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
VWL5059 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Editor of the Musical Times 193504-- [April 1935]
VWL532 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Goldsbrough 193504-- Sunday [?April 1935]
VWL4857 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Peter Montgomery 19350326 March 26 [1935]
VWL5132 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Editor of The Listener 19350320 [20 March, 1935]
VWL273 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the editor of Time & Tide 19350316 16 March l935
VWL5057 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams and others to the Editor of Music and Letters 19350308 March 8, 1935.
VWL5042 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Editor of the Times 19350211 [11 February 1935]
VWL4626 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eva Hubback 19350203 Feb 3 [1935]
VWL1280 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19340819 Sunday [19 August 1934]
VWL1270 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19340727 [27 July 1934]
VWL1266 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Imogen Holst 19340714 14 JUL 34
VWL4625 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 19340622 Friday [22 June 1934]
VWL1261 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19340606 [Early June 1934]
VWL1260 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19340606 [6th June 1934]
VWL1243 Letter from Isobel Holst to Ralph and Adeline Vaughan Williams 19340603 June 3. 1934
VWL1259 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19340530 [30 May 1934]
VWL1258 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Imogen Holst 19340527 [27th May 34]
VWL1242 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Imogen and Isobel Holst 19340525 [25 May l934]
VWL1239 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Vally Lasker 19340506 May 6th [1934]
VWL1199 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gustav Holst 19340317 Sat: [March 17th 1934]
VWL3668 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Mullinar 193401-- [January 1934]
VWL1132 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gustav Holst 193312-- [December 1933]
VWL3962 Letter from Gustav Holst to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19330901 Sep 1, [1933]
VWL1054 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Vally Lasker 19330414 [April 14th 1933]
VWL1029 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19330123 [23 January 1933]
VWL1028 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19330120 Saturday [20 January 1933]
VWL1034 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gustav Holst 193301-- [About January 1933]
VWL1024 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gustav Holst 19321125 Nov 25th [1932]
VWL1017 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gustav Holst 19321021 [On or about 21 October 1932]
VWL1032 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gustav Holst 193209-- [September 1932]

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