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
VWL4118 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Christopher le Fleming 19510522 [22 May, 1951]
VWL3126 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edmund Rubbra 19510521 [21 May 1951]
VWL2244 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harry Stubbs 19510521 [21 May 1951]
VWL2247 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19510521 21st May 1951
VWL4041 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Lewis Crow 19510521 21 May 1951
VWL5254 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to May Harrison 19510520 20 May 1951
VWL2240 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Katharine Thomson 19510520 [20 May 1951]
VWL2241 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Percy Young 19510520 [20th May 1951]
VWL2242 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 19510520 20 May 1951
VWL2237 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Imogen Holst 19510517 [17th May 1951]
VWL2238 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 19510517 17th May 1951
VWL3945 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to George Frederick McCleary 19510517 17 May 1951
VWL2341 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Dr Ferdinand Rauter 19510515 [ca 15 May 1951]
VWL3045 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Parry Jones 19510513 13 May 1951
VWL2231 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gilmour Jenkins 19510513 [13th May 1951]
VWL2917 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Rebecca Müller-Hartmann 19510512 12 May 1951
VWL4000 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Sellick 19510512 12 May 1951
VWL2229 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edward J. Dent 19510512 12th May 1951.
VWL3715 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Winifred Cole 19510512 12 May 1951
VWL4542 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Martin and Joan Shaw 19510511 11 May, 1951
VWL2218 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Murrill 19510429 [29 April 1951]
VWL2219 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Percy Young 19510429 [29th April 1951]
VWL4541 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Martin Shaw 19510429 29 April, 1951
VWL2158 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19510101 Jan 1 [1951]
VWL542 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Victor and Mary Sheppard 19501201 [4 Dec 1950]
VWL3643 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edmund Rubbra 195----- [1950s?]
VWL3950 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to George Frederick McCleary 195----- [1957?]
VWL3132 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19491018 Tuesday [18th October 1949]
VWL3150 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19490909 [9th September 1949]
VWL4371 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Mary Sheppard 19490909 Friday [9 Sep 1949]

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