Six Studies in English Folk Song
Encyclopedia
Six Studies in English Folk Song is a piece of chamber music
written by English
composer
Ralph Vaughan Williams
in 1926. It is a collection of six English folk songs
set for cello
and piano
. Each song follows the same format: presentation of the tune
in the solo line, followed by a full iteration of the folk song in the piano with an ornamented solo line.
Originally written for cellist May Mukle and piano, Vaughan Williams wrote that his aim in setting the songs be that they be “treated with love.” . It has been transcribed by the composer and others for violin
, viola
, English horn, clarinet
, bassoon
, alto sax, and tuba
.
Never straying from his English roots, Vaughan Williams sought to organically weave elements of his native music into all of his compositions, rather than imitate it. One of the earliest researchers in ethnomusicology
, he traveled the British countryside recording and transcribing folk music directly from its source.
:
Chamber music
Chamber music is a form of classical music, written for a small group of instruments which traditionally could be accommodated in a palace chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers with one performer to a part...
written by English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
Ralph Vaughan Williams
Ralph Vaughan Williams
Ralph Vaughan Williams OM 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...
in 1926. It is a collection of six English folk songs
Folk music of England
Folk music of England refers to various types of traditionally based music, often contrasted with courtly, classical and later commercial music, for which evidence exists from the later medieval period. It has been preserved and transmitted orally, through print and later through recordings...
set for cello
Cello
The cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
and piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
. Each song follows the same format: presentation of the tune
Tune (folk music)
In folk music, a tune is a short instrumental piece, a melody, often with repeating sections, and usually played a number of times. The most common form for tunes in folk music is AABB, also known as binary form....
in the solo line, followed by a full iteration of the folk song in the piano with an ornamented solo line.
Originally written for cellist May Mukle and piano, Vaughan Williams wrote that his aim in setting the songs be that they be “treated with love.” . It has been transcribed by the composer and others for violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
, viola
Viola
The viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.- Form :The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin. A full-size viola's body is between and longer than the body of a full-size violin , with an average...
, English horn, clarinet
Clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...
, bassoon
Bassoon
The bassoon is a woodwind instrument in the double reed family that typically plays music written in the bass and tenor registers, and occasionally higher. Appearing in its modern form in the 19th century, the bassoon figures prominently in orchestral, concert band and chamber music literature...
, alto sax, and tuba
Tuba
The tuba is the largest and lowest-pitched brass instrument. Sound is produced by vibrating or "buzzing" the lips into a large cupped mouthpiece. It is one of the most recent additions to the modern symphony orchestra, first appearing in the mid-19th century, when it largely replaced the...
.
Never straying from his English roots, Vaughan Williams sought to organically weave elements of his native music into all of his compositions, rather than imitate it. One of the earliest researchers in ethnomusicology
Ethnomusicology
Ethnomusicology is defined as "the study of social and cultural aspects of music and dance in local and global contexts."Coined by the musician Jaap Kunst from the Greek words ἔθνος ethnos and μουσική mousike , it is often considered the anthropology or ethnography of music...
, he traveled the British countryside recording and transcribing folk music directly from its source.
Movements
Six Studies in English Folk Song is composed of his movementsMovement (music)
A movement is a self-contained part of a musical composition or musical form. While individual or selected movements from a composition are sometimes performed separately, a performance of the complete work requires all the movements to be performed in succession...
:
- AdagioTempoIn musical terminology, tempo is the speed or pace of a given piece. Tempo is a crucial element of any musical composition, as it can affect the mood and difficulty of a piece.-Measuring tempo:...
('Lovely on the Water') in E modal minorE minorE minor is a minor scale based on the note E. The E natural minor scale consists of the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. The E harmonic minor scale contains the natural 7, D, rather than the flatted 7, D – to align with the major dominant chord, B7 .Its key signature has one sharp, F .Its... - Andante sostenuto ('Spurn Point') in Eb
- Larghetto ('Van Dieman's Land') in D modal minorD minorD minor is a minor scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B, and C. In the harmonic minor, the C is raised to C. Its key signature has one flat ....
- Lento ('She Borrowed Some of her Mother's Gold')
- Andante tranquillo ("The Lady and the Dragon') in CC majorC major is a musical major scale based on C, with pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. Its key signature has no flats/sharps.Its relative minor is A minor, and its parallel minor is C minor....
- Allegro vivace ('As I walked over London Bridge')