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.

Searching:
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
VWL3227 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19551120 Nov 20 [1955]
VWL3226 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19551118 [18th November 1955 ]
VWL3223 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19551113 [13th November 1955]
VWL3207 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19551015 Oct 15 [1955]
VWL3201 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19551003 Oct 3rd [1955]
VWL3198 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19550918 September 18th [1955]
VWL3188 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19550903 [September 3rd 1955]
VWL3128 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19550808 August 8th 1955.
VWL3110 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19550815 August 15th 1955.
VWL3109 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19550805 August 5th [1955]
VWL3107 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19550730 July 30th [1955]
VWL3084 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19550424 [24 April 1955]
VWL3083 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19550422 April 22 [1955]
VWL3066 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19550305 March 3rd [1955]
VWL2998 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19550224 February 24th 1955.
VWL2996 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19550210 February 10th [1955]
VWL2988 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19550117 January 17th 1955.
VWL2966 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19550113 Jan 13 1955
VWL2924 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19541225 December 25th 1954.
VWL2892 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19541216 December 16th 1954.
VWL2885 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19541112 [12 November, 1954]
VWL2879 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19541020 Oct 20, 1954
VWL2874 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19540911 September 11th 1954.
VWL2845 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19540724 July 24th [1954]
VWL2829 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19540610 June 10th 1954.
VWL2828 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19540610 June 10th [1954]
VWL2826 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19540604 [4 June 1954]
VWL2824 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19540601 June 1st 1954.
VWL2822 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19540530 May 30th [1954]
VWL2813 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19540404 April 4th 1954.

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