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
VWL3325 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margery Cullen 19580315 March 15th 1958
VWL3560 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19571126 November 26th 1957.
VWL3509 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19570515 [15 May 1957]
VWL3487 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roger Fiske (BBC) 19570504 May 4th 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]
VWL3424 Letter from Joy Finzi to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19560928 September 28th [1956]
VWL3404 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Byard 19560520 May 20th 1956.
VWL3217 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roger Fiske (BBC) 19551108 November 8th 1955.
VWL3213 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eugene Goossens 19551030 October 30th 1955.
VWL3096 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19550619 [19 June 1955]
VWL2859 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mr Howgill (BBC) 19540801 August 1st 1954.
VWL2857 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 19540801 August 1st 1954.
VWL2845 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19540724 July 24th [1954]
VWL2840 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roger Fiske 19540702 July 2nd 1954.
VWL2683 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arthur Benjamin 19530513 13th May, 1953
VWL2551 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19521127 27th November, 1952.
VWL2480 Letter from Hubert Foss to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19521006 6th October, 1952
VWL2475 “The Stanford Centenary” BBC talk by Vaughan Williams 19520930 Recorded: 13.8.52
VWL2451 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mr Johnston (BBC) 19520719 July 19 [1952]
VWL2381 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 19520316 March 16th 1952.
VWL2294 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19511114 Nov 14 [1951]
VWL2297 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Rev. W. D. Kennedy Bell (BBC) 19511114 14th November, 1951.
VWL2293 Letter from Hubert Foss to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19511112 [About 12th November 1951]
VWL3849 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 19510926 26th September, 1951.
VWL4859 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Peter Montgomery 19510520 May 20 [1951]
VWL4147 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19510517 17th May, 1951.
VWL2222 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gilmour Jenkins 19510502 [2nd May 1951]
VWL2211 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alec Robertson (BBC) 19510329 29th March, 1951.
VWL2199 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 19510228 28th February, 1951.

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