Vaughan Williams

Overview

This ground-breaking biography of Ralph Vaughan Williams reveals more than any other about the man behind the music. The author examines the considerable range of Vaughan Williams' work, from the English pastoral tradition to Modernism, and shows how Vaughan Williams was influenced by the Boer War, the economic depression after World War I, the deprivations of the Blitz, and the austerity of the Cold War. He also reveals how the greatest influence on Vaughan Williams's music and creative development was his personal life, including his seemingly secure marriage and an equally enduring love affair. The author shows how these reflected both the stability and cutting-edge aspects of his music. Like a great symphony, this book ranges from doubt to inspiration. It is the most complete biography of one of Britain's greatest composers.

Reviews

"[An] engrossing tribute."  —Quarter Notes

Author Biography

Keith Alldritt was educated at Wolverhampton Grammar School and St Catharine's College, Cambridge. He has taught at universities in Europe and North America. His books include studies of Winston Churchill, Franklin Delaney Roosevelt, George Orwell, W.D. Yeats, D.H. Lawrence, and the music of T.S. Eliot's Four Quartets. He is a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.