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
VWL677 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Sylvia Drew 193906-- [June 1939]
VWL951 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Sylvia Drew 19360606 June 6 [?1936]
VWL1538 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Sylvia Drew 19410605 June 5 [1941]
VWL4216 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Sir Ivor Atkins 19480504 May 4 [1948]
VWL4425 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Sir Edwin Herbert 19561223 December 23rd 1956.
VWL1560 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Sir Adrian Boult (BBC) 19390415 [Mid April 1939]
VWL2169 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Robert Müller Hartmann 19470423 [23rd April 1947]
VWL2137 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Robert Müller Hartmann 19461101 Nov 1 [1946]
VWL5234 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Hawkes 19320213 Feb 13 [1932?]
VWL1571 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Professor H.G. Fiedler 19390625 June 25 [1939]
VWL1911 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Norman Peterkin 19440430 [30th April 1944]
VWL4656 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Nancy Marsden 19460526 [26 May 1946]
VWL4652 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Nancy Marsden 19490501 May 1st [1949]
VWL4646 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Nancy Marsden 194903-- [March 1953]
VWL4647 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Nancy Marsden 194002-- [Feb 1940]
VWL4489 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Nancy Evans 19580306 March 6th 1958.
VWL4660 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Nancy Coles 19371101 1st Nov [1937]
VWL2672 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mrs Monier Williams 19530325 25th March, l953.
VWL2813 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19540404 April 4th 1954.
VWL2679 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19530420 April 20th 1953.
VWL5249 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to May Harrison 19471113 13th November, 1947
VWL3396 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margery Cullen 19580128 January 28th 1958.
VWL3515 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margery Cullen 19570514 May 14th 1957
VWL3528 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margery Cullen 19570714 July 14th 1957
VWL3061 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margery Cullen 19491123 23rd November, 1949.
VWL3086 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margery Cullen 19550502 May 2nd 1955
VWL1982 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margery Cullen 19500308 8th March, 1950
VWL2820 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margery Cullen 19540511 May 11 [1954]
VWL3069 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margery Cullen 19550320 March 20th 1955.
VWL3068 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margery Cullen 19550320 March 20th 1955.

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