Opera and Song Books Published in England, 1703-1726: A Descriptive Bibliography

This bibliography offers descriptions of almost 200 issues of secular voice music published in England, 1703-1726, including works by Giovanni Bononcini, Henry Purcell, John Weldon, Attilio Ariosti and Richard Leveridge. 2296 song first lines are listed and indexed. The books described represent the first extended effort to issue entirely commercial printed versions of musical stage works and they are also the first song books to be printed by engraving on a systematic basis. In addition to clarifying the bibliographic history of the books through examination of 856 copies (92 per cent of those identified), the bibliography tests and extends the standard concepts of bibliographical description. Several new descriptive features are introduced. There are over 200 illustrations of title-pages, frontispieces and musical engraving styles. By permitting access to material that is not currently widely available in print, the bibliography will be of assistance to musicians, music and theatre historians, and literary scholars, as well as to librarians and bibliographers.