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.

Searching:
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
VWL3845 Letter from Olin Downes to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19430825 August 25, 1943
VWL1800 Letter from Arthur Bliss to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19430817 17th August, 1943
VWL1791 Letter from Adrian Boult to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19430627 27 June 1943
VWL1746 Letter from Ralph Wedgwood to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19430127 27.i.43
VWL344 Letter from Steuart Wilson to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19421109 9 Nov. 1942
VWL1692 Letter from Ferdinand Rauter to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19420926 26. September 1942
VWL1629 Letter from Myra Hess to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19420119 January 19th 1942
VWL1611 Letter from Robert Longman to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19411221 21.12.41
VWL1585 Letter from Norman Peterkin (OUP) to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19411110 [10 November 1941]
VWL3739 Letter from Alan Bush to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19410321 March 21st, 1941
VWL3740 Letter from Alan Bush to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19401106 November 6th, 1940
VWL1459 Letter from G.M. Trevelyan to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19401008 Oct 8 1940
VWL1415 Letter from Henry Wood to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19400416 April 16th, 1940.
VWL3742 Letter from Alan Bush to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19390715 July 15th, 1939.
VWL3928 Letter from Alan Bush to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19390412 12th April, 1939
VWL3717 Letter from Edward Clark to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19390329 29th March, 1939
VWL3720 Letter from Nancy Bush to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19390326 March 26th, 1939
VWL5195 Letter from Adrian Boult to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19390320 20 March 1939
VWL3718 Letter from Edward Clark to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19390311 March 11th, 1939
VWL3722 Letter from Edward Clark to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19390131 31st January, 1939
VWL3721 Letter from Edward Clark to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19390116 16th January, 1939
VWL3719 Letter from Edward Clark to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19390104 4th January, 1938 [i.e. 1939]
VWL3734 Letter from Alan Bush to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19381228 December 28th, 1938.
VWL1446 Letter from Donald Francis Tovey to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19381129 29th November, 1938.
VWL1381 Letter from Sir Henry Wood to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19381007 October 7th 1938
VWL3735 Letter from Nancy Bush to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19380919 September 19th, 1938
VWL1366 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19380721 Thur [21 July 1938]
VWL1365 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19380718 Monday [18 July 1938]
VWL1363 Letter from Honorine Williamson to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19380717 Sunday [17 July 1938]
VWL1360 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19380715 Friday smorn [15 July 1938]

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