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
VWL3805 Letter from Alan Bush to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19320706 July 6th, 1932
VWL3803 Letter from Alan Bush to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19320628 28.6.32
VWL3902 Letter from Gustav Holst to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19320415 April 15 [1932]
VWL929 Letter from Gwen Raverat to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19310802 August 2nd [1931]
VWL3651 Letter from Maud Karpeles to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19310720 20 July 1931.
VWL3655 Letter from Maud Karpeles to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19310618 18 June 1931.
VWL3653 Letter from Maud Karpeles to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19310602 26 June 1931.
VWL3711 Letter from Maud Karpeles to Ralph Vaughan Williams 193106-- [June 1931?]
VWL845 Letter from Maud Karpeles to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19300303 3.3.30
VWL4079 Letter from Lionel Tertis to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19291024 Oct-24-29
VWL670 Letter from Evangeline Farrer and the Conductors of the LHMF choirs to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19290501 May Day 1929
VWL638 Letter from Lucy Broadwood to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19281101 [About 1st November 1928]
VWL4110 Letter from Martin Shaw to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19281005 5th October, 1928
VWL4499 Letter from Martin Shaw to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19280322 22nd March, 1928.
VWL4096 Letter from Martin Shaw to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19270712 12th July, 1927.
VWL612 Letter from Henry Wood to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19261101 Nov: 1st 1926
VWL609 Letter from Robert Longman to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19260617 June 17 l926
VWL607 Letter from Dorothy Longman to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19260610 June 10. 1926
VWL606 Letter from Harold Child to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19260609 9 June l926
VWL3903 Letter from Gustav Holst to Ralph Vaughan Williams 192605-- Thursday [May or June 1926]
VWL601 Letter from Henry Hadow to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19260223 Feb 23 1926
VWL598 Letter from Maud Karpeles to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19260112 12 January 1926
VWL594 Letter from Hubert Foss to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19251111 11-11-25
VWL3961 Letter from Gustav Holst to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19251111 Nov 11, [1925]
VWL588 Letter from Carl Stoeckel to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19250616 June 16th, 1925.
VWL569 Letter from Percy Scholes to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19240919 19.9.24
VWL565 Letter from Crompton Llewellyn Davies to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19240715 15 July l924
VWL556 Letter from Cecil Sharp to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19240522 22.V.24
VWL790 Note from Cecil Sharp [to Ralph Vaughan Williams] 192405-- [Written before June 1924]
VWL540 Letter from Cecil Sharp to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19240119 19.I.24

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