Vaughan Williams was nearly 82 when he completed this cantata, a mixture of the sacred and secular, of the medieval and modern, of the austere and the sweet. Part of the reason for the hodgepodge nature of the work relates to the composer's use of both sacred and secular texts, something he had earlier done in Dona Nobis Pacem (1936), where he juxtaposed Scripture with the poetry of Walt Whitman. Here, Vaughan Williams mixes Scripture with the texts of a number of writers, including Milton, Hardy, and his daughter, Ursula Vaughan Williams.

Hodie (This Day) consists of 16 sections and calls for soprano, tenor, and baritone soloists, boys' voices, chorus, organ, and orchestra. The Prologue, using text from Christmas Day Vespers, is celebratory in mood. The next section, "Narration," employs text from Matthew 1:18-21 and Luke 1:32 to describe the birth of Jesus. Its music is mostly subdued and mysterious, but turns triumphant at the close. The ensuing song, using Milton's "Hymn on the Morning of Christ's Nativity," is sweet and peaceful in mood, with especially lovely writing for the soprano soloist.

The next sections, "Narration" and "Choral," again juxtapose Scripture (Luke 2:1-7) with secular texts (Miles Coverdale, after Martin Luther). Both are subdued and slow, with the latter warmer and a bit more colorful. Another "Narration" section follows, adapting various verses of Luke and the Book of Common Prayer. Again the mood is a bit more somber, as it generally is when Scripture is used in Hodie. But when the words "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men..." are sung (about midway through), there is a feeling of triumph and exultation thereafter.

"The Oxen" follows, using text by Thomas Hardy. The baritone here delivers a lovely solo that recalls Vaughan Williams' pre-World War I style. Indeed, this music is not far afield from that in the composer's A Sea Symphony (1903 - 1909; rev. 1923). After a brief "Narration" section using Luke 2:20, the baritone again is given an attractive solo in "Pastoral," on texts by George Herbert.

"Lullaby" (W. Ballet) follows the brief choral "Narration" (Luke 2:19) and features a lovely soprano solo. Somewhat exotic sounds begin "Hymn" (texts by William Drummond), but the baritone writing that follows is rather mellow and lovely. The gossamer "Narration" section which ensues adapts various texts from Matthew, and is brilliantly contrasted by No. 14, "The March of the Three Kings" (Ursula Vaughan Williams). Here Vaughan Williams presents the most modern-sounding music in the work, giving it a martial manner that seems almost out of place. The ensuing "Choral" (Anon. and Ursula Vaughan Williams) and Epilogue (adaptation of John, 1:1-14; Milton, from the Hymn on the Morning of Christ's Nativity) close the work in grand style, the former returning to the more subdued moods in the earlier sections, and the latter providing a triumphant, glorious ending.

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