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
VWL1982 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margery Cullen 19500308 8th March, 1950
VWL1981 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Hubert Foss 19500315 15th March, l950.
VWL1980 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to James McKay Martin 19500305 1st March, 1950
VWL1979 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to James McKay Martin 19500222 22nd February, 1950
VWL1978 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Editor of the Radio Times 19500716 July 16th 1950
VWL1977 Letter from Ernest Irving to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19500202 2nd February, 1950.
VWL1976 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19500201 1st. February, 1950.
VWL1975 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Maconchy 19500122 Jan 22 [1950]
VWL1974 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Bruce Flegg 19500119 Jan 19 [1950]
VWL1973 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ibbs and Tillett 19500111 11 January, 1950
VWL1972 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank 19500111 11th January, 1950.
VWL1971 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19500108 January 8 [1950]
VWL1970 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mary Glasgow 19500104 4 January, 1950.
VWL1969 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19500125 Jan 25.[1950]
VWL1968 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19500104 4th January, 1950.
VWL1967 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Katharine Thomson 19500104 4th January, 1950.
VWL1966 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Editor of The Times 19500104 January 4 [1950]
VWL1965 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Byard 19500103 Jan 3 [?1950]
VWL1964 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19451014 Oct 14 [1945]
VWL1963 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Katharine Thomson 19451006 Oct 6 [1945]
VWL1962 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Katharine Thomson 19450915 Sept 15 [1945]
VWL1961 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19480911 Septr 11 [1948]
VWL1960 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Katharine Thomson 1944---- [1943 or 1944]
VWL1959 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Victor Hely-Hutchinson (BBC) 194410-- [October 1944]
VWL1958 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 194409-- [September 1944]
VWL1957 Letter from Michael Tippett to Ralph Vaughan Williams 194401-- Sat [?January 1944]
VWL1956 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Smith 19441227 Dec 27 [1944]
VWL1955 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Imogen Holst 19441227 27 Dec 1944
VWL1954 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Iris Lemare 19441227 Dec 27 [1944]
VWL1953 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Robert Trevelyan 19441226 Dec 26 [1944]

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