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.

Filter letters

Letter No. Title Date Date on Letter
VWL1515 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19390207 Tuesday [7 February, 1939]
VWL2310 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19470728 [28th July 1947]
VWL1612 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19411225 Xmas Day [25th December ?1941]
VWL1655 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 1945---- [Sometime between 1938 and 1946?]
VWL1656 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 1945---- [Sometime between 1938 and 1946]
VWL1663 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19420520 [20 May 1942]
VWL1666 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 1945---- [Sometime between 1938 and 1946?]
VWL1667 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 1945---- [Sometime between 1938 and 1946]
VWL1725 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 1945---- [Sometime between 1938 and 1946]
VWL1726 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 1945---- [About 1945]
VWL1742 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 194209-- [About September 1942]
VWL1851 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 194908-- Tuesday [mid-August 1949]
VWL1868 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19440229 Feb 29 [1944 ] (eve of Leap year!!!)
VWL1558 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19390410 Monday [10th April 1939]
VWL1388 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19381014 Oct 14 [1938]
VWL1399 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19400313 March 13 [1940?]
VWL1449 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19381211 [11th December 1938]
VWL1489 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 194008-- Wed [August 1940]
VWL1494 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 194008-- [August 1940]
VWL1534 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19410508 8.5.41
VWL1540 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19410615 Sunday [15th June 1941]
VWL1545 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19410701 July 1 [1940]
VWL1546 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 194107-- [July 1941]
VWL1598 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19391007 [7th October 1939]
VWL644 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 193710-- [October 1937]
VWL684 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 193910-- Sunday [October 1939]
VWL1616 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19391019 19th October [1939]
VWL1664 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 1945---- [Sometime between 1940 and 1946]
VWL1741 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 194208-- [?August 1942]
VWL1767 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 1948---- [later part of 1948]

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