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
VWL1689 BBC internal memorandum from Sir Adrian Boult to Arthur Bliss 19420915 September 15th 1942
VWL1043 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 19330201 Wed [1st Feb 1933]
VWL1207 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19370906 Monday smorn [6th September 1937]
VWL3962 Letter from Gustav Holst to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19330901 Sep 1, [1933]
VWL1067 Letter from Harriet Cohen to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19330722 22nd July, 1933.
VWL3651 Letter from Maud Karpeles to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19310720 20 July 1931.
VWL1044 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19330207 February 7 1933
VWL909 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19310405 April 5 [1931]
VWL1029 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19330123 [23 January 1933]
VWL972 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19311117 November 17 [1931]
VWL4615 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19350927 27 Sept 35
VWL907 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult at the BBC 19310322 [22 March 1931]
VWL2139 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19461113 Nov 13 [1946]
VWL2304 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19470703 3rd July, 1947.
VWL2317 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19470820 20th August, 1947.
VWL2563 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19480212 12th February, 1948.
VWL4442 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19500208 8th February, 1950.
VWL2302 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19470626 June 26 1947
VWL2098 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 19460918 Sept 18/46
VWL1035 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 193302-- [early February 1933]
VWL2136 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Frederick Page 19501227 27th December, 1950.
VWL924 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19310714 [14th July 1931]
VWL1034 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gustav Holst 193301-- [About January 1933]
VWL2506 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Guthrie Foote (OUP) 19471218 18th December, 1947.
VWL1177 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 193110-- [late October 1931]
VWL1262 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19340610 [10 June 1934]
VWL974 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19311122 Nov 22nd [1931]
VWL985 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19311129 [29 November 1931]
VWL988 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19311217 [17 December 1931]
VWL1042 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19330128 [28 January 1933]

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