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
VWL813 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cedric Thorpe Davie 19351128 28 November 1935
VWL806 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19351018 [18 October 1935]
VWL272 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joan Western 19350316 March 16 [1935]
VWL186 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Iris Lemare 19350117 Jan 17th [1935]
VWL1325 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arthur Bliss 19341106 Nov 6 [1934]
VWL4471 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Frank Howes 19341017 [17 Oct 1934]
VWL1316 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Vally Lasker 19341002 Oct 2 [34]
VWL3712 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 19340205 Monday [February 5 1934]
VWL3869 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1934---- Sunday [1934]
VWL1127 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Iris Lemare 19331215 [15th December 1933]
VWL1123 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19331113 [13 November 1933]
VWL1121 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19331112 Nov 12 [1933]
VWL1099 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19331001 [About 1 October 1933]
VWL1098 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19330925 [25 September 1933]
VWL1094 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19330830 Wednesday [?30th August 1933]
VWL1065 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19330710 [10 July 1933]
VWL1040 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Benjamin Britten 19330119 Jan 19 1933
VWL4850 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Peter Montgomery 1933---- [1933]
VWL1014 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Jack Gordon 19320922 [22 September, 1932]
VWL1009 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Jack Gordon 19320916 September 16 [1932]
VWL5202 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to whom it may concern 19320309 March 9th 1932
VWL896 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19310104 [4th January 1931]
VWL3879 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1931---- [1931]
VWL885 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Imogen Holst 19301221 [21st December 1930]
VWL867 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Daniel Gregory Mason 19300819 August 19 [1930]
VWL858 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19300622 [22nd June 1930]
VWL891 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Peter Montgomery 193006-- [About June 1930]
VWL3893 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [1930]
VWL3834 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [1930]
VWL3847 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [1930s?]

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