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
VWL1880 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Rev. Leonard Starey 19450315 [c.15th March 1945]
VWL1882 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ann Boult 19490317 March 17 [1949]
VWL1891 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Victor Hely-Hutchinson (BBC) 19450525 May 25 [1945]
VWL1926 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 19440813 Aug 13 [1944]
VWL1949 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Norman Peterkin 19441203 Dec 3 [1944]
VWL1991 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 19500503 3rd. May, 1950.
VWL1993 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Iris Lemare 19500511 11th May 1950
VWL2015 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19451108 Nov 8 [1945]
VWL2021 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19451122 Nov 22 [1945]
VWL2029 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19460320 March 20 [1946]
VWL2031 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19460327 March 27 [1946]
VWL2033 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19460412 [12th April 1946]
VWL2034 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to George Parker 19460412 April 12 [1946?]
VWL2035 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19460425 April 25 [1946]
VWL2038 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19460505 May 5 [1946]
VWL2048 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Iris Lemare 19460803 Aug 3 [1946]
VWL2096 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to George Parker 19460917 Sept 17 [1946?]
VWL2097 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19460918 [18th September 1946]
VWL2099 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 19460922 Sept 22 1946
VWL2129 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19461008 Oct 8 [1946]
VWL2143 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to George Parker 19471218 Dec 18 [1947]
VWL2153 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to George Parker 19470205 Feb 5 [1947]
VWL2162 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Lowe 19470221 Feb 21 [1947]
VWL2166 Internal BBC memorandum to the Home News Editor from Sir Adrian Boult 19470418 April 18th 1947
VWL2168 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 19470420 April 20 [1947]
VWL2169 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Robert Müller Hartmann 19470423 [23rd April 1947]
VWL2170 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19470430 [30th April 1947].
VWL2181 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19470513 [13th May 1947]
VWL2183 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to George Parker 19470724 July 24 [1947?]
VWL2184 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Katharine Thomson 19470531 31st May, 1947.

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