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
VWL4054 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Grice at the Performing Right Society 19530912 September 12th 1953.
VWL5273 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William James Shergold 19391109 Nov 9th [1939]
VWL2550 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William McKie 19521124 November 24th 1952.
VWL2554 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William McKie 19521208 Dec 8 1952
VWL4954 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William McKie 19470221 Feb 21 [1947]
VWL4957 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William McKie 19470520 May 20 [1947]
VWL4687 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William McKie 19521119 19th November 1952.
VWL4956 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William McKie 19470405 April 5 [1947]
VWL4689 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William McKie 19530211 11th February, 1953.
VWL4955 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William McKie 19470303 March 3 [1947]
VWL4958 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William McKie 19470706 July 6 [1947]
VWL4959 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William McKie 19470713 Sunday [13 July 1947]
VWL2555 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William McKie 19521217 17th December, 1952.
VWL2558 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William McKie 19521224 24th December, 1952.
VWL2641 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William McKie 19530204 4th February, 1953.
VWL4688 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William McKie 19530208 February 8th 1953.
VWL223 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William McNaught 19090722 [22 July 1909]
VWL169 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William McNaught 190909-- [September, 1909]
VWL170 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William McNaught 19090624 June 24th [1909]
VWL4664 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Plomer 19410622 June 22 1941
VWL456 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Rothenstein 19191209 9/12/19
VWL1542 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Rothenstein 19410624 June 24 [?1941]
VWL358 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Rothenstein 19190822 22/8/19
VWL937 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Rothenstein 19360315 March 15 [1936]
VWL732 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Rothenstein 19350608 [8th June 1935]
VWL357 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Rothenstein 191910-- [?about October 1919 ]
VWL455 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Rothenstein 19191123 23/11/19
VWL498 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Rothenstein 19220627 [27th June 1922]
VWL359 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Rothenstein 19191127 27/11/19
VWL486 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Rothenstein 192001-- [?January 1920]

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