Christ Church Library music catalogue: Mus. 1236

Mus. 1236

Manuscript. Keyboard book containing works of English and French origin, copied in Oxford by William Ellis, probably in the 1650s and early 1660s. For general information about Ellis and his musical circle, see Bellingham (in Bibliography below); for specific information about Ellis's copying activities and his scribal characteristics, see Robert Thompson, 'A Further Look at the Consort Music Manuscripts in Archbishop Marsh's Library, Dublin', Chelys, 24 (1995), pp. 3-18 (at pp. 10-11, where Ellis is to be equated with Copyist 'Q'). For information about repertorial layers in Mus. 1236, see the studies by Bailey (in Bibliography). Ellis was also responsible for copying parts of Mus. 468-72.

An outline inventory of Mus. 1236, with information about concordances for works of French origin, is available in Bruce Gustafson, French Harpsichord Music of the 17th Century: a Thematic Catalog of the Sources with Commentary (Ann Arbor, 1979), vol. 2, pp. 123-32. A more recent inventory of Mus. 1236, with a more comprehensive list of references to modern editions of the pieces contained in Mus. 1236 (or their cognates), is included in Virginia Brookes, British Keyboard Music to c.1660 (Oxford, 1996); this latter book's thematic index is cited in the inventory below as 'Brookes'. See also the following:

For pieces attributed to La Barre (items 1, 7, 9-10, 32-5 and 48), see Harpsichord Music Associated with the Name La Barre, ed. Bruce Gustafson and R. Peter Wolf, The Art of the Keyboard, 4 (New York, 1999).
For pieces attributed to John Roberts (items 23-4), see John Roberts: The Collected Works, ed. Candace Bailey, The Art of the Keyboard, 8 (New York, 2003).

The contents of Mus. 1236 were entered at both ends of the volume. In the layer copied at what is now designated as the front (items 1-49), Ellis himself began a pagination system in ink, but abandoned it at p. 33. The remainder of this 'front' layer was subsequently foliated in modern pencil, beginning with 'f. 33' (= Ellis's 'p. 33'). The layer at the reverse end (items 50-89), which is copied with the volume inverted, has its own separate foliation system, again in modern pencil. Because the standard microfilm of Mus. 1236 shows all these numberings, they are retained in the inventory below; the 'front' end is catalogued first, using Ellis's pagination for 'pp. 1-32' and modern foliation starting at 'f. 33r'; for contents copied at the 'rear', the prefix 'R' has been added to the foliation system. Other catalogues, including RISM, have rejected the pagination/foliation system written into Mus. 1236 itself, and instead refer to its 122 constituent leaves as 'ff. 1-122'; for details of the collation of the leaves, see below.

Table of titles and composers as shown in the manuscript. Display in modern form.

