Vox Philia and Berks Sinfonietta present their latest collaboration, Vaughan Williams and the English Folksong, on Saturday, May 7 at 7:30 pm at Immanuel UCC, 99 South Waverly Street in Shillington. Part of the worldwide celebration of the 150th anniversary of the composer’s birth, tickets are $15/Adult & $5/Students. All ticket revenue will be donated to World Central Kitchen, a wonderful organization feeding the millions of refugees from Ukraine. The concert will also be live-streamed for the cost of an at-will donation. Anyone can join by visiting www.berkssinfonietta.org.

Vaughan Williams wrote his cantata ‘Folk Songs of The Four Seasons’ in 1949. All the music is based on traditional folk songs, many collected by the composer himself in the early decades of the century. The cantatas received its first performance in 1950 at the Royal Albert Hall, London, conducted by Sir Adrian Boult. The original scoring is for upper voices – sopranos and altos and a large orchestra and consists of fifteen folk song arrangements in four sections, following the course of the year – Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter. The orchestra is used quite sparingly and sensitively depending on the character of each song – and indeed four songs are just for unaccompanied voices only.

This performance will be the world premiere of a new SATB version, prepared by English composer John Whittaker, who writes: “Almost every single note of Vaughan Williams is retained from the original vocal parts, but some re-distribution of parts and expansion of harmonic lines (based on the original harmonies) has been made. The florid, decorative, ‘descant’ soprano lines have all been kept, so as not lose the deftness and ‘airiness’ of the original. I would like to think that the added depth and color of the addition of the lower voices actually enhances much of the music.” The performance is underwritten in part by the Vaughan Williams Charitable Trust.

Vaughan Williams was an important figure in the first English Folk Song revival and used folk song tunes in many of his compositions. He collected his first song, Bushes and Briars, from Charles Pottipher, a seventy-year-old laborer from Essex in 1903, and went on to collect over 800 songs, as well as some singing games and dance tunes. The concert also includes the composer’s “Five English Folksongs” for unaccompanied choir, and the orchestra version of “English Folksong Suite.”

Live concert tickets ($15/Adult & $5/Child) are available at the door and online at https://berkssinfonietta.ticketspice.com/may-2022-vaughan-williams-and-the-english-folksong. Join us on Saturday, May 7 at 7:30 pm for an evening of enthralling music, in-person or via livestream. To learn more, please visit
www.voxphilia.org or www.berkssinfonietta.org
x Philia present their latest collaboration, Vaughan Williams and the English Folksong, on Saturday, May 7 at 7:30 pm at Immanuel UCC, 99 South Waverly Street in Shillington. The concert is part of the worldwide celebration of the 150th anniversary of the composer’s birth. Tickets are $15/Adult & $5/Students – all ticket revenue will be donated to World Central Kitchen, who are currently working to feed the millions of refugees from Ukraine. The concert will also be live-streamed for the cost of an at-will donation. Anyone can join by visiting www.berkssinfonietta.org.

Vaughan Williams wrote his cantata ‘Folk Songs of The Four Seasons’ in 1949. All the music is based on traditional folk songs, many collected by the composer himself in the early decades of the century. The cantatas received its first performance in 1950 at the Royal Albert Hall, London, conducted by Sir Adrian Boult. The original scoring is for upper voices – sopranos and altos and a large orchestra and consists of fifteen folk song arrangements in four sections, following the course of the year – Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter. The orchestra is used quite sparingly and sensitively depending on the character of each song – and indeed four songs are just for unaccompanied voices only.

This performance will be the world premiere of a new SATB version, prepared by English composer John Whittaker, who writes: “Almost every single note of Vaughan Williams is retained from the original vocal parts, but some re-distribution of parts and expansion of harmonic lines (based on the original harmonies) has been made. The florid, decorative, ‘descant’ soprano lines have all been kept, so as not lose the deftness and ‘airiness’ of the original. I would like to think that the added depth and color of the addition of the lower voices actually enhances much of the music.” The performance is underwritten in part by the Vaughan Williams Charitable Trust.

Vaughan Williams was an important figure in the first English Folk Song revival and used folk song tunes in many of his compositions. He collected his first song, Bushes and Briars, from Charles Pottipher, a seventy-year-old laborer from Essex in 1903, and went on to collect over 800 songs, as well as some singing games and dance tunes. The concert also includes the composer’s “Five English Folksongs” for unaccompanied choir, and the orchestra version of “English Folksong Suite.”

Live concert tickets ($15/Adult & $5/Child) are available at the door and online at https://berkssinfonietta.ticketspice.com/may-2022-vaughan-williams-and-the-english-folksong. Join us on Saturday, May 7 at 7:30 pm for an evening of enthralling music, in-person or via livestream. To learn more, please visit
www.voxphilia.org or www.berkssinfonietta.org.