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
VWL3147 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to E.M. Tillett 19490914 14th September, 1949
VWL4329 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cedric Glover 19470513 13 May 1947
VWL2085 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 19500920 20th September, 1950.
VWL2087 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 19500927 27th September, 1950.
VWL1771 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 1949---- Sunday [about 1949]
VWL2083 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 19500908 8th September, 1950.
VWL2211 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alec Robertson (BBC) 19510329 29th March, 1951.
VWL2146 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19470103 Jan 3 [1947]
VWL4441 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19490824 24th August, 1949.
VWL2056 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19460803 Aug 3. [1946]
VWL4144 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19491207 7th December, 1949.
VWL2128 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19461005 Oct 5 [1946]
VWL3375 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19580215 February 15th 1958.
VWL4452 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19491026 26th October, 1949.
VWL1968 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19500104 4th January, 1950.
VWL1969 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19500125 Jan 25.[1950]
VWL4096 Letter from Martin Shaw to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19270712 12th July, 1927.
VWL2875 Letter from Arthur Bliss to Ursula Vaughan Williams 19540913 Sept 13th 1954
VWL1729 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 1947---- [1947]
VWL4683 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 1948---- Friday [October 1948]
VWL4678 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 19461206 Friday [Dec 6 1946]
VWL4684 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 1950---- Thursday [1950]
VWL4685 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 19500914 Thursday [September 14 1950]

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