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
VWL3509 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19570515 [15 May 1957]
VWL3515 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margery Cullen 19570514 May 14th 1957
VWL3514 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margery Cullen 19570514 May 14th 1957
VWL3513 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19570512 May 12th 1957.
VWL3489 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Miss Roberts 19570509 May 9th 1957
VWL3490 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19570509 May 9th 1957.
VWL3814 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Stanley Godman 19570509 May 9th 1957.
VWL3487 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roger Fiske (BBC) 19570504 May 4th 1957.
VWL3486 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Juanita Berlin 19570504 May 4th 1957
VWL4057 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Performing Right Society 19570502 May 2nd [1957]
VWL3505 ‘The Fifteenth Variation’: Transcript of VW’s contribution to Elgar Centenary Programme on the BBC from the recording 195705-- [May 1957]
VWL3488 Transcript of VW’s contribution to Elgar Centenary Programme on the BBC 195705-- [May 1957]
VWL3485 Letter from ursula Vaughan Williams to Mrs Ross Lee Finney 19570428 April 28th 1957
VWL3483 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19570426 April 26th 1957.
VWL4757 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Cockshott 19570426 April 26th 1957.
VWL3484 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19570426 April 26th 1957.
VWL3482 Letter from Robin Milford to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19570425 25.IV.57
VWL5077 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Editor of The Times 19570425 April 25, [1957]
VWL3530 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Editor of the Times 19570423 [23 April, 1957]
VWL3481 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Richardson 19570414 April 14th 1957.
VWL3479 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ian Parrott 19570411 April 11th 1957.
VWL3480 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Anthony Scott 19570411 April 11th [1957]
VWL3478 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Barbirolli 19570407 [7 April 1957]
VWL4715 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margaret Field-Hyde 19570407 April 7th 1957.
VWL5069 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams and Geoffrey Bush to the Editor of The Times 19570405 Friday 5 April, 1957
VWL4738 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to George Chambers 19570402 April 2nd 1957.
VWL3477 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19570402 April 2nd 1957.
VWL3476 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Christopher Morris (OUP) 19570401 April 1st 1957.
VWL3474 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19570329 March 29th 1957
VWL3475 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19570329 March 29th 1957½

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