On 4 January 1932, Vaughan Williams wrote to Gerald Finzi, inviting him to a play-through of a new symphony, to be given in Holst’s music room at St Paul’s Girls’ School on two pianos, by Helen Bidder and Vally Lasker: ‘We are trying through the sketch for my new symph (2 pfts) at St Paul’s G.S. next Wednesday (Jan 6th) at 2.0 p.m. Do come if you can – go to the side entrance (48 Rowan Road) & ask for Gustav or me.’

Four months later (15 April 1932), Holst sent a long letter to Vaughan Williams from Harvard University where he was lecturing. He asked for a progress report: ‘How’s the New Sym? When I get home in July I want a 2 piano field day of both old and new versions’, adding at the end of the letter: ‘Get on with the Symphony.’ Vaughan Williams continued to make revisions and in an undated letter from December 1933 wrote to Holst: ‘The “nice” tunes in the Finale have already been replaced by better ones (at all events they are real ones). What I mean is that I knew the others were made-up stuff and these are not. So there we are!’

Vaughan Williams’s oldest and closest musical confidant was never to hear the finished result: Gustav Holst died on 25 May 1934. Vaughan Williams and Boult were both involved in a broadcast Memorial Concert for their friend on 22 June. Given by the Wireless Singers and the BBC Orchestra (Section B) conducted by Boult, the programme was intended to cover the range of Holst’s creative output, while avoiding familiar pieces: there was no Planets, Hymn of Jesus or Perfect Fool, but instead the following:

couple of weeks before the concert, Vaughan Williams reported that Holst’s daughter Imogen was unhappy with one of the pieces chosen: ‘she was much distressed at the idea that an early & immature work like the Ballet Suite shd be included in the programme of June 22nd.