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
VWL3049 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Dr Mary Grierson 19500927 27th September, 1950.
VWL3048 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Dr Mary Grierson 19520228 Feb 28 [1952]
VWL3047 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to an unidentified correspondent 194----- Feb 15 [1940s?]
VWL3046 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Parry Jones 19500816 16 August 1950
VWL3045 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Parry Jones 19510513 13 May 1951
VWL3041 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Marion Scott 1925---- [1925]
VWL3040 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Marion Scott 193----- [1930s]
VWL3039 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to the Editor of the Northern Echo 19551213 December 13th 1955.
VWL3035 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Messrs. Hampton & Sons 195306-- [June 1953?]
VWL3026 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Everett Helm 19390113 [13 Jan 1939]
VWL3025 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Everett Helm 19381212 [12 Dec 1938]
VWL3024 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Everett Helm 19380101 [1 Jan 1938]
VWL3022 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Patrick Hadley 19490608 8th June, 1949
VWL3018 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Everett Helm 19370830 Aug 30 [1937]
VWL3017 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Everett Helm 193708-- [August 1937?]
VWL3013 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mrs Piper 1915---- [1915]
VWL3011 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Marion Scott 192----- [1920s]
VWL3010 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Miss Scott 194----- [1940s?]
VWL3008 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ronald Gurney 19550517 May 17th 1955.
VWL3002 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arthur Butterworth 19490525 25th May, 1949
VWL3001 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Leonard Smith 19490511 11th May, 1949.
VWL2998 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael Kennedy 19550224 February 24th 1955.
VWL2994 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Frank (OUP) 19550203 February 3rd 1955.
VWL2992 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Luther Noss 19550124 January 24th 1955
VWL2990 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ross Lee Finney 19550122 January 22nd 1955.
VWL2989 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Dr Leonard Gray 19550117 January 17th 1955.
VWL2988 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Michael and Eslyn Kennedy 19550117 January 17th 1955.
VWL2987 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Leonard Smith 19490428 28th April, 1949.
VWL2983 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Leonard Smith 19490413 13th April, 1949.
VWL2976 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Eric Walter White 19490325 25th March, 1949.

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