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
VWL4736 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to George Chambers 19560119 January 19th 1956.
VWL3255 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Veronica Wedgwood 19560103 Jan 3rd 1956
VWL3256 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19560103 Jan 3rd 1956
VWL3504 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Christopher Morris (OUP) 1956---- [1956]
VWL3254 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Barbirolli 19551228 December 28th 1955.
VWL3253 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Major General and Mrs R Lock 19551227 Dec 27 [1955]
VWL4590 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mr Scott 19551226 December 26th 1955.
VWL4551 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to “Moppett” 19551226 December 26th, 1955.
VWL3233 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19551218 December 18th 1955.
VWL3039 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Editor of the Northern Echo 19551213 December 13th 1955.
VWL4616 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Glock 19551213 December 13th 1955.
VWL5096 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Editor of The Times 19551207 [Wednesday, 7 December, 1955]
VWL5141 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Phyllis 19551130 [ca 1955]
VWL3230 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19551126 November 26th 1955.
VWL3813 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Stanley Godman 19551123 November 23rd 1955.
VWL3229 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19551123 Nov 23 [1955]
VWL5103 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Editor of The Times 19551116 Wednesday 16 November, 1955
VWL3222 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Barbirolli 19551113 November 13th 1955.
VWL3218 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 19551110 November 10th 1955
VWL3220 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19551110 November 10th 1955.
VWL3769 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Bush 19551108 November 8th 1955.
VWL4239 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joan Shaw 19551030 October 30th 1955.
VWL3212 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19551028 October 28th 1955.
VWL3766 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Bush 19551023 October 23rd 1955.
VWL3208 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Katharine Thomson 19551022 [22 Oct 1955]
VWL3209 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19551022 22nd October 1955
VWL3210 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Secretary of the Royal Musical Association 19551022 [22 October 1955]
VWL3206 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Beryl Lock 19551015 [15th Oct 1955]
VWL3207 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19551015 Oct 15 [1955]
VWL3204 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Katharine Thomson 19551013 Oct 13 [1955]

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