Ralph Vaughan Williams' Symphony No. 8 in D minor was composed between 1953 and 1955. John Barbirolli conducted the premiere of the piece in 1956. It is the shortest of Vaughan Williams' nine symphonies yet is remarkably inventive, especially in the composer's experiments in sonority. Not only does he use a much-expanded percussion section, including "all the 'phones and 'spiels known to the composer" (as well as three tuned gongs, the same as we...
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Ralph Vaughan Williams' Symphony No. 8 in D minor was composed between 1953 and 1955. John Barbirolli conducted the premiere of the piece in 1956. It is the shortest of Vaughan Williams' nine symphonies yet is remarkably inventive, especially in the composer's experiments in sonority. Not only does he use a much-expanded percussion section, including "all the 'phones and 'spiels known to the composer" (as well as three tuned gongs, the same as were used in Puccini's Turandot), but the two central movements use only the wind section and string section respectively. Except for the slow movement and portions of the first movement, the overall mood of the symphony is light-hearted. The finale even carries this to the point of ending loudly: among his symphonies the Fourth symphony is the only other one to do so. The others all have quiet conclusions, often with the Vaughan Williams "fingerprint" niente.
The work is in four movements:
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