How many symphonies did English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams write?

During his lengthy career, Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958) wrote nine symphonies as well as works for the stage, choral music and chamber music. Vaughan Williams assigned names to his first three symphonies, but only numbered the rest from 4 to 9. His first symphony, 'A Sea Symphony' (1910), was based on Walt Whitman's poetry collection, 'Leaves of Grass', and the second symphony, 'A London Symphony' (1913), aimed to evoke the noises often heard in the city. The third, 'Pastoral Symphony' (1922), gained the reputation of a beautiful elegy for the dead of World War I. The remaining symphonies were generally more conventional.

Ralph Vaughan Williams is considered one of the most important English composers of his generation. He initially studied under composers in Paris but also wanted to incorporate English folk music into his work. Vaughan Williams also composed hymns, including 'The Lark Ascending' and 'Sine Nomine', which means 'without a name' in Latin. The latter is used as the music for the song 'For All the Saints' by the lyricist William Walsham How.

In 1938, Vaughan Williams composed 'Serenade to Music', which was inspired by Shakespeare's 'The Merchant of Venice'. It was written for the 50th anniversary of Sir Henry Wood’s career as a conductor of the 'BBC Proms'. In 1953, he composed some music for Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation.