber and Faber).
²Note that, in order to facilitate a discussion of the music, the text here follows the order of the words as set by Vaughan Williams. There is repetition in the text and some of the lines are not in the order in which Whitman originally wrote them. The punctuation is faithful to Whitman’s, as far as is possible, notwithstanding the above.
³Vaughan Williams takes some liberties with the words here and introduces two earlier lines before setting the final line of the original poem to music.

Ex. 1 0.00

Ex. 2 3.11

Ex. 3 3.29

Ex. 4 5.24

Second Movement: On the Beach At Night Alone.

TIME	THE TEXT	THE MUSIC
0.00	On the beach at night alone, as the old mother sways her to and fro singing her husky song, as I watch the bright stars shining I think a thought of the clef of the universes and of the future.	The opening of the movement is soft and sustained, with strings, lower woodwind and brass providing dark, almost sinister textures. The harmony rocks between C minor and E major. When the baritone soloist enters at 1.14 it is on a single note. This and his subsequent phrases are mirrored by the altos (Ex. 5).
3.26	A vast similitude interlocks all, all distances of space however wide, all distances of time, all souls, all living bodies though they be ever so different,	A new and more optimistic mood is invoked here with a walking bass ostinato pattern and a French horn solo. At 4.15 a key change illustrates the phrase “all distances”. The vocal parts enter one after the other - basses, baritone solo, altos, tenors and sopranos. The choral writing remains polyphonic until the phrase “all living bodies” to which the music builds at 5.04 and the walking bass remains constant throughout until this point.
5.50	all nations, all identities that have existed or may exist, all lives and deaths, all of the past, present , future (6.23). This vast similitude spans them and always has spanned, and shall for ever span them, and shall compactly hold and enclose them.	This more forceful passage is characterised by short, unison passages in the orchestra alternating with homophonic unaccompanied passages for the chorus and baritone. The energy builds until 6.23 when the climax of the whole movement occurs. The choral writing is declamatory and the section is rounded off with a loud orchestral passage dominated by the brass and percussion.
7.17	On the beach at night alone.	The music calms and the same harmony, textures and mood of the opening return. The baritone repeats his opening phrase, this time without the alto chorus. A solo cello, a pair of clarinets, a cor Anglais and a French horn are heard, lending the music a certain wistfulness.

Ex. 5 1.14

Ex. 6 6.23

Third Movement (scherzo): The Waves.

TIME	THE TEXT	THE MUSIC
0.00	After the sea-ship, after the whistling winds, after the white-grey sails taut to their spars and ropes, below a myriad, myriad waves hastening, lifting up their necks,	Despite the scherzo title, the nature of this movement is not so much humorous as frightening. The power and irascibility of the sea is written into every bar of the music and the tempo and orchestration make this a whirlwind of textures and imagery. Vaughan Williams departs from his more usual approach to using harmony in blocks, and instead turns to chromaticism as the basis for much of the harmonic language in this movement. Piccolos and trumpets feature prominently in the orchestration and there is much use of contrary motion between the upper and lower parts of the orchestra. The movement opens with a fanfare followed by the upper voices in fast, short bursts (Ex. 7).
0.49	Tending in ceaseless flow toward the track of the ship, after the whistling winds, waves of the ocean bubbling and gurgling, blithely, prying,	Rising chromatic scales through the vocal parts and falling ones in the orchestral parts characterise this passage until the text is spent; then (1.17) contrary chromatic passages for the strings and woodwind, coloured by suspended cymbals, lead into the next passage.
1.28	Waves, undulating waves, liquid, uneven, emulous waves, toward that whirling current,	This passage is built from block chords in the voices, with staggered entries from basses upwards, and accompanied by brass and strings. The altos finally emerge from the texture at 1.45, their melody passed to the other voices in turn (Ex. 8).
2.14	laughing and buoyant with curves, where the great vessel sailing and tacking displaced the surface, larger and smaller waves in the spread of the ocean yearnfully flowing, the wake of the sea-ship after she passes flashing and frolicsome under the sun, a motley procession with many a fleck of foam and many fragments,	This section is more declamatory and less harmonically adventurous. Chromaticism is largely dropped and the chorus, singing homophonically, deliver the text forcefully, accompanied by full orchestra. An orchestral interlude occurs in the middle of the section, which is dominated by fast scalic string writing.
5.28	after the sea-ship, after the whistling winds after the white-grey sails taut to their spars and ropes, below a myriad, myriad waves hastening, lifting up their necks,	The mood and melodic material of the opening returns, this time using lower and upper voices antiphonally. Cluster chords, rising chromatic scales, augmentation, diminution and the use of orchestral percussion to colour the texture all add to the excitement and drama of the word setting.
6.15	Following the stately and rapid ship in the wake following, a motley procession with many a fleck of foam and many fragments,	This passage begins more in the style of a triumphal procession or anthem of victory. The basses lead, but soon the tempestuous nature of the earlier sections, with their full orchestration and chromaticism is restored, and the movement comes to a frenetic close with the unaccompanied voices having the final word.

Ex. 7 0.00

Ex. 8 1.45

Fourth Movement: The Explorers.

