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
VWL1579 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Frederick Page 19410905 Sep 5 [1941]
VWL4062 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Misses Piper 194109-- [September] 1941
VWL1575 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Fritz Hart 19410814 Aug l4th [1941]
VWL4060 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Miss Piper 19410711 July 11 1941
VWL4061 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Miss Piper 194107-- [July] 1941
VWL1543 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harry Farjeon 19410627 June 27 [c.1941]
VWL1542 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Rothenstein 19410624 June 24 [?1941]
VWL1541 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alice Sumsion 19410615 June 15 [1941?]
VWL1531 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19410408 [8 April 1941]
VWL5133 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Editor of The Times 19410315 15 March, 1941
VWL1527 BBC Public Statement 19410314 14th March, 1941
VWL5087 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Jean Stewart 19410310 March 10 [1941]
VWL1526 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to BBC Director General 19410309 March 9 [1941]
VWL3844 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Olin Downes 19410124 [24 January, 1941]
VWL1520 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss (OUP) 19410118 Jan 18 [1941]
VWL4071 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Miss Piper 1941---- [1941?]
VWL1477 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19401214 [Dec 14th? '40]
VWL1476 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edward J. Dent 19401213 Dec 13 [1940]
VWL1475 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Percy Scholes 19401204 [Received on 7th December 1940]
VWL1473 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edward J. Dent 19401125 Nov 25 [1940?]
VWL1472 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mary Glasgow 19401120 Nov 20 [1940]
VWL1471 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult (BBC) 19401115 Nov 15 [1940]
VWL4986 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arthur Boosey 19401114 Nov 14 [1940]
VWL4294 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mr Pearl 19401112 12 November [1940]
VWL1469 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19401103 Sunday [3rd November 1940]
VWL1467 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mary Glasgow 19401102 Nov 2 [1940]
VWL1465 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edward J. Dent 19401031 Oct 31 [1940]
VWL1468 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Bush 19401031 October 31 [1940]
VWL4984 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Leslie Arthur Boosey 19401031 October 31 [1940]
VWL1464 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Imogen Holst 19401031 [31 October 1940]

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