An annotated critical edition of twelve lectures by William Sterndale Bennett (1816-75), the foremost English musician of the mid-Victorian period, principal of the Royal Academy, and conductor of thePhilharmonic Society. Delivered at the London Institution and Cambridge University between 1858 and 1871, they are valuable both as representative of the Victorian understanding of musical history, and for Bennett's astute comments on the state of music and musical life at the time. They include admonishments to the British government for failing to offer adequate financial support to the art; interesting and often surprising views on many contemporary composers; and discourses on his own experiences as a professional musician.
The lectures are presented with annotations which identifythe persons, institutions and compositions referred to in the text. An extensive introduction sets the lectures in context and reflects on their significance to English musical history and to Bennett's personal career.
NICHOLAS TEMPERLEY is Professor of Music Emeritus at the University of Illinois.
Reviews
A masterful achievement...deserves to be read...as a model of editorial method...greatly enriching our understanding of British musical culture. MUSIC & LETTERSA fine edition...valuable both as anindication of the current state of musical knowledge in the Victorian era, and for (Bennett's) comments on the contemporary musical scene. MUSICAL TIMES
Adds considerable substance and potency to(claims that)...Bennett laid the foundations of the 'English musical renaissance...Eminently readable, elegantly presented and scrupulously scholarly. AD PARNASSUM (Rohan H. Stewart-MacDonald)
Well-produced and meticulously researched...well worth seeking out for the information and insight it contains about a period of musical and social history increasingly remote from us today. BRITISH MUSICSOCIETY NEWS (John Talbot)