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
VWL2144 Letter from Robert Longman to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19461225 Christmas Day 1946, 6 P.M.
VWL2149 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 19470123 Jan 23 [1947]
VWL2154 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Douglas Lilburn 19470212 Feb 12 [1947]
VWL2227 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19510510 May 10 [1951]
VWL2228 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Dorothy Wallis 19510511 May 11th 1951
VWL2232 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alice Sumsion 19510514 May 14 [1951]
VWL2233 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edward J. Dent 19510515 May 15 [1951]
VWL2234 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Rutland Boughton 19510515 [15 May 1951]
VWL2235 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gilmour Jenkins 19510516 [16th May 1951]
VWL2237 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Imogen Holst 19510517 [17th May 1951]
VWL2238 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 19510517 17th May 1951
VWL2239 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Murrill 19510520 [20 May 1951]
VWL2240 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Katharine Thomson 19510520 [20 May 1951]
VWL2241 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Percy Young 19510520 [20th May 1951]
VWL2242 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 19510520 20 May 1951
VWL2243 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Trevelyan 19510521 May 21 [1951]
VWL2244 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harry Stubbs 19510521 [21 May 1951]
VWL2246 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Lady Lawrence 19510521 May 21 [1951]
VWL2247 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19510521 21st May 1951
VWL2252 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Victor Sheppard 19510608 [8th June 1951]
VWL2253 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Frederick Page 19510613 [13 June 1951]
VWL2341 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Dr Ferdinand Rauter 19510515 [ca 15 May 1951]
VWL2497 Letter from Ernest Irving to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19471216 16th December, 1947.
VWL2572 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to The Musical Times 19480227 February 27th. 1948.
VWL2805 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ernest Irving 19481007 7th October, 1948.
VWL2806 Letter from Genia Hornstein to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19481011 11.X.48
VWL2917 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Rebecca Müller-Hartmann 19510512 12 May 1951
VWL3005 Letter from Percy Grainger to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19490529 May 29, 1949
VWL3045 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Parry Jones 19510513 13 May 1951
VWL3126 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edmund Rubbra 19510521 [21 May 1951]

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