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
VWL3547 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Chapman 19570908 September 8th 1957.
VWL841 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Chapman 19450210 Feb 10 [1945]
VWL363 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Farrar 19100509 [9th May 1910]
VWL373 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Farrar 19110708 [8th July 1911]
VWL390 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Farrar 19131205 Dec. 5 [1913]
VWL399 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Farrar 19140415 15th April 1914
VWL378 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Farrar 19111231 [31st December 1911]
VWL380 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Farrar 19120119 Jan 19th [1912]
VWL382 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Farrar 19120401 Monday [1st April 1912]
VWL2016 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Irving 19500705 5th July, 1950
VWL2303 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Irving 19470703 3rd July, 1947
VWL2573 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Irving 19470227 Feb 27 [1947?]
VWL2839 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Irving 19481026 Oct 26th [1948]
VWL2065 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Irving 19500716 [July 16th, 1950?]
VWL2934 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Irving 19481216 16th December, 1948
VWL3174 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Irving 19490629 29th June, 1949
VWL1779 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Irving 194703-- [Early March 1947]
VWL2325 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Irving 19471008 8th October, 1947
VWL2805 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Irving 19481007 7th October, 1948.
VWL3144 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Irving 19490928 September 28th, 1949.
VWL1444 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Newman 19381120 Nov 20th [1938]
VWL4222 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Newman 19400223 Feb 23rd [1940]
VWL1385 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Newman 19400214 Feb 14 [1940]
VWL1407 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Newman 19381113 Nov 13 [1938]
VWL4223 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Newman 19400821 August 21 [1940]
VWL4228 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Newman 19401010 Oct 10 [1940]
VWL4224 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Newman 19400828 August 28 [1940]
VWL4227 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Newman 19400504 May 4th [1940]
VWL4229 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Newman 19470509 [9 May 1947]
VWL5264 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Roth 19561108 November 8th 1956.

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