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
VWL595 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Boosey 19251116 Nov 16 [1925?]
VWL596 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to J.F.R. Stainer 19251203 [3 December, 1925]
VWL597 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 19260108 [8th January 1926]
VWL599 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Burnaby 19260214 Feb 14th [1926]
VWL600 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Louise Alvar 19260219 Feb 19 [1926]
VWL602 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hugh Allen 19270303 March 3 [1926]
VWL603 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Leslie Fly 19260328 March 28 [1926]
VWL604 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edward J. Dent 19260503 May 3 [1926]
VWL605 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Dorothy Lock Burnaby 19260527 May 27 [1926]
VWL608 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Bach Choir 19260612 [About 12th June 1926]
VWL610 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Vally Lasker 19261013 Oct. 13th 26
VWL611 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Leslie Fly 192611-- [November 1926]
VWL613 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Leslie Fly 19261217 [17th December 1926]
VWL614 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ina Boyle 19270324 [24th March 1927]
VWL616 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19270502 [2nd May 1927]
VWL617 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Evelyn Sharp 19270726 July 26th [1927]
VWL618 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Evelyn Sharp 19270801 [Early August 1927]
VWL619 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Evelyn Sharp 19270818 [18th August 1927]
VWL620 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Evelyn Sharp 19270923 Sep 23 [1927]
VWL621 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Evelyn Sharp 19270923 [23rd September 1927]
VWL622 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Iris Lemare 19271009 [9th October 1927]
VWL623 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Henry Wood 19271108 Nov 8th [1927]
VWL624 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19271118 Nov 18 [1927]
VWL625 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19271202 [2 December 1927]
VWL626 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ina Boyle 19271226 [26th December 1927]
VWL627 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19280130 [30 January 1928]
VWL628 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ina Boyle 19280202 [2nd February 1928]
VWL629 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ina Boyle 19280208 [8th February 1928]
VWL630 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gustav Holst 19280225 Feb 25 [1928]
VWL631 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margaret Keynes 19280612 June 12 [1928?]

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