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
VWL511 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 1935---- [?1935 - 1940]
VWL524 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 1938---- [about 1938]
VWL1271 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19340730 [30 Jul 1934]
VWL2336 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19520102 January 2 [1952]
VWL2409 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19520522 22nd May, 1952
VWL2468 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19520917 17th September, 1952
VWL2536 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19521110 November 10th 1952.
VWL2548 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19521119 19th November, l952.
VWL2624 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19530128 28th January, 1953.
VWL1683 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19420831 Aug 31 [1942]
VWL1691 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19420923 Sept 23 [1942]
VWL1703 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19421014 Oct 14 [1942]
VWL2677 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19530415 15th April, 1953
VWL416 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19350413 13 April l935
VWL1765 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 1948---- [1948]
VWL2069 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19500726 26th July, 1950
VWL2188 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19510207 7th February 1951
VWL1590 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19411122 Sat [22nd November 1941]
VWL2373 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19520305 5th March, 1952
VWL2440 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19520625 25th June, 1952
VWL2526 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19521029 29th October, 1952
VWL2646 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19530211 11th February, 1953.
VWL1121 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19331112 Nov 12 [1933]
VWL1122 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19340103 [3 January 1934]
VWL1346 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19341225 Xmas Day
VWL2321 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19511206 [6th December 1951]
VWL2454 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19520727 July 27th, 1952
VWL2481 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19521008 8th October, 1952
VWL662 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Clifford 193903-- [Early 1939]
VWL2110 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert and Dora Foss 19501018 October 18th, 1950

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