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
VWL1845 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ann Boult 19450204 Sunday [4 February 1945]
VWL1842 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 194306-- [Late May or early June 1943]
VWL1837 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 194902-- Tuesday morning [February 1948]
VWL1816 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Norman Peterkin 19431029 October 29 [1943]
VWL1810 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ann Boult 19431015 October 15 [1943]
VWL1808 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Frank Thistleton 19431014 October 14 [1943]
VWL1795 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mary Glasgow 19430731 July 31 [1943]
VWL1786 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Vally Lasker 19430611 June 11, 43
VWL1783 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 194712-- Friday [December 1947]
VWL1777 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to George Parker 194701-- [January 1947]
VWL1770 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Trevelyan 1949---- Friday [late 1940s?]
VWL1769 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 1949---- Sunday [1948-9]
VWL1764 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gwen Beckett (BBC) 19430521 [May 21st 1943]
VWL1763 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19430518 May 18 [1943]
VWL1762 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arthur Bliss 19430510 May 10 [1943]
VWL1761 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gwen Beckett (BBC) 19430506 May 6 [1943]
VWL1756 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Elizabeth Trevelyan 19390407 April 7th [1939]
VWL1739 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Major General Robert Lock 19430114 January 14 [1943]
VWL1729 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 1947---- [1947]
VWL1701 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 194209-- Tuesday [September 1942]
VWL1679 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Norman Peterkin 19420809 Aug 9th [1942]
VWL1671 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Beryl Lock 19410627 June 27 [1941]
VWL1668 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harry Blech 19420525 May 25 [1942]
VWL1661 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Norman Peterkin 19420516 May 16 [1942]
VWL1643 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ann Boult 19391128 Nov 28 [1939]
VWL1635 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 194205-- [?May 1942]
VWL1632 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19420211 Feb 11 [1942]
VWL1628 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19420114 Jan 14 [1942]
VWL1609 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Director-General (BBC) 19391018 Oct. 18 [1939]
VWL1595 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adine O’Neill 19391003 October 3 [1939]

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