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
VWL5025 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Buckland 19560513 May 13th 1956.
VWL4429 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 1955---- [ca 1955]
VWL4244 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Martin and Joan Shaw 1950506 May 6th 1956.
VWL3976 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19560130 Jan 30th 1956
VWL3599 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Barbirolli 19571025 October 25th 1957.
VWL3570 Letter from John Barbirolli to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19571001 [Early October 1957]
VWL3496 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Barbirolli 195603-- [March 1956]
VWL3464 Letter from John Barbirolli to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19570211 11/ii/57
VWL3451 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Rutland Boughton 19561209 December 9th 1956.
VWL3446 Letter from Jean Sibelius to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19561031 31st October 1956.
VWL3436 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Paul Henry Lang 19561018 October 18th, 1956
VWL3417 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Barbirolli 19580119 January 19th 1958.
VWL3413 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19560603 June 3rd [1956]
VWL3409 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank 19560524 [24th May 1956]
VWL3408 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19560522 May 22nd [1956]
VWL3407 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19560520 May 20th 1956.
VWL3405 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cedric Glover 19560520 May 20th 1956.
VWL3404 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Byard 19560520 May 20th 1956.
VWL3403 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19560517 May 17th. 1956.
VWL3400 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19560516 May 16th 1956.
VWL3399 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19560513 May 13th 1956.
VWL3397 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edmund Rubbra 19560506 May 6th 1956.
VWL3395 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19560506 May 6th 1956.
VWL3393 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 19560506 May 6th 1956.
VWL3392 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Simona Pakenham 19560506 May 6th [1956]
VWL3391 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Beryl Lock 19560503 May 3 [1956]
VWL3382 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roy Douglas 19560516 May 16th 1956.
VWL3375 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19580215 February 15th 1958.
VWL3373 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19560901 Sept 1 [1956]
VWL3371 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19560828 28.8.56

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