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
VWL937 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Rothenstein 19360315 March 15 [1936]
VWL756 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Rothenstein 19350710 July 10 [1935]
VWL3745 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Cole 19500423 April 23 [1950]
VWL4561 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Walford Davies 19360329 March 29 [1936]
VWL938 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to W.W. Thompson (BBC) 19310802 August 2nd [1931]
VWL1078 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to W.W. Thompson (BBC) 19330810 August 10 [1933]
VWL1086 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to W.W. Thompson (BBC) 19330815 August 15 [1933]
VWL4631 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to W.R. Fell 19490604 June 4 [1949]
VWL4977 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to W. Paston 19380522 Sunday [22 or 29 May 1938]
VWL5271 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Vinicio Barocas 19440103 Jan 3/44
VWL542 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Victor and Mary Sheppard 19501201 [4 Dec 1950]
VWL960 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Vally Lasker 19311101 Sunday [1st November 1931]
VWL1343 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Vally Lasker 19341204 Dec 4. 34
VWL919 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Vally Lasker 19310621 June 21 [1931]
VWL1786 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Vally Lasker 19430611 June 11, 43
VWL4639 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19380326 March 26 [1938]
VWL3728 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Treasurer of the Gloucester Musical Festival 19371002 October 2, [1937]
VWL420 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Special Constabulary Chelsea Company 19141124 Nov 24th [1914]
VWL667 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Royal College of Music 19290322 March 22 1929
VWL4009 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Performing Right Society 19270503 May 2 [1927]
VWL4011 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Performing Right Society 19270529 Sunday [29 May 1927]
VWL4008 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Performing Right Society 19260521 May 21 [1926]
VWL4013 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Performing Right Society 19380530 May 30/38
VWL4593 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Master of the Worshipful Company of Musicians 19311009 October 9 [1931]
VWL1125 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the BBC 19331214 Dec 14 [1933]
VWL2140 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the BBC 19461119 Nov 19/46
VWL4965 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Sylvia Spencer 19360319 March 19 [1936]
VWL951 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Sylvia Drew 19360606 June 6 [?1936]
VWL838 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Stanford Robinson 19300119 Sunday [19th January 1930]
VWL4998 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Stanford Robinson 193-0303 March 3 [early 1930s]

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