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
VWL4695 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maurice R.A. Reeve 19570115 January 15th 1957
VWL4696 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Philip Mackay 19571017 [17 Oct 1957]
VWL4697 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Evelyn Sharp 19270729 July 29 [1927]
VWL4698 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to George McCleary 1920---- [1920s?]
VWL4699 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Evelyn Sharp 19270926 September 26 1927
VWL4700 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Fiona McCleary 1930---- [1930s?]
VWL4701 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Evelyn Sharp 19271001 [late September/early October 1927]
VWL4702 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Evelyn Sharp 19311213 December 13 [1931]
VWL4703 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Evelyn Sharp 19311213 Dec 13 [1931]
VWL4704 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Evelyn Page 19510202 2 Feb 1951
VWL4705 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Evelyn Sharp 193203-- [shortly after 16 March, 1932]
VWL4706 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Victoria University of Wellington 19571118 November 18th 1957.
VWL4707 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Bruce L. Richmond 19451015 Oct 15th 1945
VWL4708 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Evelyn Sharp 193601-- [between 15 January and February, 1936]
VWL4709 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Evelyn Sharp 193601-- [between 15 January and February, 1936]
VWL4710 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Evelyn Sharp 193601-- [between 15 January and February, 1936]
VWL4711 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Miss Thackeray 19400831 Aug 31 1940
VWL4712 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Martin Shaw 193-0213 Feb 13 193?
VWL4713 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margaret Field-Hyde 195-0502 May 2nd [1950]
VWL4714 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margaret Field-Hyde 194810-- [October 1948]
VWL4715 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margaret Field-Hyde 19570407 April 7th 1957.
VWL4716 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margaret Field-Hyde 1955---- [about 1955]
VWL4717 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Malcolm Sargent 19480930 30th September, 1948.
VWL4718 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Percy Pitt 1915---- [c.1915-1916]
VWL4719 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Percy Pitt 1920---- [1920s?]
VWL4720 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Keith Douglas 19360823 August 23 [1936]
VWL4721 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Miss Wadham 19361101 November 1 [1936]
VWL4722 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Miss Wadham 19361102 Monday [2 November 1936]
VWL4723 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Keith Douglas 1937---- [Spring 1937]
VWL4724 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Miss Wadham 193703-- Tuesday [March 1937]

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