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
VWL3564 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Simona Pakenham 19571117 [17th November 1957]
VWL3488 Transcript of VW’s contribution to Elgar Centenary Programme on the BBC 195705-- [May 1957]
VWL3448 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19561108 November 8th 1956.
VWL3066 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19550305 March 3rd [1955]
VWL2998 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19550224 February 24th 1955.
VWL2821 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margery Cullen 19540511 May 11 1954
VWL2813 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19540404 April 4th 1954.
VWL2797 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cedric Thorpe Davie 19540302 March 2nd 1954.
VWL2712 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19530822 August 22nd 1953.
VWL2687 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19530526 [May 26th 1953]
VWL2464 Letter from John Ireland to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19520829 August 29th, 1952
VWL2112 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult (BBC) 19501018 Oct. 18 [1950]
VWL2108 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Terence Casey 19501018 18th October, 1950.
VWL5010 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Buckland 19480812 12th August, 1948.
VWL2417 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Guthrie Foote (OUP) 19471120 20th November, 1947.
VWL1945 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19450808 Aug 8 [1945]
VWL1432 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult (BBC) 19400826 [26 August 1940]
VWL663 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 193904-- [Newcastle, 29th March, 1939]
VWL1169 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss (OUP) 19370711 July 11 1937
VWL1144 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19370225 February 25 [1937]
VWL3321 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Philip Henderson 19370131 January 31 [1937]
VWL1115 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ethel Colman 19361226 Dec 26: 1936
VWL1110 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cedric Thorpe Davie 19361207 Dec 7 [1936]
VWL984 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Fritz Hart 19361006 [About 6th October 1936]
VWL553 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 193610-- [About October 1936?]
VWL963 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cedric Thorpe Davie 19360802 [2 August 1936]
VWL827 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19351213 Dec 13 [1935]
VWL807 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss (OUP) 19351019 19 Oct 1935
VWL804 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss (OUP) 19351012 October 12 [1935]
VWL798 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cedric Thorpe Davie 19350923 September 23 [1935]

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