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
VWL423 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Constance Machray 19160405 April 5th [1916]
VWL4076 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Fisher 19160403 3 April 1916
VWL4299 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Martin Shaw 191603-- [Spring 1916]
VWL4833 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Clive Carey 19150808 Aug 8th 1915
VWL4293 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Martin Shaw 19150630 June 30th, [1915]
VWL422 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edward J. Dent 19150424 [24 May 1915]
VWL421 Letter from Charles Hubert Parry to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19150119 Jany 19. 1915
VWL4718 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Percy Pitt 1915---- [c.1915-1916]
VWL3013 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mrs Piper 1915---- [1915]
VWL420 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Special Constabulary Chelsea Company 19141124 Nov 24th [1914]
VWL4932 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eric George Millar 191411-- [late November 1914]
VWL410 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edward J. Dent 19141008 [c.8th October 1914]
VWL4933 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eric George Millar 19140901 Sept 1st [1914]
VWL4930 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eric George Millar 19140830 [end August 1914]
VWL4315 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Martin Shaw 19140818 18 August, 1914
VWL4314 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Martin Shaw 19140817 Monday [17 August, 1914]
VWL406 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gustav Holst 19140701 [1 July 1914 ]
VWL4307 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Martin Shaw 1914---- [late 1914?]

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