1	Jonas Tresure [correctly La Barre, after Orlando Gibbons?]	[Courant with variation; La Barre ed. no. 6b; lacks opening]	p. 3
2	Jonas Tresure	Courant [Brookes 2321]	p. 4
3	Jonas Tresure	Courant. variola [Brookes 2324]	p. 5
4	Mr Sambonier [= Chambonnières]	Corant [Brookes 1486]	p. 6
5	Jo: Tresure	Ayre [Brookes 2311]	p. 7
6	J. Tresure	Corant [Brookes 2322]	p. 8
7	[La Barre?]	Sarabrand [La Barre ed. no. 12a]	pp. 8 - 9
8		The forrest [Brookes 559]	p. 9
9	Labar	Corant [with variation; La Barre ed. no. 6a]	p. 10
10	[La Barre]	Courant [with variation; La Barre ed. no. 14]	pp. 11 - 12
11		Almaine [Brookes 342]	p. 12
12		The Nightingale [Brookes 816]	p. 13
13	[Albertus] Bryan	Toletole [Brookes 1159]	p. 14
14		A coranto [Brookes 295]	p. 14
15	Mr [Henry] Loosemore	Courant [Brookes 1915]	p. 15
16	[Jean Mercure]	An Almaine [Brookes 1951]	pp. 16 - 17
17	[Jean Mercure]	Corant [Brookes 1956]	p. 18
18	[Jean Mercure]	Sarabrand [Brookes 1960]	p. 19
19	[Jean Mercure]	Almaine [Brookes 1952]	pp. 20 - 21
20	[Jean Mercure]	Corant [Brookes 1957]	p. 22
21	[Jean Mercure]	Sarabrand [Brookes 1961]	pp. 22 - 23
22		An Ayre [Brookes 301]	p. 24
23	Mr [John] Roberts (i)	[Courant; Bailey ed. no. 15]	p. 25
24	Mr [John] Roberts (i)	Coranto [Bailey ed. no. 12a]	pp. 26 - 27
25		[Masque; Brookes 755]	pp. 28 - 29
26	Noue [= Stephen Nau]	Corant [Brookes 1985]	p. 30
27	Mark Coleman	Corant [Brookes 1503]	p. 31
28		Almonde [Brookes 343]	p. 32
29	John fferabosco	Almond [Brookes 1678]	f. 33^r
30	Jo[hn] ffer[abosco]	Corant [Brookes 1679]	f. 33^v
31	John fferabosco	Sarabrand [Brookes 1680]	f. 34^r
32	[La Barre]	Corant [La Barre ed. no. 3c]	f. 34^v
33	[La Barre?]	Corant [La Barre ed. no. 13]	f. 35^r
34	[La Barre]	Corant [[La Barre ed. no. 1]	f. 35^v
35	[La Barre]	Sarabrand [La Barre ed. no. 2a]	f. 36^r
36	Mr Ben: Rogers	Corant [Brookes 2151]	f. 36^v
37	W[illia]m Ellis	Almaine [Brookes 1592]	f. 37^r
38	Mr Ben Rogers, London	Corant/La sedois [Brookes 2153]	ff. 38^v - 39^r
39	Mr Ben Roger[s], London	Saraband [Brookes 2157]	f. 39^r
40	Ben Rogers of London	[Alman; Brookes 2145]	ff. 39^v - 40^r
41	B[enjamin] Rogers Lon[don]	Corant [Brookes 2152]	ff. 40^v - 41^r
42	B[enjamin] Rog[ers] Lon[don]	Sarabrand [Brookes 2158]	f. 41^r
43	Ben Rogers Lon[don]	Gigue [Brookes 2155]	ff. 41^v - 42^r
44	[François] Dufault	Corant [Brookes 1583]	ff. 42^v - 43^r
45	[Jean] Mercure	Almaine [Brookes 1948]	ff. 43^v - 44^r
46	[Jean] Mercure	Corant [Brookes 1953]	ff. 44^v - 45^r
47	[Jean] Mercure	Sarabrand [Brookes 1958a]	ff. 45^r - 46^r
48	Mr [La] Barr	Corant [La Barre ed. no. 11a]	f. 46^r
49	Ben Rogers, London	Ayre [Brookes 2148]	ff. 50^v - 51^r
50	W[illiam] Ellis	Almayne [Brookes 1589]	f. R1^r
51	W[illiam] Ellis	Sarabrand [Brookes 1601]	f. R1^r
52	Will[ia]m Ellis	The Royallist [Brookes 1600]	f. R1^v
53		Magdana cree [= 'Mad Tom of Bedlam'; Brookes 714]	f. R1^v
54		Midsomer [Brookes 782]	f. R2^r
55		The parson of the Parrish [Brookes 842]	f. R2^r
56		[Air; Brookes 267]	f. R2^v
57		Pembrook Colledge [Brookes 864]	f. R3^r
58		The Capp of Maintainance [Brookes 405]	f. R3^v
59		A sarabrand [Brookes 978]	ff. R3^v - R4^r
60		The Old man [Brookes 827]	f. R4^r
61		A Pretty fancy [Brookes 545]	f. R4^v
62		Picalominas March [Brookes 868]	f. R4^v - R5^r
63	[Thomas Holmes]	Corant [Brookes 1797]	f. R5^v
64		A hedge or a Haycock [Brookes 627]	f. R6^r
65		A health in Canary [Brookes 626]	f. R6^r
66		A lute lesson [Brookes 713]	f. R6^v
67		Corant [Brookes 461]	f. R7^r
68	[Thomas Warwick]	A mask [Brookes 2335]	f. R7^v
69		A mayds delight [Brookes 736]	f. R8^r
70	W[illiam] Ellis	Almaine [Brookes 1590]	f. R8^v
71		[incomplete copy of no. 14 above]	f. R9^r
72	W[illiam] Ellis	Corant [Brookes 1595]	f. R9^v
73	W[illia]m Ellis	Corant [Brookes 1596]	f. R10^r
74	W[illia]m Ellis	Almaine [Brookes 1591]	ff. R10^v - R11^r
75	Will[iam] Ellis	Corant [Brookes 1597]	f. R11^v
76	set to the virginall by W[illiam] Ellis	Bow Bells [Brookes 1594]	ff. R12^v - R13^r
77	W[illiam] Ellis	Almond, Mariae [Brookes 1593]	ff. R13^v - R14^r
78	W[illiam] Ellis	Corant [Brookes 1598]	f. R14^r
79	Rob[ert] Price	Fain I would [Brookes 2050]	f. R15^r
80		The kings march [Brookes 689]	f. R15^r
81	[Etienne Moulinié] set by Will[iam] Ellis	Moulinies sarabrand [Brookes 1602]	ff. R15^v - R16^r
82		Vulcan & Venus [Brookes 1068]	f. R16^v
83	[William Lawes]	The Golden grove [Air, VdGS 361]	f. R17^r
84	[William Lawes]	The Corant to the Golden Grove [VdGS 363]	ff. R17^v - R18^r
85	[Etienne Moulinié, set by William Ellis]	Molnis Corant [Brookes 1599]	f. R18^r
86		Thomas you cannot [Brookes 1015]	f. R18^v
87	[William Lawes]	Sarabrand [VdGS 264]	f. R18^v
88		The Irish Hay [Brookes 658]	f. R19^r
89		An Irish Jigg [Brookes 677]	f. R19^r

