Search the letters

The Vaughan Williams Foundation has made over 5000 items freely available: chiefly letters from Ralph Vaughan Williams, but including some responses which shed light on the subject matter, and also a number of letters from Adeline and Ursula Vaughan Williams. These provide further information and often include messages or observations from Ralph, and there are also letters from Adeline and Ursula written on behalf of the couple. The text of letters written by RVW and UVW remain the copyright of the Foundation.

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The letters are in tabular form and can be sorted by column, or filtered by any keyword including name, musical title, year or subject (singly or in combination). Partial matches will also be found, e.g. searching “sky” will also find “Stravinsky”. To search for a phrase use inverted commas, e.g. “New York”.

To search by letter number, include the prefix VWL, e.g. VWL123.

Filter letters

Letter No. Title Date Date on Letter
VWL2125 Letter from Ursula Wood to Gerald Finzi 19501218 18.12.50.
VWL2123 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19501213 13th December, 1950.
VWL2122 Letter from Rutland Boughton to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19501208 8.12.50
VWL4651 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Nancy Marsden 19501206 6th December, 1950.
VWL3762 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Bush 19501206 6th December, 1950.
VWL1202 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to James Craufurd (Madrigal Society) 19501206 6th December, 1950
VWL4274 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Guthrie Foote (OUP) 19501201 Dec 1 [1950]
VWL2060 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 195012-- [December 1950?]
VWL2062 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 195012-- [?December, 1950]
VWL2063 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 195012-- [?December, 1950]
VWL2121 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19501130 Nov 30 [1950]
VWL2120 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Anthony Scott 19501129 29th November, 1950
VWL4583 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Christovam Pavia 19501123 23rd November, 1950.
VWL2157 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 19501115 15th November, 1950.
VWL5014 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Buckland 19501115 15th November, 1950.
VWL3995 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alexander Burnard 19501115 15th November, 1950.
VWL2119 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19501112 Nov 12 [1950]
VWL2118 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Anthony Scott 19501108 8th November, 1950
VWL2117 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 19501103 Friday [3rd November 1950]
VWL2116 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19501101 1st November, 1950
VWL2061 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank 195011-- [November 1950]
VWL2115 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Guthrie Foote (OUP) 19501030 Oct. 30 [1950]
VWL4121 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Christopher le Fleming 19501025 25th October, 1950.
VWL2114 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 19501025 25th October, 1950.
VWL4122 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Christopher le Fleming 19501018 18th October, 1950.
VWL2112 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult (BBC) 19501018 Oct. 18 [1950]
VWL2113 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19501018 18th October, 1950.
VWL4750 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Cockshott 19501018 18th October, 1950
VWL2108 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Terence Casey 19501018 18th October, 1950.
VWL2109 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to J. L. Boston 19501018 18th October, 1950

You have never lost your invention but it has not developed enough.  Your best – your most original and beautiful style or ‘atmosphere’ is an indescribable sort of feeling as if one was listening to very lovely lyrical poetry.

GUSTAV HOLST letter to RVW 1903

He was one of the most 'complete' men I have ever known. He loved life, he loved work and his interest in all music was unquenchable and insatiable.

SIR JOHN BARBIROLLI, conductor

I was thunderstruck by the symphony last night - and hadn't expected to be. Jagged, pulsating and angry, from that very first clanging dissonance - how can it have come from the same source as the Tallis Fantasia?

AUDIENCE MEMBER, Newbury Festival