Awards

• Winner of Derek Allen Prize for Musicology awarded by the British Academy.

Overview

The royal string band at the English Court had its origins in a six-man consort from Italy, brought to England by Henry VIII in the spring of 1540. Peter Holman's book charts the history of this institution from its beginnings to the time of Purcell. He considers the previous history of instrumentalists at court, the role of the court band in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and its influence on the dance music of the period. The establishment of the band at the English court is set in the context of the violin's place in Europe in the sixteenth century, as the author considers the origins of the instrument and discusses contemporary references to violin bands in court, town, and church. The development of the violin band is traced by reference to an immense amount of documentary information, much of it new. The first thorough treatment of this subject, Peter Holman's book will be welcomed for the new light it sheds on large areas of musical history.

Full Product Details

9780198165927

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Reviews

a well-written and well-researched book, and it's going to stand as the study of the violin and its history for many years to come FoMRHI Holman's excellent book fills a gaping void in the published literature on the violin BBC Music Magazine a veritable mine of information Strad

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