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
VWL3455 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Dorothy Howells 19561223 December 23rd 1956.
VWL3433 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19561013 October 13th 1956.
VWL3205 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 19551013 October 13th 1955.
VWL3760 Letter from Alan Bush to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19551004 4th October 1955.
VWL3200 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Bush 19551002 October 2nd 1955.
VWL3009 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ronald Gurney 195505-- [May 1955]
VWL2757 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19540122 January 22nd 1954.
VWL2754 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Francis Chandler 19540114 January 14th 1954.
VWL2553 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Rupert Erlebach 19521203 3rd. December, 1952.
VWL2504 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Dorothy Howells 19521017 October 17th 1952.
VWL2255 Letter from Hubert Foss to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19510620 20th June, 1951
VWL2113 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19501018 18th October, 1950.
VWL1807 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19431006 Oct 6 [1943]
VWL1764 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gwen Beckett (BBC) 19430521 [May 21st 1943]
VWL4476 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Frank Howes 19400927 Sept 27 [about 1940?]
VWL4326 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Marion Scott 19370803 August 3 [1937]
VWL1190 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19370725 Sunday [25th July 1937]
VWL3245 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Marion Scott 19360821 August 21 [1936?]
VWL550 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19360710 [?10, July 1936]
VWL806 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19351018 [18 October 1935]
VWL776 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19350910 Tuesday [10th September 1935]
VWL768 Letter from Marion Scott to Adeline Vaughan Williams 19350819 Aug. 19th 1935
VWL532 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Goldsbrough 193504-- Sunday [?April 1935]
VWL1008 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19320912 [12th September 1932]
VWL3802 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Pietro Lauricella 19291031 Oct 31 [about 1929]
VWL572 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19241026 [26 October 1924]
VWL411 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19141009 [9th October 1914]

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