Oblong format, 230 x 175 mm. Originally 144 leaves (18 quires each of 8 leaves), of which 122 remain in place. The collation below gives the following information: quire and current pagination or foliation / actual foliation (as used by RISM).

Originally A8, of which A1-3 have been excised; A4-7 = 'pp. 3-12' / actual ff. 1-5.
B8 = 'pp. 13-28' / actual ff. 6-13.
C8; C1-2 = 'pp. 29-32'; C3-8 = 'ff. 33-8' / actual ff. 14-21.
Originally D8, of which D2 has been excised; D1,3-8 = 'ff. 39-45' / actual ff. 22-8.
E8 = 'ff. 46-53' / actual ff. 29-36.
F8 = 'f. 54', then unfoliated / actual ff. 37-44.
G8 = unfoliated / actual ff. 45-52.
H8 = unfoliated / actual ff. 53-60.
I8 = unfoliated / actual ff. 61-8.
J8 = unfoliated / actual ff. 69-76.
K8 = unfoliated / actual ff. 77-84.
L8 = unfoliated / actual ff. 85-92.
M8 = unfoliated / actual ff. 93-100.
N8 = all excised.
O8, of which O2 has been excised; O1,3 are unfoliated; O4-8 = ff. R20-16 / actual ff. 101-7.
P8, of which P5 has been excised; P1-4,6-8 = ff. R15-9 / actual ff. 108-14.
Q8 = ff. R8-1 / actual ff. 115-22.

Unused ruled staves on ff. 37v-38r, 46v-50r, 51v-54v, R12r, R14v, R19v-20v, and all the unfoliated leaves in quires F-O. Mid 17th-century binding of brown leather over boards; upper and lower covers gold-tooled with fillets enclosing a central ornament, with smaller ornaments at the corners; edges stippled in red. Bookplate: Wake (on inside rear cover).

Provenance: from the library of Archbishop William Wake (1657-1737), which was donated to Christ Church at his death. Wake also owned Mus. 1113, another keyboard book associated with William Ellis. When and where Wake obtained these two manuscripts is unrecorded; nor is it known if Wake himself was a keyboard player; but the fact that he was resident in Oxford in 1673-82, during which period William Ellis died, may point to his having acquired the books at that time.

Microfilm: manuscript music, reel 45.

Select bibliography:

Bruce Bellingham, 'The Musical Circle of Anthony Wood in Oxford During the Commonwealth and Restoration', Journal of the Viola da gamba Society of America, 19 (1982), pp. 6-70.
Candace Bailey, 'William Ellis and the Transmission of Continental Keyboard Music in Restoration England, Journal of Musicological Research, 20 (2001), pp. 211-42.
Candace Bailey, Seventeenth-Century British Keyboard Sources (Warren, MI, 2003), 108-16.