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
VWL1563 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Vally Lasker 19390425 [April 25 1939]
VWL1562 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Daniel Gregory Mason 19390424 [24th April 1939]
VWL1561 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19390416 [16th April, 1939]
VWL1560 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Sir Adrian Boult (BBC) 19390415 [Mid April 1939]
VWL1558 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19390410 Monday [10th April 1939]
VWL1502 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19390403 [3 April 1939]
VWL663 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 193904-- [Newcastle, 29th March, 1939]
VWL1557 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Iris Lemare 19390325 March 25 [1939]
VWL1556 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19390322 [22 March, 1939]
VWL1555 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Imogen Holst 19390319 Sunday [19th March 1939]
VWL1554 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19390313 March 13 [?1939]
VWL1524 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Bush 19390310 March 10 [1939]
VWL1523 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Douglas Lilburn 19390306 March 6 [1939]
VWL1519 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19390302 Thursday [2 March 1939]
VWL662 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Clifford 193903-- [Early 1939]
VWL3990 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alexander Burnard 19390227 Feb 27 / 39
VWL1518 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Miss E. Price 19390227 Feb 27 [1939]
VWL1517 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 19390220 Feb 20th [?late 1930s]
VWL1515 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19390207 Tuesday [7 February, 1939]
VWL3915 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Vera Hockman 19390203 Feb [3rd 1939]
VWL655 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 193902-- [Early February 1939]
VWL1514 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Sir Adrian Boult (BBC) 19390130 Jan 30 [1939]
VWL4637 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19390129 [19 Feb 1939]
VWL1512 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Bush 19390120 Jan 20 [1939]
VWL1511 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Iris Lemare 19390115 [15th January 1939]
VWL1510 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Iris Lemare 19390115 [15th January 1939]
VWL3026 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Everett Helm 19390113 [13 Jan 1939]
VWL1457 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19390109 [9th January 1939]
VWL1455 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Norman Peterkin (OUP) 19390106 Jan 6 [?1939]
VWL4549 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to an unidentified correspondent 19390104 Jan 4, 1939

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