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
VWL5194 Letter from George Trevelyan to Ralph Vaughan Williams 189306-- [June 1893?]
VWL5136 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Sir Alexander Kaye Butterworth 19211122 22/11/21
VWL5100 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Editor of The Times 19560911 [11 September, 1956]
VWL3431 Letter from George Trevelyan to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19561008 Oct. 8. 1956
VWL3422 Letter from George Trevelyan to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19560907 Sep 7. 1956
VWL3289 Letter from G.M. Trevelyan to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19560216 Feb. 16. 1956
VWL2799 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to G.E. Moore 19540314 March 14th 1954
VWL2329 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Iris Wedgwood 19511212 12th December, 1951.
VWL1746 Letter from Ralph Wedgwood to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19430127 27.i.43
VWL1053 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19330401 [About 1st April 1933]
VWL743 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 1928---- [before 1928]
VWL559 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19240623 23.6.24
VWL523 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 1938---- [1938?]
VWL474 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19210430 30/4/21
VWL473 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19210407 [?early April 1921 ]
VWL391 Letter from the Moravian Church Agency to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19131231 Dec. 31st 1913
VWL381 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19120118 [18th January 1912]
VWL253 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 189709-- [September 1897]
VWL211 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19061010 [10th October 1906]

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