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
VWL3945 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to George Frederick McCleary 19510517 17 May 1951
VWL3946 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to George Frederick McCleary 19480212 12th February, 1948.
VWL3947 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to George Frederick McCleary 19480205 5th February, 1948
VWL3948 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to George Frederick McCleary 19480129 29th January, 1948.
VWL3949 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to George Frederick McCleary 19530201 1 Feb 1953
VWL3950 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to George Frederick McCleary 195----- [1957?]
VWL3951 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to George Frederick McCleary 19530712 July 12th 1953.
VWL3952 Letter from Ralph and Ursula Vaughan Williams to George Frederick McCleary 19530216 February 16th [1953]
VWL3953 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19500108 Jan 8 [1950]
VWL3954 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 1944---- Oct 18 [1944]
VWL3955 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alexander Meyrick Broadley 1910---- [about 1910]
VWL3956 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Royal Philharmonic Society 19570605 June 5 1957
VWL3957 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Frederick Rennie Emerson 19420414 [April 14, 1942]
VWL3958 Letter from Gustav Holst to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19140329 Sunday [29 March, 1914]
VWL3959 Letter from Gustav Holst Ralph Vaughan Williams 192205-- Friday [May, 1922]
VWL3960 Letter from Gustav Holst to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19220409 April 9
VWL3961 Letter from Gustav Holst to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19251111 Nov 11, [1925]
VWL3962 Letter from Gustav Holst to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19330901 Sep 1, [1933]
VWL3963 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Frank Thistleton 19370405 April 5 [1937]
VWL3964 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Alice Sumsion 19520224 February 24th [1952]
VWL3965 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Anthony Scott 19530128 28th January, 1953.
VWL3966 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 1895---- [1895?]
VWL3967 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Peggy Glanville-Hicks 194710-- [1947?]
VWL3968 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Stanley Bate 19471007 7 Oct 1927
VWL3969 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Peggy Glanville-Hicks 1950---- August 29 [1950?]
VWL3970 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Peggy Glanville-Hicks 194807-- Sunday [July 1948]
VWL3971 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Peggy Glanville-Hicks 19510119 Jan 19 [1951]
VWL3972 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Peggy Glanville-Hicks 19510207 7th February 1951
VWL3973 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Neville Cardus 1953---- 1953
VWL3974 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams for Clarence Pinnock 19380502 May 2d 1938

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