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.

Searching:
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
VWL4431 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 19331226 Dec 26 [1933]
VWL4770 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 19250131 [31 January 1925]
VWL4787 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 19250615 [mid-June 1925]
VWL4788 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 19250615 [mid-June 1925]
VWL4789 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 19250627 [late June 1925]
VWL4790 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 19261116 [16 November 1926]
VWL4791 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 19250701 [early July 1925]
VWL4792 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 1925---- [1925?]
VWL4795 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 1927---- [1927?]
VWL4796 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 1927---- [1927?]
VWL4797 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 1927---- [1927?]
VWL4798 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 1927---- [1927?]
VWL4799 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 1927---- [1927?]
VWL4800 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 192710-- [October 1927?]
VWL4801 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 192812-- [December, late 1920s]
VWL4802 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 1928---- [1928]
VWL4803 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 1928--- [late 1920s]
VWL4804 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 19280203 [3 February 1928]
VWL4805 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 1928---- [1928]
VWL4806 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 1929---- [1929]
VWL4807 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 1928---- [1928]
VWL4808 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 1929---- [late 1920s]
VWL4809 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 192808-- [August 1928?]
VWL4810 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 19280702 [2 July 1928]
VWL4811 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 19281207 [7 December 1928]
VWL4812 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 192809-- [September 1928]
VWL4813 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 192909-- [September 1929]
VWL4814 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 1929---- [Spring 1929]
VWL4815 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 193008-- [August 1930]
VWL4816 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 193010-- [October 1930]

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