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
VWL1540 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19410615 Sunday [15th June 1941]
VWL1541 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alice Sumsion 19410615 June 15 [1941?]
VWL1538 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Sylvia Drew 19410605 June 5 [1941]
VWL4510 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Martin Shaw 19410521 May 21 [1941?]
VWL1537 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Lord Kennet 19410520 May 20th, 1941.
VWL4509 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joan Shaw 19410515 May 15 [1941?]
VWL1534 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19410508 8.5.41
VWL1533 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19410504 Sunday [4th May 1941]
VWL4508 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Martin Shaw 19410428 April 28 [1941?]
VWL1531 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19410408 [8 April 1941]
VWL1529 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Myfanwy Jones 19410331 March 31 [1941]
VWL3739 Letter from Alan Bush to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19410321 March 21st, 1941
VWL1528 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Trevelyan 19410315 [Mid March 1941]
VWL4507 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Martin Shaw 19410211 Feb 11 [1941?]
VWL4915 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to an unidentified person 19410102 [Jan 2nd 1941]
VWL4912 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 194101-- [January 1941?]
VWL4511 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Martin Shaw 1941---- [1941?]
VWL2868 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Robert Müller-Hartmann 1941---- [before Dec 1941]
VWL1482 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19401231 Dec 31 [1940]
VWL1481 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19401229 Dec 29 [1940]
VWL3865 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 19401226 Dec 26 [about 1940?]
VWL3647 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 19401226 Dec 26 [ca 1940]
VWL1480 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19401225 Dec 25 [1940]
VWL2867 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Robert Müller-Hartmann 19401223 Dec 23 [1940?]
VWL1479 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Iris Lemare 19401223 Dec 23 [?1940]
VWL1477 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19401214 [Dec 14th? '40]
VWL4982 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arthur Boosey 19401119 [19 or 20 November, 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]
VWL4985 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arthur Boosey 19401109 Nov 9 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