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Kate Molleson explores Vaughan Williams鈥檚 burgeoning friendships with Gustav Holst and Adeline Fisher, who would become his first wife, and the first few Christmases they spent together.

鈥淚鈥檝e always loved carols鈥� Vaughan Williams wrote to Cecil Sharp in 1911. Despite being called a 鈥渕ost determined atheist鈥� by Bertrand Russell at University, and in later life 鈥渁 cheerful agnostic鈥�, the composer never lost his love for Christmas. It dated back to childhood memories of singing carols from Stainer and Bramley鈥檚 Christmas Carols New and Old at his home at Leith Hill Place, Surrey. As an adult, his lifelong passion for the Christmas period was demonstrated in his music - the Fantasia on Christmas Carols, On Christmas Night based on Dickens鈥檚 A Christmas Carol, the cantata Hodie and the nativity play The First Nowell. His passion for collecting folk tunes in various counties of England 鈥� armed with a trusty pencil and paper, or at times a phonograph - also led to a plethora of carol settings using these folk tunes, as Vaughan Williams himself said 鈥淓very day some old village singer dies, and with him there probably die half-a-dozen beautiful melodies, which are lost to the world forever: if we would preserve what still remains we must set about it at once.鈥� In this special week of programmes, Kate Molleson explores Vaughan Williams鈥檚 experiences of Christmas across his life alongside some of his best loved pieces, and the music he wrote to celebrate the festive period.

In Tuesday鈥檚 programme, Kate explores Vaughan Williams鈥檚 burgeoning friendships with Gustav Holst and Adeline Fisher, who would become his first wife. As part of their honeymoon, the pair spent Christmas of 1897 in Italy with Adeline鈥檚 family before settling down in London. Kate also discovers the origins of one of the melodies Vaughan Williams used to set the carol 鈥淭he Holy Well鈥�, which dates back to a trip the composer made with folklorist Mrs Ella Mary Leather to a gypsy encampment in Sutton St Nicholas, Herefordshire.

Vaughan Williams (arr)
I Saw Three Ships Come In
Chapel Choir of the Royal Hospital Chelsea
William Vann, director

Vaughan Williams
Willow Wood
Roderick Williams, baritone
Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra
David Lloyd-Jones, conductor

Vaughan Williams (arr Douglas)
Folk Songs of the Four Seasons: Orchestral Suite
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Martin Yates, conductor

Trad
The High-low well
Wiggy Smith, singer

Vaughan Williams (arr)
The Holy Well (version 1)
Derek Welton, baritone
Iain Burnside, piano

Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis
Aurora Orchestra
Nigel Short, conductor

Produced by Sam Phillips for 91热爆 Audio Wales and West