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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Filter letters

Letter No. Title Date Date on Letter
VWL3842 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1932---- Fri [1932?]
VWL3848 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [1930 or 1931]
VWL3862 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 19380520 [about 20 May 1938]
VWL3874 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 193----- [1930s?]
VWL3875 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 19500405 5th April, 1950.
VWL3876 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 19360226 [Late February 1936]
VWL3882 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 194----- Wed. [1940s?]
VWL3888 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1931---- [1931?]
VWL3893 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [1930]
VWL3894 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [1930]
VWL3901 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1934---- [1934?]
VWL3823 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1928---- [about 1928]
VWL3826 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [mid-1930s]
VWL3828 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1933--- [about 1933]
VWL3830 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [1930]
VWL3831 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [1930]
VWL3836 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1933---- [1933?]
VWL3837 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [1930 or 1932?]
VWL3839 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1950---- Nov 6 [1950?]
VWL3855 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1931---- [1930s?]
VWL3858 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 193----- [1930s?]
VWL3861 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 19480708 8th July, 1948.
VWL3863 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1935---- [mid 1930s?]
VWL3870 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1940---- [early 1940s?]
VWL3879 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1931---- [1931]
VWL3881 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 193----- [1930s?]
VWL3885 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 19391028 [late October 1939]
VWL3886 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 194----- Nov 2 [1940s]
VWL3889 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [1930?]
VWL3890 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [1930]

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