1717

Feb 23

[Thomas Tudway to Humfrey Wanley, 23 February 1716/7]

My worthy Good friend

I did my Self y^e Hon^r. by Sundays

Post to write to our Noble Lord, to beg his influence on D^r Arbuthnot

to procure me a Copy of M^r Hendals ^famous Te Deum, w^ch he made by y^e Queens

Order for y^e Thankesgiving for y^e peace, w^th some pieces of y^e D^rs Own, w^ch

were perform’d to y^e Queen in her Chappell, upon Sundry events of her reigne,

These pieces will serve to illustrate some of those great & glorious events,

of w^ch her reigne was full, & I hope, & don’t question, but I shall procure,

all other pieces made on on those great occasions, w^ch will make y^e last volume

Historical, & perhapps may equall any of y^e other volumes, in valuable pieces;[1]

Jul 11

[Thomas Tudway to Humfrey Wanley, 11 July 1717]

[postscript]

I hope you won’t fail to make my congratulations to my Lord Oxford,

& Lord & Lady Harley; & if you can say anything certain, of my L^d

& Ladys coming down, you know very well, how acceptable y^e news will be;

you sent me word some months since, y^t my L^d had procur’d for me M^r Hendals

Te Deum, I beg you will forward, y^e procurement of D^r Arbuthnots, Anthems

w^ch he made for y^e Queens Chappell.[2]

Jul 17

London. July 19.

On Wednesday Evening at about 8. the King took Water at Whitehall in an open Barge, wherein were also the Dutchess of Bolton, the Dutchess of Newcastle, the Countess of Godolphin, Madam Kilmanseck, and the Earl of Orkney. And went up the River towards Chelsea. Many other Barges with Persons of Quality attended, and so great a Number of Boats, that the whole River in a manner was cover’d; a City Company’s Barge was employ’d for the Musick, wherein were 50 Instruments of all sorts, who play’d all the Way from Lambeth (while the Barges drove with the Tide without Rowing, as far as Chelsea) the finest Symphonies, compos’d express for this Occasion, by Mr. Hendel; which his Majesty liked so well, that he caus’d it to be plaid over three times in going and returning. At Eleven his Majesty went a-shoar at Chelsea, where a Supper was prepar’d, and then there was another very fine Consort of Musick, which lasted till 2; after which, his Majesty came again into his Barge, and return’d the same Way, the Musick continuing to play till he landed.[3]

Aug 4

[Diary of the Reverend Dr Henry Brydges]

Sunday August 4

At 8 this morning I went to Canons where I din’d, I

met there Lady Child of Soho, S^r. R. Child and his Lady &

Cozen L. Conwallis, M^r. Handle, D^r. Arthburnot, M^r. Shorthose

& M^r. Lowthrop. I was at home by 8.[4]

Oct 29

[Thomas Tudway to Humfrey Wanley, 29 October 1717]

[...] M^r Rosengraves price, I shall be exceeding glad to see, & then I have

y^e best part of y^e materials for the volume, beginning at y^e Queens

accession, except D^r Crofts’s Te Deum, w^ch is not yet arriv’d; by

y^e Copys allready come to hand w^th those I expect, this book will

unavoidably be full as thick again, as any of y^e other four, so fertile

of invention have y^e heads of our living Authors been, cheifly

on y^e great Events of y^e Queens reigne; The Te Deum, & Jubilate

alone of M^r Hendals, will take up betwixt forty & fifty sheets

of paper, by y^e multiplicity of parts, voices, & instrum^ts. & I make

no question, but D^r Crofts’s will be near as many; so that this volume

sill swell to a Monstrous bignes; but I hope to get my L^ds leave

to make two volumes of it, w^ch will compleat six, consisting

upwards of 3000 pages, w^th Epistles dedicatory to ev’ry volume;[5]

Dec 15

[Diary of the Reverend Dr Henry Brydges]

[“Sunday / Decemb^r. 15” 1717]

[...] I din’d with my Broth^r. at Canons where I met M^r.

