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
VWL5149 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cuthbert Bates 19280918 [18/9/1928]
VWL5152 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cuthbert Bates 19460222 Feb 22 [1946?]
VWL1105 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cuthbert Bates 19331022 Oct 22d [after 1933]
VWL5148 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cuthbert Bates 19280918 18/9/1928
VWL5218 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cousins 194-0214 February 14th [1940s?]
VWL3660 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 19540924 Sept 24th [1954]
VWL3659 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 19530107 Jan 7 [1953]
VWL3661 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 19541026 26th October 1954
VWL3664 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 19570822 22 August 1957
VWL729 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 19350607 June 7 [1935]
VWL3657 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 19521210 [About 10th December 1952]
VWL3662 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 19550112 Jan 12 [1955]
VWL423 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Constance Machray 19160405 April 5th [1916]
VWL4836 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Clive Carey 194601-- [before 25 January, 1946]
VWL4833 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Clive Carey 19150808 Aug 8th 1915
VWL4835 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Clive Carey 194601-- [?January, 1946]
VWL4837 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Clive Carey 19460308 March 8 [1946?]
VWL4874 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Clive Carey 19490105 5th January, 1949.
VWL4559 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Clive Carey 1946---- [early 1946]
VWL4832 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Clive Carey 19521015 [ca 15 October, 1952]
VWL4876 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Clive Carey 19490119 19th January, 1949.
VWL5181 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cliff Goodchild 19550104 January 4th, 1955.
VWL4391 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Claud Powell 19160502 2 May 16
VWL4048 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Clarice Newbery 19430815 Aug 15 1943
VWL4049 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Clarice Newbery 19490516 May 16 [1949]
VWL1825 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Clarence Raybould (BBC) 19431223 [23 December 1943]
VWL4583 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Christovam Pavia 19501123 23rd November, 1950.
VWL4769 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Christopher Shaw 19521012 October 12th, 1952
VWL4357 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Christopher Shaw 19460715 July 15 [1946]
VWL3299 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Christopher Morris (OUP) 19580522 May 22nd 1958

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