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
VWL3534 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Vaughan Williams 19570724 Wednesday [about 24th July 1957]
VWL3484 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19570426 April 26th 1957.
VWL3218 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 19551110 November 10th 1955
VWL2381 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 19520316 March 16th 1952.
VWL3953 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19500108 Jan 8 [1950]
VWL3861 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 19480708 8th July, 1948.
VWL4682 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 19480525 Thursday [May 25 1948]
VWL4683 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 1948---- Friday [October 1948]
VWL1825 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Clarence Raybould (BBC) 19431223 [23 December 1943]
VWL1483 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 19401231 Dec 31 [1940]
VWL4742 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Cockshott 1940---- [1940s?]
VWL3886 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 194----- Nov 2 [1940s]
VWL687 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 193912-- [Christmas 1939?]
VWL3885 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 19391028 [late October 1939]
VWL1139 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Iris Lemare 19370131 January 31 [1937]
VWL952 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ina Boyle 19360614 June 14 [1936]
VWL530 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 193502-- [February 1935]
VWL1096 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 19330923 [23 September 1933]
VWL1097 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 19330923 [About 23rd September 1933]
VWL3819 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 193309-- [September 1933?]
VWL1049 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 19330313 [about 13 March 1933]
VWL1082 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 193303-- [March ?1933]
VWL3832 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1933---- [about 1933?]
VWL1085 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 1933---- [About 1933?]
VWL3821 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1933---- [September 1933?]
VWL3835 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 19321115 Nov 15 [1932]
VWL3983 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alexander Burnard 19320927 27 Sep 1932
VWL3820 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1932---- [1930s]
VWL1149 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Anne Macnaghten 1932---- [1932?]
VWL3827 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Grace Williams 1932---- [1932?]

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