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Holst

Gustav Holst (1874–1934) was an English composer who taught at St Paul's Girls' School in Hammersmith from 1905 until his death, writing the St Paul's Suite for string orchestra specifically for his pupils there. His most celebrated work, The Planets, brought him a fame he found uncomfortable, worrying that it drew attention away from music he considered more important. Away from the concert hall, he taught himself Sanskrit in order to read the Hindu sacred texts in the original and set several of them to music, an unusual commitment for an English composer of his generation. He and Ralph Vaughan Williams met as students and critiqued each other's work throughout their careers.

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