George Jeffreys an D- the English Baroque
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University of York . GEORGE JEFFREYS AN D- THE ENGLISH BAROQUE A thesis presented to the Department of Music in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy by PETER ASTON York - 1970 "I GEORGEJEFFREYS AND THE ENGLISH BAROEE Abstract The main part of this study is an edition of music by George Jeffreyst which is presented in three volumes. Volume I comprises the complete instrumenta: worksl secular songs and theatre musicl Volume II contains performing editions of some thirty of Jeffreys' sacred compositionsg and Volume III contains tran- scriptions of extracts from the remainder of the pieces not included in the first two volumes. Performances of twelve of these works can be heard on the two accompanying tapes, which were recorded at public concerts given at York University and at Harrogate during 1969* An index to these recordings appears in Volume IV, page 230* The fourth volume, 'George Jeffreys and the English Baroque', is devoted primarily to an assessment of Jeffreys' work by way of a detailed critical commentary. This part of the study is divided into four sections, the first dealing with the instrumental worksg the second with the secular songs and theatre music, the third with the Latin sacred compositionsl and the fourth with the English church music. References to the music are made by citing the volume, page and bar number of the passage under discussion, In the intro- ductory chapterg an attempt is made to examine in a very general way the growth of baroque styles and techniques in England in order to set the main part of the study in some kind of historical context. This introductory chapter is followed by an outline of Jeffreys' life based mainly on the letters he wrote to Lord Hatton and others (over two hundred of which are preserved in the Hatton-Finch collection in the British Museum) and on other extant documents relating to his life at Weldon. Jeffreys' Will is reproduced in Appendix Be The biographical chapter also includes a description and discussion of the autograph and other manuscript and printed sources. A catalogue of music by Jeffreys (including the copies he made of 17th century Italian sacred songs) is given in Appendix Aq and a list of works by Jeffreys in modern editions in Appendix Co -ii- CONTENTS iii Abbreviations 9* 00 *0 99 of *0 00 *9 page iv Preface 410 *0 00 00 00 00 00 es De 10 The Rise the in of Baroque England 00 eo 00 00 001 2. George Jeffreys: a Biographical Introduction 00 00 0050 3- The Instrumental 87 Music 00e000000000o 4. The Secular Songs and Theatre Music 00 00 00 00 103 50 The Latin Sacred Music 0e of 00 00 so 00 so 126 6o The English Church Music 00 0000 00 0 41 00 ool62 Appendix A: Catalogue of Music by George Jeffreys 0* -. 209 Appendix B; Last Will and Testament of George Jeffreys 224 Appendix C: List of Works by Jeffreys in Modern Editions 229 Index to the Tapes 230 Accompanying 00 00 of 00 to Selected 410 00 so 00 so 232 Bibliography 90 -iii- AJIBREVIATIONS21ý Add Additional manuscript in the British Museum, London BM British Museum, London BOD Bodleian Libraryj Oxford Ch Ch Christ Church College Library, Oxford PRO Public Record offices London RCM Royal College of Music) London York York Minster Library) York In quoting from 17th and early 18th century manuscript and Printed sources, punctuation has been modernised and abbreviations written out in fullo The original spelling and capitalisation has been retained* Where editorial changes in punctuation (e. g. the insertion of a comma) may affect the sense, the possibility is pointed out in a footnote. Except in the case of Herbert's poem Easter DI which was published in 1633 in his collection The Temple, the organisation of line lengths in the poems quoted in the critical commentary is editorialo No musical illustrations are included in the critical commentary. References to works by Jeffreys, which appear in the three companion volumes of performing editions and additional extractsj have a footnote indicating the volume3 page and bar number of the passage under discussion. When discussing music by other composersy reference is made where possible to published editions which are readily accessible* -iv- 0 PREFACE Until quite recently, the period in English music between the 'golden age' of Byrd and his contemporaries and that of Purcell had received little attention* During the past few years, however; an increasing amount of Car- oline and Commonwealth music has been published in modern editions; and this has done much to contribute to a greater understanding of the period and of the emergent baroque style in England, At the same timej detailed studies of individual composers have helped to present a clearer Picture of this transitional period in English music which coincided with and reflected an age of violent social change and bitter political conflict. As