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
VWL3739 Letter from Alan Bush to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19410321 March 21st, 1941
VWL3712 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 19340205 Monday [February 5 1934]
VWL3708 Letter from Alan Bush to Ursula Vaughan Williams 19580828 August 28th, 1958.
VWL3707 Letter from Alan Bush to Ursula Vaughan Williams 19580828 August 28th, 1958.
VWL3668 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Mullinar 193401-- [January 1934]
VWL3545 Letter from Rutland Boughton to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19570903 3.9.57 at 4 a.m.
VWL3530 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Editor of the Times 19570423 [23 April, 1957]
VWL3529 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19570718 [18th July 1957]
VWL3490 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19570509 May 9th 1957.
VWL3339 Letter from Charles Parker to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19580221 21st February 1958
VWL3213 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eugene Goossens 19551030 October 30th 1955.
VWL3175 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Julian Herbage (BBC) 19490622 22nd June, 1949.
VWL3171 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Julian Herbage (BBC) 19490706 6th July, 1949.
VWL3143 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Stanford Robinson (BBC) 19490928 September 28th, 1949.
VWL2938 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Douglas Lilburn 19481229 29th December, 1948.
VWL2906 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Robert Müller-Hartmann 19480927 Sep 27 [1948? or later]
VWL2847 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19540728 July 28th 1954.
VWL2840 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Roger Fiske 19540702 July 2nd 1954.
VWL2785 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Sir Steuart Wilson (BBC) 19480812 12th August, 1948.
VWL2611 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19530115 Jan. 15th 1953
VWL2600 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Robert Müller-Hartmann 19480522 May 22nd, 1948.
VWL2589 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Music Librarian (BBC) 19480414 14th April, 1948.
VWL2586 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Sir Adrian Boult (BBC) 19480402 2nd April, 1948.
VWL2576 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19480304 4th. March, 1948.
VWL2572 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to The Musical Times 19480227 February 27th. 1948.
VWL2527 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19521029 29th October, 1952.
VWL2451 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mr Johnston (BBC) 19520719 July 19 [1952]
VWL2434 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arthur Benjamin 19471210 10th December, 1947.
VWL2418 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to an unidentified correspondent 193----- [early 1930s]
VWL2414 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to R.C. Walton (BBC) 19520522 22nd. May, 1952.

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