The Cambridge History of Seventeenth-Century Music provides a fascinating examination of the repertoire, institutions, performers, composers, and social and cultural world which created one of the most crucial and vibrant moments in western music history. The twelve contributors, all leading scholars in their fields, explore the new aspects of composition and performance which took root during this time: the cosmopolitan nature of music making; the emergence of new markets for musical activity at court, in the theatre, church, and academy, as well as domestically; and the proliferation of new musical styles and gestures and their language and meaning. Many chapters also relate the musical developments to broader cultural and conceptual issues of the age. The volume also contains a separate chronology and dictionary-style entries on individuals, places and institutions.