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
VWL1209 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Walter Goodchild 19380526 May 26 1938
VWL1204 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gilbert Murray 19370816 Aug 16th [1937]
VWL1203 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Frederic Wilkinson 19370811 August 11th 1937
VWL1202 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to James Craufurd (Madrigal Society) 19501206 6th December, 1950
VWL1201 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gilbert Murray 19370806 Aug 6th 1937
VWL1200 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19370728 [28th July 1937]
VWL1199 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gustav Holst 19340317 Sat: [March 17th 1934]
VWL1198 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19340317 [17th March 1934]
VWL1197 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ina Boyle 19340311 March 11 [1934]
VWL1195 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19340425 [25th April 1934]
VWL1191 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edward Elgar 19340219 Feb 19th [1934]
VWL1190 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19370725 Sunday [25th July 1937]
VWL1189 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19370712 July 12 [1937]
VWL1187 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Alice Sumsion 19500724 July 24 [1950?]
VWL1185 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Diana Awdry 19340217 Sat 17th [February 1934]
VWL1184 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Julian Herbage 19340128 Sunday [28th January 1934]
VWL1183 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 19340122 [22nd January 1934]
VWL1182 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Julian Herbage at the BBC 19340118 Jan 18 [1934]
VWL1177 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Harriet Cohen 193110-- [late October 1931]
VWL1176 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ina Boyle 19370503 Monday [3rd May 1937]
VWL1174 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Iris Lemare 19370414 [14 April 1937]
VWL1172 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Herbert Howells 19370412 [12th April 1937]
VWL1165 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edward J. Dent 193111-- [Mid October 1931]
VWL1164 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gustav Holst 193109-- [September, 1931]
VWL1163 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to W.W. Thompson (BBC) 193108-- [About August 1931]
VWL1161 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Geoffrey Bush 19370317 March 17 [1937]
VWL1157 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edward J. Dent 193106-- [?June 1931]
VWL1156 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edwin Evans 193104-- [April 1931]
VWL1155 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edwin Evans 193104-- [April 1931]
VWL1154 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edwin Evans 193103-- [Late March 1931]

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