 Matthews has written that the "Hymn"s "ecstatic" quality is matched in English music "perhaps only by Tippett's "The Vision of Saint Augustine""; the musical elements include plainsong, two choirs distanced from each other to emphasise dialogue, dance episodes and "explosive chordal dislocations".In the "Ode to Death" (1918–19), the quiet, resigned mood is seen by Matthews as an "abrupt volte-face" after the life-enhancing spirituality of the "Hymn".Warrack refers to its aloof tranquillity; Imogen Holst believed the "Ode" expressed Holst's private attitude to death.