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
VWL549 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cedric Thorpe Davie 193606-- [June 1936]
VWL754 Letter from Rosa Newmarch to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19350709 July 9th 1935.
VWL1190 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19370725 Sunday [25th July 1937]
VWL1200 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19370728 [28th July 1937]
VWL1707 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Trevelyan 19421017 Oct 17 [1942]
VWL1865 Letter from Adrian Boult to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19440214 14th February 1944
VWL1901 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19440305 [About 5th March 1944]
VWL1902 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19440309 March 9 [1944]
VWL1920 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 19440617 June 17 [?1944]
VWL1921 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 19440706 July 6 [?1944]
VWL2042 Letter from Jean Sibelius to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19460618 June 18, 1946
VWL2105 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Julian Herbage (BBC) 19501011 11th October, 1950.
VWL2180 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mr Gray 19380103 Jan 3rd [1938]
VWL2314 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Douglas Lilburn 19470807 7th August, 1947.
VWL3002 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arthur Butterworth 19490525 25th May, 1949
VWL3109 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19550805 August 5th [1955]
VWL3110 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19550815 August 15th 1955.
VWL3227 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19551120 Nov 20 [1955]
VWL3348 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19560701 July 1st 1956.
VWL3461 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19570126 January 26th 1957.
VWL3975 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Marc Vignal 19580807 August 7th 1958.
VWL5058 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams and others to the Editor of the Musical Times 194701-- [January 1947]

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