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
VWL1171 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Jack Gordon 19370411 April 11 [1937]
VWL1172 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19370412 [12th April 1937]
VWL1173 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19370413 April 13 [1937]
VWL1174 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Iris Lemare 19370414 [14 April 1937]
VWL1175 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19370427 April 27 [1937]
VWL1176 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ina Boyle 19370503 Monday [3rd May 1937]
VWL1177 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 193110-- [late October 1931]
VWL1178 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 193105-- Monday [early May 1931]
VWL1179 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 19340103 Wed [3rd January 1934]
VWL1180 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19340104 Jan 4 [1934]
VWL1181 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Julian Herbage at the BBC 19340113 Jan 13 1934
VWL1182 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Julian Herbage at the BBC 19340118 Jan 18 [1934]
VWL1183 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19340122 [22nd January 1934]
VWL1184 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Julian Herbage 19340128 Sunday [28th January 1934]
VWL1185 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19340217 Sat 17th [February 1934]
VWL1186 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Martin Shaw 19471227 December 27 [1947?]
VWL1187 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alice Sumsion 19500724 July 24 [1950?]
VWL1188 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19370708 July 8 [1937?]
VWL1189 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19370712 July 12 [1937]
VWL1190 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19370725 Sunday [25th July 1937]
VWL1191 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edward Elgar 19340219 Feb 19th [1934]
VWL1192 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Greaves 19340225 Feb 25 [1934]
VWL1194 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Isidore Schwiller 19340304 March 4 [1934]
VWL1195 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19340425 [25th April 1934]
VWL1196 Letter from William H. Reed to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19340503 3/5/34
VWL1197 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ina Boyle 19340311 March 11 [1934]
VWL1198 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19340317 [17th March 1934]
VWL1199 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gustav Holst 19340317 Sat: [March 17th 1934]
VWL1200 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19370728 [28th July 1937]
VWL1201 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gilbert Murray 19370806 Aug 6th 1937

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