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.

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Filter letters

Letter No. Title Date Date on Letter
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]
VWL4830 Letter (extract) from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Evelyn Sharp 193601-- [between 15 January and February, 1936]
VWL4874 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Clive Carey 19490105 5th January, 1949.
VWL4875 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Clive Carey 19481205 December 5 [1948]
VWL4924 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harold Child 19140804 4 August, 1914
VWL4925 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harold Child 191006-- [Summer, 1910]
VWL4936 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harold Child 1910---- [1910?]
VWL4937 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harold Child 19110713 13 Jul. [1911]
VWL4938 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harold Child 1910--- [1910?]
VWL4939 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harold Child 1910---- [1910?]
VWL4940 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harold Child 19110810 [inter 7-20 August 1911]
VWL4941 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harold Child 19110815 [inter 7-20 August 1911]
VWL4942 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harold Child 19120101 1 Feb 12
VWL4943 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harold Child 1912---- [1912]
VWL4944 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harold Child 1912---- [1912]
VWL4945 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harold Child 19120710 [10 July, 1912]
VWL4946 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harold Child 191306-- June 1913
VWL4947 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harold Child 19130723 27th July, 1913.
VWL4948 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harold Child 1913---- [Autumn 1913]
VWL4949 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harold Child 1913---- [Autumn 1913]
VWL4950 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harold Child 1913---- [Autumn 1913]
VWL4951 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harold Child 1913---- [Autumn/Winter 1913]
VWL4952 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harold Child 19131221 21 Dec., 1913
VWL5189 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ellis and White 19030213 Feb 13th [1903]
VWL5190 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ellis and White 19030214 Feb14th [1903]
VWL5191 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ellis and White 19041030 Oct 30th [1904]

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