Simple Gifts: Music inspired by folk song

Simple Gifts
Music inspired by folk song

York Musical Society
Conductor: David Pipe
Soloist: John Holland-Avery, Baritone
York Musical Society Orchestra
 

Rutter: The Sprig of Thyme
Copland: Old American Songs
Holst: Choral Hymns from the Rig Veda, Group 1
Vaughan Williams: English Folk Song Suite and Fantasia on Greensleeves
 

Folk music, with its memorable melodies and words telling the stories of ordinary people’s lives, has been an inspiration for many composers. This performance offers British and American composers’ takes on folk tradition.

We have chosen Vaughan Williams’ English Folk Song Suite and Fantasia on Greensleeves, and John Rutter’s The Sprig of Thyme to represent traditional British music. These include well-known favourites such as ‘The Miller of Dee’ and ‘The Keel Row’.

Crossing the seas, we have Aaron Copland’s Old American Songs – including the popular Shaker song ‘Simple Gifts’. In contrast, Gustav Holst’s Choral Hymns from the Rig Veda reflect his interest in traditional Indian stories and music.

Come and hear YMS in this ‘simple gift’ of a concert.