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
VWL4539 Letter from Ralph and Adeline Vaughan Williams to Gerald and Joyce Finzi 19510221 Feb 21 [1951]
VWL4495 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19390501 May 1 [1939]
VWL3503 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 1958---- [1957-8?]
VWL3426 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19560929 [29th September 1956]
VWL3425 Letter from Ursula Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19560929 Saturday [29th September 1956]
VWL3150 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19490909 [9th September 1949]
VWL3149 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joy & Gerald Finzi 19490911 [11th September 1949]
VWL3118 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19491106 November 6 [1949]
VWL2629 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald and Joy Finzi 19530201 [1st February 1953]
VWL2514 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19480104 January 4 [1948]
VWL2489 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald and Joy Finzi 19521014 October 14th 1952.
VWL2421 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19471126 26th November, 1947.
VWL2401 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19471113 13th November, 1947
VWL2158 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19510101 Jan 1 [1951]
VWL2089 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19501004 October 4 [1950?]
VWL2049 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19500712 12th July, 1950.
VWL1992 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19450511 May 11 [1945]
VWL1842 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 194306-- [Late May or early June 1943]
VWL1796 Letter from Ursula Wood to Joy Finzi 19430802 2.8.43
VWL1783 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 194712-- Friday [December 1947]
VWL1769 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 1949---- Sunday [1948-9]
VWL1729 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 1947---- [1947]
VWL1693 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19420927 Sunday [?27th September 1942 ]
VWL1649 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 1945---- [?1945]
VWL1647 Letter from Ralph Vaughan Williams to Gerald Finzi 194-0619 Saturday [not long before 20 June 194-]
VWL1635 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 194205-- [?May 1942]
VWL1628 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19420114 Jan 14 [1942]
VWL1559 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19390414 Friday [14th April 1939]
VWL1469 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19401103 Sunday [3rd November 1940]
VWL1356 Letter from Adeline Vaughan Williams to Joy Finzi 19400101 New Years Day [1940]

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