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
VWL1956 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Smith 19441227 Dec 27 [1944]
VWL4726 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Kirby 19471022 22nd October, 1947.
VWL554 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 193701-- [About January 1937]
VWL2186 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19470610 June 10 1947
VWL2028 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19460314 [About 14th March 1946]
VWL2046 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19460715 July 15 [1946]
VWL2146 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19470103 Jan 3 [1947]
VWL2591 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19480415 April 15 [1948]
VWL2749 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19531226 December 26th 1953.
VWL4145 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19500322 22nd. March, 1950.
VWL4152 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 195108-- Monday [August 1951]
VWL4167 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19550306 March 6th 1955.
VWL2854 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19481208 8th December, 1948.
VWL2942 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19490114 Jan 14 [1949]
VWL2994 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19550203 February 3rd 1955.
VWL4279 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19530205 Feb 5 1953
VWL3457 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19561229 [29th December 1956]
VWL2305 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19470704 July 4th [1947]
VWL2367 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19520219 Feb 19 [1952]
VWL2005 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19500622 22nd. June, 1950.
VWL2045 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19460704 July 4 [1946?]
VWL2056 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19460803 Aug 3. [1946]
VWL2147 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19470113 Jan 13 [1947]
VWL3277 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19580706 July 6th 1958
VWL3373 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19560901 Sept 1 [1956]
VWL3483 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19570426 April 26th 1957.
VWL4105 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19480716 16th July, 1948.
VWL4146 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19500330 30th March, 1950.
VWL4148 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19500503 3rd May, 1950.
VWL4156 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19511114 14th November, 1951.

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