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
VWL4442 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19500208 8th February, 1950.
VWL3477 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19570402 April 2nd 1957.
VWL1468 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Bush 19401031 October 31 [1940]
VWL1870 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Bush 19450110 Jan 10 [1945]
VWL2625 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19530128 28th January, 1953
VWL4031 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams seeking funds for Dorking and Leith Hill Preservation Society 19420305 March 3rd [1942]
VWL3974 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams for Clarence Pinnock 19380502 May 2d 1938
VWL5046 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams and others to the Editor of The Times 19400723 [Tuesday July 23, 1940]
VWL5054 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams and others to the Editor of The Times 19450416 [April 16 1945]
VWL5056 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams and others to the Editor of The Times 19510730 [Monday July 30 1951]
VWL5068 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams and others to the Editor of The Times 19560327 Tuesday 27 March, 1956
VWL5071 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams and others to the Editor of The Times 19570916 [Monday 16 September, 1957]
VWL5067 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams and others to the Editor of The Times 19561016 16 October, 1956
VWL5041 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams and others to the Editor of the Musical Times 193909-- [September 1939]
VWL5057 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams and others to the Editor of Music and Letters 19350308 March 8, 1935.
VWL5045 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams and others to the Editor of The Times 19450111 January 11 [1945]
VWL4970 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams and Maud Karpeles to the Secretary of the Society for the Protection of Science and Learning 19400803 3 August 1940.
VWL3216 Letter from Patrick Hadley to Ursula Vaughan Williams 19551106 6 Nov. ‘55
VWL3456 Letter from Michael Tippett to Ralph and Ursula Vaughan Williams 19561229 29th Dec. 1956
VWL5048 Letter from John Masefield, Ralph Vaughan Williams and members of the National Book League to the Editor of The Times 19551126 [Saturday November 26, 1955]
VWL5049 Letter from Arnold Bax, Ralph Vaughan Williams and others to The Editor of The Times 19460409 [Tuesday April 9, 1946]
VWL118 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to René Gatty 1899---- Wednesday [1899?]
VWL3242 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Marion Scott 19221115 [Wednesday 15 Nov 1922]
VWL3244 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Marion Scott 1935---- August 22 [1935?]
VWL3251 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Marion Scott 192703-- Wednesday [March 1927?]
VWL3252 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Marion Scott 19270208 Tuesday [8 Feb 1927]
VWL1168 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19370514 Friday [14th May 1937]
VWL769 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19350822 Aug 22 [1935]
VWL2895 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Genia Hornstein 1942---- Friday [?1942 or later]

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