Celebrating The Lark Ascending
A performance to celebrate 100 years
On December 15th 1920 Ralph Vaughn Williams' classical piece 'The Lark Ascending' premiered for the first time in Shirehampton Public Hall. 100 years on it is being performed once more in the same venue.
Performed by the Bristol Ensemble and soloist Jennifer Pike, it was also streamed online in a fitting tribute to both the difficult year we have had and the advancement of technology in the 100 years which have passed.
Ralph Vaughn Williams' classical piece was not only the inspiration behind the name of our English Shrub Rose 'The Lark Ascending' but was also voted the nation's favourite piece in 2020 by Classic FM and Desert Island Discs.
Composed at the start of the First World War, this much loved piece of music depicts the song of a skylark.
"Everything has unconsciously bled into this work – the sense of stillness, a yearning for peace, and Vaughan Williams’s love of the countryside."
Take a closer look at The Lark Ascending®
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The Rose Year BeginsFall brings a distinct richness that invites us to slow down and notice the changes. Leaves turn shades of amber and gold, while the lower, softer light catches the borders in the late afternoon. As cooler mornings bring heavy dew and that unmistakable, earthy scent of damp soil, the garden gradually settles down for the season.
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Roses with Large Blooms: Varieties for Garden ImpactA rose in full flower can transform a garden. Large, many-petalled blooms draw the eye through a border, bring colour to a quiet corner or create a beautiful focal point when grown in a pot.
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Best Fragrant Roses for Autumn: Scent and Colour Beyond SummerThe fragrance of a rose is never quite fixed. Temperature, humidity, time of day and even the stage of the flower can all influence how its scent is released and experienced. As the warmth of summer begins to soften into autumn, cooler mornings and greater moisture in the air create different conditions for fragrance, and a familiar rose can reveal itself in a rather different way.
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Using Red Roses to Bring Richness and Depth to the GardenA red rose has a wonderfully compelling presence in the garden. Amongst a sea of green, even a glimpse of crimson catches the eye, drawing you closer for another look. Red can sometimes have a reputation for being difficult to use, particularly alongside softer colours. Yet the palette is far more varied than we might first imagine. From clear crimson to deep, velvety tones, red roses can bring warmth, richness and depth to a garden without overwhelming it.
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Roses for the Last Night of the PromsThere are few evenings quite like the Last Night of the Proms. Familiar melodies fill the Royal Albert Hall, the audience joins in and music heard and loved for generations is given fresh life once more. This year’s programme got us thinking about the curious connections between music, stories and the names of some of our roses. From Elgar and the Malvern Hills to Britain’s long relationship with the sea, each offers a thread to follow from the concert hall into the garden.
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Climbing Roses for Arches, Obelisks and PillarsThere is always room for another rose. When borders are full, the answer is often simply to look upwards. Climbing roses can transform arches, obelisks and pillars into wonderfully abundant garden features, bringing flowers and fragrance to eye level and above. They can tumble over an entrance, rise from the middle of a border or soften a simple post with foliage and bloom. And, with the right rose and a little thoughtful training, they need surprisingly little ground space to make quite an impression.
