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.

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Letter No. Title Date Date on Letter
VWL2811 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Lowe (BBC) 19540328 March 28th 1954.
VWL2812 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Lowe (BBC) 19540331 March 31st 1954.
VWL2813 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19540404 April 4th 1954.
VWL2814 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19540423 April 23 [1954]
VWL2815 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19540503 [3 May 1954]
VWL2816 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19540504 [4 May 1954]
VWL2817 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19540508 8.5.45
VWL2818 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Lyle Dowling 19540508 May 8th 1954.
VWL2819 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Warrack (OUP) 19540509 May 9th 1954.
VWL2820 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margery Cullen 19540511 May 11 [1954]
VWL2821 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margery Cullen 19540511 May 11 1954
VWL2823 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Byard 19540531 May 31st 1954.
VWL2824 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19540601 June 1st 1954.
VWL2825 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Warrack (OUP) 19540601 June 1st 1954.
VWL2827 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Lyle Dowling 19540606 June 6th 1954.
VWL2830 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19540617 June 17 [1954]
VWL2831 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Geoffrey Cumberlege 19540626 June 26th 1954.
VWL2832 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19540626 June 26th 1954.
VWL2833 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 19481014 14th October, 1948.
VWL2834 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19481014 14th December [i.e. October], 1948.
VWL2835 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Percy Young 19481020 20th October, 1948.
VWL2836 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Derek G. Smith 19481020 20th October, 1948.
VWL2837 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Peter Hamber 19481020 20th October, 1948.
VWL2838 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Douglas Lilburn 19481022 Oct 22/48
VWL2839 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Irving 19481026 Oct 26th [1948]
VWL2840 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roger Fiske 19540702 July 2nd 1954.
VWL2841 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19540708 July 8th 1954.
VWL2842 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Warrack (OUP) 19540708 July 8th 1954.
VWL2844 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19540721 July 21st 1954.
VWL2846 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19540724 July 24th 1954

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