Tuba Concerto (Vaughan Williams) Tuba Concerto (Vaughan Williams) The Concerto in F Minor for Bass Tuba and Orchestra by British composer Ralph Vaughan Williams was written in 1954 for Philip Catelinet, principal tubist of the London Symphony Orchestra (LSO), who together gave the premiere on 13 June 1954 with Sir John Barbirolli conducting. The same musicians made the work’s first recording that same year. While at first viewed as the eccentric idea of an aging composer, the concerto soon became one of Vaughan Williams' most popular works, and an essential part of the tuba repertoire. The work is in three movements: A performance commonly
Symphony No. 5 (Vaughan Williams) } </score> Pilgrim's lyric sung to this melody, "He hath given me rest by his sorrow and life by his death", was originally used by Vaughan Williams as an inscription on this movement; while the contrasting agitated theme of the central section is taken from Pilgrim's lyric, "Save me! Save me, Lord! My burden is greater than I can bear". Rising fourths again appear as connecting passages. This movement might well be considered the spiritual core of the symphony. <score vorbis="1"> \relative c { \clef bass \time 3/4 \key d \major \tempo "Moderato" 4 = 120 d\p( b8 a e'4