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
VWL4242 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joan Shaw 19560301 March 1st 1956.
VWL4243 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Joan Shaw 19580601 June 1st. [1958]
VWL4244 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Martin and Joan Shaw 1950506 May 6th 1956.
VWL4245 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Joan Shaw 19530617 June 17th [1953]
VWL4246 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Joan Shaw 19560620 June 20th 1956
VWL4247 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joan Shaw 19560703 July 3rd 1956.
VWL4248 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Mr Martin Shaw 19570905 Tuesday [3 September, 1957]
VWL4249 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Joan Shaw 195710-- [inter September-December, 1957]
VWL4250 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Joan and Martin Shaw 19580226 February 26th [1958]
VWL4251 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Martin Shaw 19580727 July 27th. 1958
VWL4252 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Joan Shaw 19570817 August 17th [1958]
VWL4253 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Martin Shaw 19580819 August 19th 1958.
VWL4254 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Martin Shaw 19580817 [August, 1958]
VWL4264 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eva Hornstein 19561230 Dec 30 1956 [?]
VWL4265 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Molly Imlach 19571018 18 Oct 1957
VWL4266 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eva Hornstein 19571013 13 Oct 1957
VWL4267 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eva Hornstein 19570927 Sept 27 1957
VWL4268 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eva Hornstein 19580704 July 4 1958
VWL4269 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Genia Hornstein 19511105 Nov 5 [1951?]
VWL4270 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eva Hornstein 1955---- [about 1955?]
VWL4271 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eva Hornstein 19511227 Dec 27 [1951]
VWL4272 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eva Hornstein 195210-- [October, about 1952]
VWL4283 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cedric Glover 19580202 [2nd February 1958]
VWL4284 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Evelyn Richmond 19481014 14th October, 1948.
VWL4285 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mr Ashmore 19550521 May 21st 1955.
VWL4286 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Dennis Arundell 19570303 March 3rd 1957.
VWL4287 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Bernard Herrmann 19370917 September 17 [1937]
VWL4288 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Bernard Herrmann[?] 19461030 Oct 30 [1946?]
VWL4289 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Brian Trowell 19560304 Sunday [4 March 1956].
VWL4290 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Martin Shaw 19150515 May 19 [1915]

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