TIME	THE TEXT	THE MUSIC
0.00	O vast rondure, swimming in space, covered all over with visible pow’r and beauty, alternate light and day and the and the teeming spiritual darkness, unspeakable high processions of sun and moon and countless stars above, below the manifold grass and waters, with inscrutable purpose, some hidden prophetic intention, now first it seems my thoughts begin to span thee.	From a soft and sustained opening the texture of this passage builds. The vocal parts are all treated quite independently of each other, each contributing a strand of melody to the overall texture. The orchestral accompaniment is subdued and restrained for the most part.
3.53	Down from the gardens of Asia descending. Adam and Eve appear, then their myriad progeny after them, wandering, yearning with restless explorations, with questionings, baffled, formless, feverish, with never happy hearts, with that sad incessant refrain.	This section is given only to the lower voices, who are initially restricted to just one note, breaking into harmony at 4.52. The passage has a greater sense of momentum, brought about by a pizzicato walking bass, which begins at 4.33. The voices are accompanied mostly by sustained, dark textures in brass and wind.
6.20	Wherefore unsatisfied soul? Whither O mocking life?	Sung by the upper voices, in four parts, unaccompanied and at a distance (Ex. 9), this section is a contrast between the previous section …
6.52	Ah who shall soothe these feverish children? Who justify these restless explorations? Who speak the secret of the impassive earth?	… and this one, which returns to the mood of the music at 4.33 and to the lower voices.
7.24	Wherefore unsatisfied soul? Whither O mocking life?	See 6.20
7.57	Yet soul be sure the first intent remains and shall be carried out, perhaps even now the time has arrived. After the seas are crossed after the great captains have accomplished their work, after the noble inventors,	The texture and momentum build throughout this passage as the music prepares for the word “finally” (9.07) and the lines of the text which follow. The voices are used in pairs, upper and lower, and together. The harmonic centre shifts constantly and tempo and texture gradually increase (Ex. 10).
9.07	finally shall come the poet worthy that name, the true son of God shall come singing his songs.	The build-up of the previous section culminates here. The music becomes largamente on the word “poet” and the word “singing” is painted with a lengthy melismatic and polyphonic phrase, accompanied tutti, until 10.09 when the choir are dramatically left alone to prepare for the climax of this section at 10.11.
10.35	Orchestral interlude	The music quickens and brightens here, and fast, jagged string passages are played antiphonally with woodwind, accompanied by sustained, tremolando chords and staccato chords on the harp.
11.13	O we can wait no longer, we too take ship O soul, joyous we too launch out on trackless seas, fearless for unknown shores on waves of ecstasy to sail, amid the wafting winds, thou pressing me to thee, O soul, I thee to me. Carolling free, singing our song of God, chanting our chant of pleasant exploration.	The baritone begins this section (Ex. 11) with a bright melody and is joined at 11.28 in duet with the soprano. The music is rapturous and passionate, and richly accompanied by a fast moving texture dominated by strings, woodwind, harps and percussion. The voices are alternately in imitation of each other and together. A solo oboe and violin end the section as the tempo and mood subside.
13.51	O soul thou pleasest me, I thee, sailing these seas or waking in the night silent thoughts of time and space and death, like waters flowing, bear me indeed as through regions infinite whose air I breathe, whose ripples hear, lave me all over, bathe me O God in thee, mounting to thee, I and my soul to range in range of thee.	Still scored for the two soloists in duet, this passage is much more tranquil and hesitant. Various solo instruments are heard within the texture, most notable the oboe and violin, and the words are set with tenderness.
16.44	O thou transcendent, nameless the fibre and the breath, light of the light, shedding forth universes thou centre of them.	The chorus chime in triumphantly here, the words being shared between chorus and soloists with a tutti accompaniment.
17.38	Swiftly I shrivel at the thought of God, at nature and its wonders, time and space and death, but that I, turning call to thee O soul, thou actual me, and lo, thou gently masterest the orbs, thou matest time, smilest contented at death, and fillest, swellest full the vastness of space.	Major become minor and, for much of this section, the two tonalities are alternated as Vaughan Williams flirts with bitonality. The words, set gently, demand much rubato and the soloist engages in a dialogue with a solo violin high above the accompaniment.
19.33	Greater than stars or suns, bounding O soul thou journeyest forth; (19.55) away O soul! Hoist instantly the anchor! Cut the hawsers – haul out – shake every sail!	The chorus join back in with a slow, unaccompanied, homophonic statement, before the music, starting with trills in the upper woodwind, becomes extremely lively (19.55) and the voices cascade in, one after the other. The busy accompaniment gives the feel of a sea shanty.
21.03	Sail forth – steer for the deep waters only.	The music takes on a real air of determination here with emphatic chords and a grand and full accompaniment.
21.38	Reckless O soul, exploring, I with thee and thou with me,	A lively, almost operatic, duet between soprano and baritone with the chorus quoting a rising “sail forth” motif underneath.
22.17	for we are bound where mariner has not yet dared to go, and we will risk the ship, ourselves and all. Sail forth.	A slower and more majestic passage in triple time for soprano and baritone accompanied by the chorus singing a descending phrase which suggests the steady forward motion of a ship.
23.35	O my brave soul! O farther, farther sail! O daring joy, but safe! Are they not all the seas of God? O farther, farther, farther sail!	The piece comes to a tranquil end, with soprano and baritone sharing a gentle duet accompanied by the chorus, imitating each other in a series of simple motifs and apparently becoming further and further away. The accompaniment features high strings and widely spaced chords.

Ex. 9 6.20

Ex. 10 9.07

Ex. 11 11.13

Bibliography

Michael Kennedy: The works of Ralph Vaughan Williams (OUP)
Grove’s Dictionary of Music and Musicians - Vaughan Williams
Michael Hurd: Vaughan Williams (Faber and Faber)

Further Listening

Vaughan Williams                 Symphony No. 2 (‘London’)                         8.550734
Vaughan Williams                 Toward The Unknown Region                      8.557798
Vaughan Williams                 In The Fen Country                                      8.555867
Vaughan Williams                 Fantasia On A Theme Of Thomas Tallis      8.555867
Stanford                               Songs Of The Sea/Songs Of The Fleet          CHSA5043

Recording(s) for Symphony No. 1, "A Sea Symphony":

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