Publisher's Synopsis
Owner of one of the most important music collections in 17th-century England, Christopher, First Baron Hatton was descended from a line of patrons of music and other arts. Orlando Gibbons was just one of several composers to dedicate some of his work to the Hatton family. - - During the Civil War, Hatton was appointed Comptroller of the King's Household at Oxford, and much of his music library is to this day held in Christ Church. Yet, partly due to the troubled times in which he lived, Hatton's contribution to musical patronage has been largely overlooked. - - In this meticulous study of the manuscripts and music publications that comprised the Hatton music collection, Jonathan Wainwright explores the essential role played by patrons like Hatton in 17th-century musical life, especially through the activities of their copyists, and in Hatton's case, of his steward George Jeffreys. The Hatton manuscripts offer a unique example of the dissemination of Italian music in England during the period, with Jeffreys revealed here as one of the key pioneers of Italianate sacred music in England. The second section of the book presents descriptions and inventories of some of the most significant surviving manuscripts of the period and the volume will serve as a standard reference work for all those interested in musical manuscripts of the time.
