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
VWL3598 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Simona Pakenham 19571025 October 25th 1957
VWL4193 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joan and Martin Shaw 19571022 October 22nd 1957.
VWL3597 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19571021 [21 October 1957]
VWL5142 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to an unidentified gentleman 19571020 20? October, 1957
VWL3596 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Frederick Page & Douglas Lilburn 19571018 Oct 18 [1957]
VWL4265 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Molly Imlach 19571018 18 Oct 1957
VWL3510 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Barbirolli 19571017 [October 1957]
VWL3594 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Nancy Strode 19571017 [17th October 1957]
VWL4696 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Philip Mackay 19571017 [17 Oct 1957]
VWL3595 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Rosamund Strode 19571017 [17th October 1957]
VWL5070 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Editor of The Times 19571016 October 16 [1957]
VWL3592 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edmund Rubbra 19571016 October 16th 1957.
VWL3593 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert John Sumsion 19571016 [16 October, 1957]
VWL3665 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 19571015 October 15th 1957
VWL4641 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Wilson 19571015 October 15th 1957.
VWL3512 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Vera Kantrovitch (Vera Duncan) 19571015 [ca 15 October 1957]
VWL3587 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Secretary, Society of Authors 19571015 15th October 1957
VWL3589 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Anthony Scott 19571015 October 15th 1957
VWL3590 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Christopher Morris (OUP) 19571015 October 15th 1957.
VWL1503 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Marc Vignal 19571015 October 15th, 1957.
VWL3588 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Rutland and Kathleen Boughton 19571015 October 15th 1957.
VWL3591 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert John Sumsion 19571015 October 15th 1957.
VWL4953 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Dean of Westminster Abbey 19571015 October 15th 1957.
VWL3583 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eugene Goossens 19571014 Oct 14 [1957?]
VWL3584 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Barbirolli 19571014 Oct 14 [1957]
VWL3585 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 19571014 [October ?1957]
VWL3586 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19571014 [October 14th 1957]
VWL3581 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Simona Pakenham 19571014 October 14th [1957]
VWL3582 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to G.E. Moore 19571014 Oct 14 [1957]
VWL3579 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Jack Gordon and Scott Goddard 19571013 [October 13 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