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
VWL2622 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19530127 27th January, 1953.
VWL2618 Letter from Ernest Irving to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19530122 Thurs 22/1/53
VWL2619 Letter from Gerald Finzi to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19530122 Jan 22nd [1953]
VWL4344 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mary Sheppard 19530120 20th January, 1953.
VWL3851 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 19530120 20th January, 1953.
VWL4565 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harold Smith 19530120 20th January, 1953.
VWL5020 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Buckland 19530120 20th January, 1953.
VWL2612 Letter from Michael Kennedy to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19530118 Sunday, Jan 18th, 1953.
VWL2609 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Barbirolli 19530110 Jan 10 [1953]
VWL2608 Letter from Ernest Irving to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19530109 9th January 1953
VWL2569 Letter from Ernest Irving to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19530108 8th January 1953
VWL2567 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19530103 January 3rd 1953.
VWL2562 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19521231 31st December, 1952.
VWL2561 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Robert Longman 19521231 31st December, 1952.
VWL2565 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19521231 31st. December 26, 1952.
VWL2559 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19521226 December 26th 1952.
VWL3657 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 19521210 [About 10th December 1952]
VWL2552 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank 19521129 November 29th 1952
VWL2551 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19521127 27th November, 1952.
VWL2549 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19521119 19th November 1952.
VWL2537 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19521116 November 16th 1952.
VWL2477 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Trevelyan 19521110 November 10th 1952
VWL2535 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19521104 [?4 November 1952]
VWL2534 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19521102 November 2nd 1952.
VWL2607 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 195211-- [? early November 1952]
VWL2533 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Barbirolli 19521031 Oct 31 [1952]
VWL2527 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19521029 29th October, 1952.
VWL2524 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19521027 October 27th 1952.
VWL2522 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Barbirolli 19521026 October 26th [1952]
VWL2490 Letter from Gerald Finzi to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19521014 [14th October 1952]

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