RVW

`the first full, and still most vivid, biography' BBC Music Magazine `A living picture of the man ... unlikely to be superseded for a long time to come.' Guardian. `With the unique authority of his personal papers, her intimate knowledge of a man in the last years of his life, and the imaginative insight of a professional writer, Mrs Vaughan Williams has drawn the portrait of a great Englishman.' Times Literary Supplement Music Magazine `Mrs Vaughan Williams presents a crowded picture of the composer's ceaseless activity right into extreme old age, his persistent concern with new music and young musicians, his unabated instinct to compose and, at the end of his life, the new-found pleasure in travel and relaxation that was reflected in the last two symphonies.' Daily Telegraph `The present paperback reissue takes full advantage of all corrections and makes for fascinating reading.' The Ottawa Citizen `Outstanding among new paperbacks...this warm but judicious biography. Any biographers trying to update it will have to base their work on it.' Birmingham Post `a detailed and affectionate biography' Sunday Times `R.V.W. - A Life ... grips as firmly as any study of composers' Islington Gazette 'The standard biography is the beautiful book by Ursula Vaughan Williams ... the definitive survey of his works is by Michael Kennedy ... Ursula Vaughan Williams's book is a deeply personal work about a lovely, humble, and charitable man. R.V.W.: A Biography of Ralph Vaughan Williams can be placed with the best of books: those which stand, even elicit, repeated readings.' Stephen Town, Northwest Missouri State University, Choral Journal