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
VWL3032 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Lewis Crow 19530422 April 22nd. 1953.
VWL3031 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Messrs Crow 19530420 20th April, 1953.
VWL3030 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Fluck 19540114 January 14th 1954.
VWL3029 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alan Fluck 19530718 July 18th 1953.
VWL3028 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Maud Karpeles 1934---- Sunday [1934?]
VWL3027 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Charles Sanford Terry 193----- 5.VII.[1930s?]
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]
VWL3023 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Everett Helm 19370601 June 1 [1937]
VWL3022 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Patrick Hadley 19490608 8th June, 1949
VWL3021 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19490608 8th June, 1949
VWL3020 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19490605 June 5/49
VWL3019 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Leonard Smith 19490604 June 4 [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?]
VWL3016 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Everett Helm 19370722 22 July [1937]
VWL3015 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Everett Helm 19370321 March 21 [1937]
VWL3014 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Margaret Deneke 19380424 April 24 [1938]
VWL3013 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mrs Piper 1915---- [1915]
VWL3012 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Derek Hudson 19570208 February 8th 1957.
VWL3011 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Marion Scott 192----- [1920s]
VWL3010 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Miss Scott 194----- [1940s?]
VWL3009 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ronald Gurney 195505-- [May 1955]
VWL3008 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ronald Gurney 19550517 May 17th 1955.
VWL3007 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mrs Bowen 19461008 October 8th, 1946
VWL3006 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joan Hurley 19571226 December 26, 1957
VWL3005 Letter from Percy Grainger to Ralph Vaughan Williams 19490529 May 29, 1949
VWL3004 Letter from Adrian Boult to Adeline Vaughan Williams 19490526 May 26th 1949
VWL3003 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alice Sumsion 19490525 25th May, 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