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
VWL2417 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Guthrie Foote (OUP) 19471120 20th November, 1947.
VWL2428 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Guthrie Foote (OUP) 19520621 June 21st 1952.
VWL2442 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19520625 25th June, 1952.
VWL2447 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Guthrie Foote (OUP) 19520706 July 6 [1952]
VWL2469 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19520917 Sept 17 [1952]
VWL2506 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Guthrie Foote (OUP) 19471218 18th December, 1947.
VWL2527 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19521029 29th October, 1952.
VWL2568 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19530105 Jan 5 [1953]
VWL2585 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19480402 2nd. April, 1948.
VWL2589 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Music Librarian (BBC) 19480414 14th April, 1948.
VWL2663 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Guthrie Foote (OUP) 19530228 [About 28th February 1953]
VWL2668 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19530311 11th March, 1953.
VWL2671 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19530318 18th March, 1953.
VWL2674 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Guthrie Foote (OUP) 19530330 March 30 [1953]
VWL2678 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19530415 15th April, l953.
VWL2725 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19530927 September 27th 1953.
VWL2727 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19530930 September 30th 1953.
VWL2768 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 19480610 10th June, 1948.
VWL2770 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 19480617 17th June, 1948.
VWL2775 Letter from Alan Frank (OUP) to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19480712 12th July l948
VWL2776 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Guthrie Foote (OUP) 19480715 15th July, 1948
VWL2778 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19480716 July 16 [1948]
VWL2779 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19480723 23rd July, 1948.
VWL2781 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19480805 5th August, 1948.
VWL2784 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19480812 12th August, 1948.
VWL2795 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19540228 February 28th [1954]
VWL2819 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Warrack (OUP) 19540509 May 9th 1954.
VWL2833 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 19481014 14th October, 1948.
VWL2854 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19481208 8th December, 1948.
VWL2870 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Christopher Morris (OUP) 19540903 Sept 3rd 1954

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