Bucknal[,] D^r. Pepuis & M^r. Lowthrop. [...][6]

Dec 16

[Thomas Tudway to Humfrey Wanley, 16 December 1717]

I thank you very kindly for M^r Rosengraves peice, w^ch my L^d

deliver’d to me; The Artfull part is very fine, & he has show’d

himself, a great Master, but for want I beleive, of being us’d

to set Church Music, He keeps too theatrical a style, And intro-

duces, in most places, his words, w^th very great Levetees; I shall

better explain my self, when I have y^e happines of an hours conversation;

This is also M^r Hendals fault, if I may be permitted to call it so;

M^r Purcell I think keeps a Nobler, & more Elevated style, quite

through his Te Deum, & Jubilate, & has not so much of y^e flutter &c.

I have began y^e 5^th volume, And think his Te Deum, & Jubilate

deserves y^e preference, before all others; w^ch I have given him, not-

w^thstanding he is no living Author, But his Te Deum &c being made

against y^e opening of S^t Pauls Church, & it being sung then accordingly

I have set it in y^e Front;[7]

Dec 22

[Diary of the Reverend Dr Henry Brydges]

[“Sunday Decemb^r. 22” 1717]

This morning at 8 I

had a Letter from my Brother, [...] I din’d at my Brothers where were H.

Walest L^d. Mead D^r. Pepuis, M^r. Lane & M^r. Lowthrop. [...][8]

---

[1] British Library, Harley Ms. 3782, f. 70r; partly repr. Graydon Beeks, “‘A Club of Composers’: Handel, Pepusch and Arbuthnot at Cannons,” in Handel: Tercentenary Collection, ed. Stanley Sadie and Anthony Hicks (London: Macmillan Press, 1987), 209-21: 220, n20.

[2] British Library, Harley Ms. 3782, f. 76r; partly repr. Graydon Beeks, “‘A Club of Composers’: Handel, Pepusch and Arbuthnot at Cannons,” in Handel: Tercentenary Collection, ed. Stanley Sadie and Anthony Hicks (London: Macmillan Press, 1987), 209-21: 220, n20.

[3] The Daily Courant, no. 4913, Friday 19 July 1717, [2]; also in The Post-Man and The Historical Account, no. 15120, Thursday 18 – Saturday 20 July 1717, [1]; repr., with variants and as from 20 July, [New-England,] The Boston News-Letter, no. 702, Monday 23 – Monday 30 September 1717, [1].

[4] British Library, Add. Ms. 61999, 10v [p. 18]; repr. Graydon Beeks, “‘A Club of Composers’: Handel, Pepusch and Arbuthnot at Cannons,” in Handel: Tercentenary Collection, ed. Stanley Sadie and Anthony Hicks (London: Macmillan Press, 1987), 209-21: 210.

[5] British Library, Harley Ms. 3782, f. 81r.

[6] British Library, Add. Ms. 61999, 15r [p. 27]; repr. Graydon Beeks, “‘A Club of Composers’: Handel, Pepusch and Arbuthnot at Cannons,” in Handel: Tercentenary Collection, ed. Stanley Sadie and Anthony Hicks (London: Macmillan Press, 1987), 209-21: 211.

[7] British Library, Harley Ms. 3782, f. 86r; repr. (except the five last lines) Christopher Hogwood, “Thomas Tudway’s History of Music,” in Music in Eighteenth-Century England: Essays in memory of Charles Cudworth, ed. Christopher Hogwood and Richard Luckett (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983), 19-47: 29-30.

[8] British Library, Add. Ms. 61999, 15v [p. 28]; repr. Graydon Beeks, “‘A Club of Composers’: Handel, Pepusch and Arbuthnot at Cannons,” in Handel: Tercentenary Collection, ed. Stanley Sadie and Anthony Hicks (London: Macmillan Press, 1987), 209-21: 212.