Ralph Vaughan Williams In The Tilney Villages
Ralph Vaughan Williams is one of Britain’s most recognised classical composers, being particularly well known for using English Folk Song as the basis for some of his best known compositions. One of his most famous visits to capture East Anglian Folk Song was to the Norfolk fishing port of Kings Lynn in January 1905, which led to the inclusion of songs such as “A Captain’s Apprentice” and “On Board a ‘98” in his “Norfolk Rhapsodies”. Many local people may not realise that before he visited the town, Vaughan Williams visited the villages of Tilney All Saints and Tilney St Lawrence to collect songs and tunes from two local informants, under the guidance of The Reverend Newnum, vicar of Tilney All Saints Church. Collector of Folk Songs In 1903, Ralph Vaughan Williams was an up and coming English Composer and had a growing interest in folk song, illuminated by family friend and folk song collector, Lucy Broadwood. In December 1903 Vaughan Williams was invited to a Parish tea in the Essex village of Ingrave, with the aim of hearing if older residents in the community remembered “Country Songs” recalled from the area. To his surprise Vaughan Williams collected 22 songs at this meeting and was particularly moved by the singing of resident Charles Pottipher’s rendition of the folk song “Bushes and Briars”. This was a turning point in Vaughan William’s career, which led him to collect over 800 folk songs and tunes over the next decade. On To Tilney During 1904 Vaughan Williams recorded over 200 songs and by the end of the year he was keen to expand his collecting to new geographical areas. It is thought that, after an appeal in the press, he made contact with the Reverend Newnum at Tilney All Saints Church. John Henry Newnum had been vicar at Tilney All Saints for some 14 years at this point and was also inspector of schools for the Diocese in the Marshland and so would have had many local contacts. A visit was arranged for the weekend of January 7th and 8th, 1905, a visit that would lead to the notation of 15 songs and tunes as performed by 2 local musicians, Stephen Poll and John Whitby. Find out more about the musicians and their songs and music. John Whitby Stephen Poll |
Tilney All Saints Rectory, October 2020 (LuminArt Photography)
Ralph Vaughan Williams (English Folk Song & Dance Society)
North End Fishing Fleet (LuminArt Photography)
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Vaughan Williams In King's Lynn
After collecting 15 tunes and songs in the Tilney Villages, Vaughan Williams moved to the nearby town of Kings Lynn. Vaughan Williams stayed in The Cozen's Temperance Hotel on Blackfriar's Street in the town (more recently known as The Park View), moving between the Kings Lynn Union Workhouse on Exton Road in Kings Lynn (nowadays the site of St James’s Clinic under the NHS) and the “Yards” of the North End, where the fisher folk who serviced the fishing fleet of the port of Kings Lynn dwelled. He stayed for the best part of a week, until Saturday 14th January 1905 and was so impressed by the material he collected that he paid a return visit to the area a year later.
In January 1905 Vaughan Williams was introduced to the singers from the North End by Reverend Huddle, meeting them in 4 main “Yards” off North Street; Churchman’s Yard,; Watson’s Yard; North End Yard; Begley’s Yard and also Pilot Street, where many of the exteriors have the houses have been preserved today. Whilst in the North End in 1905 Vaughan Williams met 9 singers and collected a staggering 45 songs. The most famous of which is probably The Captain’s Apprentice as sung by widower Mr Carter, which was quickly incorporated into the composer’s “Norfolk Rhapsody” and was first performed in the summer of 1906. During the 1905 visit to the King’s Lynn Union Vaughan Williams met 6 informants and noted 18 songs. The best known of this was “On Board a 98”, which was also quickly incorporated into “Norfolk Rhapsody”. In the schools we planned to end our musical drama with one of the songs collected in King’s Lynn Union Workhouse, “On Board a ‘98”. A “98” was, at the time of Horatio Nelson, a “Man O'War”, a ship of the line carrying ninety-eight cannons. The song tells the story of young man press-ganged into manning the crew of such a ship, probably in the early 1800s. Follow the link below to hear Nicky's version: On Board a '98 Footnote: We known Vaughan William's stayed at Cozen's Hotel due to his correspondence with the Wedgewood family during his visit. |
Park View Hotel, 2020 (A. Phillips)
Pilot Street, King's Lynn (LuminArt Photography)
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