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
VWL4643 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Kenneth Oswald Smithers 19530415 15th April, 1953.
VWL4642 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Post Office 19570125 January 25th 1957.
VWL4641 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to John Wilson 19571015 October 15th 1957.
VWL4640 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mrs Willis 19550514 May 14th 1955
VWL4639 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19380326 March 26 [1938]
VWL4638 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Professor Hermann Fiedler 19381119 Nov 19 [1938]
VWL4637 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19390129 [19 Feb 1939]
VWL4636 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 194001-- [January 1940]
VWL4635 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Secretary of Morley College 19500927 27th September, 1950.
VWL4634 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eva Hubback 19360329 March 29 [1936]
VWL4633 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eva Hubback 19360927 September 27 [1936]
VWL4632 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eva Hubback 19361217 December 17 [1936]
VWL4631 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to W.R. Fell 19490604 June 4 [1949]
VWL4630 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Denis Richards 19521119 19th November, 1952.
VWL4629 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eva Hubback 19380530 Monday [30 May 1938]
VWL4628 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Denis Richards 19530128 28th January, 1953.
VWL4627 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eva Hubback 193511-- [November 1935]
VWL4626 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eva Hubback 19350203 Feb 3 [1935]
VWL4625 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Cordelia Curle 19340622 Friday [22 June 1934]
VWL4624 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to A.E. Harvey 19520430 30th April, 1952.
VWL4623 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Sidney Newman 19520312 12th March, 1952.
VWL4622 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mr Noble 194-05-- [May 1940s?]
VWL4621 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mr Noble 194-0520 May 20 [1940s?]
VWL4620 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joan Western 193502-- [February, 1935]
VWL4619 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joan Western 193612-- [December, 1936]
VWL4618 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joan Western 1936---- [1936]
VWL4617 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joan Western 19360131 Jan 31 [1936]
VWL4616 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to William Glock 19551213 December 13th 1955.
VWL4615 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Adrian Boult 19350927 27 Sept 35
VWL4614 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to L.P. Pells 19350419 April 19 [1935]

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