other writers have shown) English composers could not have remained unaffected by the political circumstances; yet the nature of the English baroque depended much more on the way in which they reacted to the conflict between their native musical tradition and the prevailing continental influences. As in all periods of transition from one musical era to another, each composer responded differently to the problem of finding a balance between tradition and experiment* Some, like Tomkins) continued to work within the conservative techniques of 16th century polyphony; others, such as Martin Peerson) explored declamatory principles and extreme chroma- ticism within basically polyphonic textures; and others, like William Lawes and Nicholas Lanier, experimented with the Italian stile nuovo which they developed in characteristically individual ways* But the most radical composer of the period was little known in his lifetime and has been almost entirely forgotten since his death in 1685. A younger contemporary of the Lawes brothers) George Jeffreys produced all his mature compositions when he was engaged in professional duties outside music; yet the social, political and religious upheavals of the times make it no accident that such an original and individual talent should be found in an amateur. This study is concerned primarlly with George Jeffreys. Most of the intensive research has been concentrated on his music, though attention has also been given to his life which can be/traced in some detail from 1648 onwards. In the introductory chapter, an attempt is made to examine in a very general way the growth of baroque styles and tech- niques in England in order to set the main part of the study in some kind of historical perspective* It was not my intention to make a detailed comparison between Jeffreys' music and that of his contemporaries) and for this reason I have dealt only briefly with their work, tracing what seemed to be the most important aspects of the emergent baroque style in England by discussing music which has already been made accessible by others, In concentrating on Jeffreys' work) my main task has been to transcribe and edit his music, which is presented in the three accompanying volumes of transcriptions and performing editions. Volume I comprises the complete instrumental works) secular songs -vi- and theatre music, Volume II is devoted to performing editions of some thirty of Jeffreys' sacred compositions, and Volume III contains transcriptions of extracts from the remainder of the pieces not included in the first two volumes. In the following critical commentary, references to the music are made by citing the volume; page and bar number of the passage under discussion. Most of the work in transcribing and editing the music was carried out between 1965 and 1969j and I am indebted to several friends and colleagues for their help and encouragement during this period. In particular, I would like to thank Mr Bernard Barr) librarian at York Minster, Mr Richard Townend) librarian of the Parry Room at the Royal College of Music, and Mr H. J. R. Wing) assistant librarian at Christ Church College, Oxford for their kind- ness in making the manuscripts available, and for their helpful advice and encouragement. I am also indebted to Mr P. I. King, Northamptonshire County Archivist, for making available various documents and manuscriptso an especially grateful to Mr Nicholas Steinitz, who has himself transcribed much of Jeffreys' music, for his helpful advice concerning the chronology of the autograph manuscripts and for his generous offer to show me his own transcriptions, I am also indebted to Miss Franca Bizzoni for tidying up and providing translations of the Italian texts, and to Mr Gordon Pullin for his kindness in translating and suggesting necessary revisions to the Latin. For much helpful advice and encouragement during the later stages of my research I -vii- am indebted to a number of colleagues at York, In particular, I would like to thank Professor Gerald Aylmer for his help in suggesting further source material) Professor Bernard Harris for his patience in trying to identify the unknown poets whose verses Jeffreys set) and Professor Wilfrid Mellers, whose encouragement has at all times been an unfailing source of inspiration. My debt is hardly less to Mr Basil Ramsey of Novello and Company for the enthusiastic interest he has shown in Jeffreys' music and for his efforts to promote further performances. My task has been made easier by Mr Edward Jones, who has patiently checked with the manuscripts several details in my pencil transcriptions, and I an especially grateful to the members of my English Baroque Ensemble and to many students at York University for making tape recordings of some of these editions. Finally, I owe a particular debt of gratitude to my wife3 but for whose patience3 understanding and enthusiasm this study would never have been written.