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
VWL5203 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to David Griffiths 19420214 Feb 14 [1942]
VWL5204 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to David Griffiths 19421017 Oct 17 [1942]
VWL417 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to David Stanley Smith 19350414 [14th April 1935]
VWL4571 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to David Wilson 19530128 28th January, 1953.
VWL1285 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Denis Dowling 19380414 April 14 [1938 or 1939]
VWL1572 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Denis Dowling 19390703 July 3rd [1939]
VWL2620 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Denis Dowling 19530122 January 22nd 1953.
VWL1774 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Denis Dowling 194601-- [late 1945 or early 1946]
VWL1217 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Denis Dowling 19390726 [About 26th July 1939]
VWL1383 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Denis Dowling 19400205 Feb 5th [1940]
VWL1395 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Denis Dowling 19400215 Feb 15 [1940]
VWL2515 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Denis Dowling 195203-- [March 1952?]
VWL4630 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Denis Richards 19521119 19th November, 1952.
VWL4628 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Denis Richards 19530128 28th January, 1953.
VWL4286 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Dennis Arundell 19570303 March 3rd 1957.
VWL1886 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Denys Kilham Roberts 19450429 April 29 [1945]
VWL1885 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Denys Kilham Roberts 19450416 16th April [1945]
VWL1876 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Denys Kilham Roberts 19450304 4th March [1945]
VWL1881 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Denys Kilham Roberts 19450617 June 17 [1945]
VWL2836 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Derek G. Smith 19481020 20th October, 1948.
VWL3012 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Derek Hudson 19570208 February 8th 1957.
VWL664 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 192908-- [August 1929]
VWL1241 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19340513 [13th May 1934]
VWL1290 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19340829 Wed [29th August 1934]
VWL773 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19350908 [8th September 1935]
VWL869 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19300923 [23rd September 1930]
VWL875 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19301101 [1 November 1930]
VWL898 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19310107 [7th January 1931]
VWL959 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19360727 [27 July 1936]
VWL983 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19360927 [27th September 1936]

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