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
VWL1440 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19401001 [About 1st October 1940]
VWL1438 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19400923 [23 Sept. 1940]
VWL1437 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19400907 [Sept 7th 1940]
VWL1422 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19400527 [About 27 May, 1940]
VWL1421 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19400522 [May 22 1940]
VWL1420 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19400514 May 14 [1940]
VWL1414 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19400410 [10 April 1940]
VWL1413 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19400404 [April 4th 1940]
VWL1406 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19381106 Sunday evening [6th November 1938]
VWL1404 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19381018 Tuesday [18th October 1938]
VWL1399 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19400313 March 13 [1940?]
VWL1389 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19400215 [15th February 1940]
VWL1388 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19381014 Oct 14 [1938]
VWL1378 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19381004 [4th October 1938]
VWL1375 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19380919 [19th September 1938]
VWL1373 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19400125 Jan 25 [1940]
VWL1371 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19380820 [20th August 1938]
VWL1370 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19380817 [17th August 1938]
VWL1362 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19380717 [17th July 1938]
VWL1358 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19400111 Jan 11 [1940]
VWL1357 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19400106 Jan 6 [1940]
VWL1333 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19380704 [4th July 1938]
VWL1329 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19380626 [26 June 1938]
VWL1308 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19380614 Midnight - Tuesday [14 June 1938]
VWL1302 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19380528 Sat [28th May 1938]
VWL1299 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19380503 Tues May 3rd 1938
VWL1228 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19391226 Dec 26 [1939]
VWL1223 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19390915 [15th September 1939]
VWL1222 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19390906 [6th September 1939]
VWL1218 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ursula Wood 19390730 Sunday [30th July 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