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
VWL978 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19360825 Aug 25 [1936]
VWL979 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19360818 [18th August 1936]
VWL980 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams 19410821 Aug 21 [?1941]
VWL982 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to A. Wynn (BBC) 19360921 Sep 20 [1936]
VWL983 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19360927 [27th September 1936]
VWL984 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Fritz Hart 19361006 [About 6th October 1936]
VWL985 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19311129 [29 November 1931]
VWL986 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19311214 [14 December 1931]
VWL988 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19311217 [17 December 1931]
VWL989 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Trevelyan 19371228 Dec 28 [1937]
VWL990 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Trevelyan 19320914 [14 September 1932]
VWL991 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19311230 [30 December 1931]
VWL995 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19320104 [4th January 1932]
VWL999 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gustav Holst 19320320 March 20 [1932]
VWL1000 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Vally Lasker 19320418 [April 18.32]
VWL1003 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19320612 [12th June 1932]
VWL1005 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Sir Ivor Atkins 19320710 [About 10th July 1932]
VWL1006 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19320807 [7 August 1932]
VWL1008 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19320912 [12th September 1932]
VWL1012 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19320921 [21 September 1932]
VWL1014 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Jack Gordon 19320922 [22 September, 1932]
VWL1015 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Iris Lemare 19321003 [3rd October 1932]
VWL1016 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 19321012 Wednesday [12th October 1932]
VWL1017 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gustav Holst 19321021 [On or about 21 October 1932]
VWL1018 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19321024 24th October 1932
VWL1019 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Imogen Holst 19321101 [About 1st November 1932]
VWL1020 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 19321113 [About 13th November 1932]
VWL1021 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19321115 [15 November 1932]
VWL1022 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19321119 Sat [19 November 1932]
VWL1023 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Vally Lasker 19321117 [Nov. 17. 32]

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