Symphony No. 8 (Vaughan Williams) Symphony No. 8 (Vaughan Williams) Ralph Vaughan Williams' Symphony No. 8 in D minor was composed between 1953 and 1955. It was the first of his symphonies which Vaughan Williams numbered. Sir John Barbirolli conducted the premiere of the piece on 2 May 1956, with the Hallé Orchestra. The Eighth Symphony is the shortest of Vaughan Williams' nine symphonies, with a typical performance taking just under a half hour, yet it is remarkably inventive, especially in the composer's experiments in sonority. Not only does he use a much-expanded percussion section, including "all the 'phones and 'spiels known to the composer"
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