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
VWL106 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 190204-- [April 1902?]
VWL108 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to George Moore 1901---- [1901?]
VWL109 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to George Moore 1901---- [1901?]
VWL111 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gustav Holst 1901---- [1901?]
VWL112 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Sir Humphrey Milford 19420323 March 23 1942
VWL113 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gustav Holst 1901---- [1901?]
VWL114 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gustav Holst 1899---- [1899?]
VWL115 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Cecil Sharp 1904---- [1904?]
VWL116 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to René Gatty 1904---- [1904?]
VWL117 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to René Gatty 1904---- [1904?]
VWL119 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to René Gatty 1899---- [1899?]
VWL121 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to H.G. Robinson 1900---- [Before September 1905]
VWL122 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Mrs W. Hadley 1907---- [1907?]
VWL123 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 1909---- [1909?]
VWL124 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 1909---- [1909]
VWL125 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Arnold Barter 19110311 [About 11th March 1911]
VWL126 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 190012-- [Dec 1900?]
VWL128 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gustav Holst 190012-- [?About December 1900]
VWL129 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Lucy Broadwood 19020714 [14 July 1902]
VWL130 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gustav Holst 190105-- [?May 1901]
VWL133 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 190204-- [?Early 1902]
VWL134 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Edwin Evans 190306-- [About June 1903]
VWL136 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 190407-- [July 1904]
VWL138 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 190603-- [?March 1906]
VWL139 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gustav Holst 190607-- [July 1906]
VWL140 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19060401 [1st April 1906]
VWL141 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 190608-- [?August 1906]
VWL142 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Ralph Wedgwood 19060820 [20 August 1906]
VWL143 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joanna Hadley 190609-- [?September 1906]
VWL144 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joanna Hadley 190609-- [?September 1906]

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