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
VWL2727 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19530930 September 30th 1953.
VWL2726 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Anthony Scott 19530930 Sept 30 [1953]
VWL2725 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19530927 September 27th 1953.
VWL2724 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19530924 September 24th 1953.
VWL2721 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19530920 [September 20] 1953
VWL2720 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mr Prentice 19530913 September 13th 1953.
VWL4585 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams’s cat to Marjory Jordan 19530913 September 13th. [1953]
VWL2718 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19530912 September 12th 1953.
VWL2716 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Trevelyan 19530912 Sept 12th, 53
VWL4054 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Grice at the Performing Right Society 19530912 September 12th 1953.
VWL2717 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19530912 [12th September 1953]
VWL2719 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alice Sumsion 19530912 September 12th 1953
VWL4338 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mary Sheppard 19530912 [September 12 1953]
VWL4207 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Martin Shaw 19530910 September 10th [1953]
VWL2715 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert John Sumsion 19530909 September 9th 1953
VWL4206 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joan Shaw 19530902 Sept 2nd 1953
VWL3907 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Olin Downes 1953090- [early September, 1953]
VWL3906 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Olin Downes 19530831 August 31st. 1953.
VWL2714 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19530827 August 27th 1953.
VWL3905 Letter from Olin Downes Ralph Vaughan Williams 19530826 August 26, 1953
VWL2713 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Frank Howes 19530825 Aug 25 [1953]
VWL2712 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19530822 August 22nd 1953.
VWL3904 Letter from Olin Downes to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19530818 August 18, 1953
VWL4479 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Nancy Evans 19530817 August 17th 1953.
VWL4575 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cedric Morgan 19530817 August 17th 1953
VWL2711 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19530810 August 10th, 1953.
VWL3037 Letter from Lewis Crow to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19530806 6th August, 1953.
VWL2708 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Byard 19530802 August 2nd 1953.
VWL2709 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mr Barnes 19530802 August 2nd 1953
VWL4165 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19530802 August 2nd 1953.

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