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
VWL3426 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19560929 [29th September 1956]
VWL3503 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 1958---- [1957-8?]
VWL3150 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19490909 [9th September 1949]
VWL1649 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 1945---- [?1945]
VWL3149 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joy & Gerald Finzi 19490911 [11th September 1949]
VWL5206 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joseph Weston Poole 19430608 June 8 1943
VWL5140 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joseph Smith 19510221 21st February, 1951.
VWL4044 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joseph Kreibich 19441224 [Christmas 1944]
VWL4043 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joseph Kreibich 19421012 Oct 12 [1944?]
VWL4233 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joseph Cooper 194610-- [October 1946]
VWL4231 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joseph Cooper 19461125 Nov 25 [1946]
VWL4232 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joseph Cooper 19460922 Sept 22 [1946]
VWL4230 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joseph Cooper 19460918 Sept 18 [1946]
VWL4234 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joseph Cooper 19461026 Oct 26 [1946]
VWL2951 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Warrack (OUP) 195403-- [March 1954]
VWL4282 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Warrack (OUP) 19540502 May 2nd 1954
VWL2962 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Warrack 195405-- [May 1954]
VWL1719 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Tindall Robertson 19421024 Oct 24 [1942]
VWL2604 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Tindall Robertson 195210-- [October 1952?]
VWL5222 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John O’Brien 19521001 1st October 1952
VWL5201 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Mead 19511024 24th October, 1951.
VWL2316 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Lowe (BBC) 19470814 14th August, 1947.
VWL2811 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Lowe (BBC) 19540328 March 28th 1954.
VWL2162 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Lowe 19470221 Feb 21 [1947]
VWL2479 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Ireland 19521005 Oct 5th [1952]
VWL1914 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Ireland 19440510 10th May [1944]
VWL1551 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Ireland 194111-- [About November 1941]
VWL3153 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Ireland 19490814 [14] Aug [1949]
VWL2027 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Ireland 19460207 Feb 7 1946
VWL5099 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Cruft 19560225 Feb 25 [1956]

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