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.

MORE INFORMATION ABOUT SOURCES AND COPYRIGHT

Filter letters

Letter No. Title Date Date on Letter
VWL3819 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 193309-- [September 1933?]
VWL3820 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1932---- [1930s]
VWL3821 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1933---- [September 1933?]
VWL3822 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1928---- [about 1928]
VWL3823 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1928---- [about 1928]
VWL3824 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [1930?]
VWL3825 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [1930]
VWL3826 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [mid-1930s]
VWL3827 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1932---- [1932?]
VWL3828 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1933--- [about 1933]
VWL3829 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1931---- [about 1931]
VWL3830 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [1930]
VWL3831 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [1930]
VWL3832 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1933---- [about 1933?]
VWL3834 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [1930]
VWL3835 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 19321115 Nov 15 [1932]
VWL3836 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1933---- [1933?]
VWL3837 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [1930 or 1932?]
VWL3838 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1948---- [1948?]
VWL3839 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1950---- Nov 6 [1950?]
VWL3840 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1935---- Jan 19 [mid-1930s?]
VWL3841 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1935---- [mid 1930s?]
VWL3842 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1932---- Fri [1932?]
VWL3843 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1940---- [1940s?]
VWL3844 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Olin Downes 19410124 [24 January, 1941]
VWL3847 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [1930s?]
VWL3848 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1930---- [1930 or 1931]
VWL3850 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Williams 19290124 Jan 24th 1929
VWL3851 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 19530120 20th January, 1953.
VWL3852 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 19521015 15th October, 1952.

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