Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis

E211914

Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis is a richly scored orchestral work for string ensemble that reimagines a 16th-century hymn tune in a spacious, modal, and deeply atmospheric style.

All labels observed (1)

Label Occurrences
Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis canonical 3

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (46)

Predicate Object
instanceOf orchestral work
string orchestra composition
alsoKnownAs Tallis Fantasia
approximateDuration 15 minutes
basedOn Third Psalm Tune by Thomas Tallis
catalogNumber no official opus number
centuryOfComposition 20th century
composer Ralph Vaughan Williams
countryOfOrigin United Kingdom
dedicatedTo Three Choirs Festival
firstPerformanceDate 1910-09-06
genre classical music
orchestral music
historicalContext English musical renaissance
influencedBy English Renaissance church music
inspiredBy Thomas Tallis
inTuningSystem tonal with modal harmony
key G major with modal inflections
language instrumental
notableFeature reworking of a 16th-century hymn tune
use of spatially separated string groups
notableRecording London Philharmonic Orchestra
surface form: London Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Ralph Vaughan Williams
orchestrationCharacteristic divided string parts
rich string sonorities
originalThemeComposer Thomas Tallis
originalThemeSource The Psalter of 1567 edited by Archbishop Matthew Parker
period 20th-century music
premiereCity Gloucester
premiereConductor Ralph Vaughan Williams
premiereCountry England
premiereFestival Three Choirs Festival
premiereLocation Gloucester Cathedral
publisher Stainer & Bell
revisedIn 1913
scoredFor string ensemble
string orchestra
string quartet
structure single continuous movement
style atmospheric
late Romantic
modal
typicalUse concert performance
recordings
uses antiphonal string groups
usesForm fantasia
yearComposed 1910

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (3)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Ralph Vaughan Williams notableWork Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis
English pastoral school associatedWork Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis
Five Variants of Dives and Lazarus relatedWorkByComposer Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis