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
VWL153 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 190808-- [?Summer 1908]
VWL154 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 190710-- ?October 1907]
VWL187 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19040924 [24th September 1904]
VWL210 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19061005 [5th October 1906]
VWL257 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 189712-- [December 1897?]
VWL288 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 18971129 29.XI.97
VWL473 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19210407 [?early April 1921 ]
VWL474 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19210430 30/4/21
VWL1053 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19330401 [About 1st April 1933]
VWL2123 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19501213 13th December, 1950.
VWL2227 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19510510 May 10 [1951]
VWL4448 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 189701-- [early 1897]
VWL107 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19011227 December 27th [1901]
VWL131 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19001004 Thursday [October 4 1900]
VWL178 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19010325 March 25th [1901]
VWL198 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19050428 April 28th [1905]
VWL190 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19050201 [1st February 1905]
VWL278 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19000207 Feb 7th [1900]
VWL280 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 18991215 Dec. 15th [1899]
VWL199 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19050531 May 31st [1905]
VWL132 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19001201 December 1st [1900]
VWL175 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19011028 October 28th [1901]
VWL208 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19060911 September 11 [1906]
VWL293 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 18980409 April 9th [1898]

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