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
VWL3260 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19560129 January 29th 1956.
VWL3359 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19560412 April 12th 1956
VWL3367 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19560827 August 27th 1956.
VWL3400 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19560516 May 16th 1956.
VWL3442 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19561025 October 25th 1956.
VWL3477 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19570402 April 2nd 1957.
VWL3513 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19570512 May 12th 1957.
VWL2671 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19530318 18th March, 1953.
VWL2686 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19530525 May 25th. 1953.
VWL2692 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19530613 June 13th 1953.
VWL2707 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19530731 [On or about 31st July 1953]
VWL2712 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19530822 August 22nd 1953.
VWL2779 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19480723 23rd July, 1948.
VWL2846 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19540724 July 24th 1954
VWL2847 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19540728 July 28th 1954.
VWL2861 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19540817 August 17 [1954]
VWL2925 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19541225 December 25th 1954.
VWL2937 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19481222 22nd. December, 1948.
VWL2986 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19490428 28th April, l949.
VWL2442 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19520625 25th June, 1952.
VWL2478 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19521001 1st October, 1952.
VWL2537 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19521116 November 16th 1952.
VWL2568 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19530105 Jan 5 [1953]
VWL2640 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19530204 4th February, 1953.
VWL4106 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19480708 8th July, 1948.
VWL4153 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 195108-- [August 1951?]
VWL4155 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19511017 17th October, 1951.
VWL4160 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19520202 2nd. February, 1952.
VWL4169 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19560610 June 10th 1956.
VWL4170 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19570215 February 15th 1957.

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