Description: In the London of Shakespeare and William Byrd, Thomas East was the premier, often exclusive, printer of music. As he tells the story of this influential figure in early English music publishing, Jeremy Smith also offers a vivid overall portrait of a bustling and competitive industry, in which composers, patrons, publishers, and tradesmen sparred for creative control and financial success. It provides a truly comprehensive study of music publishing and a new way of understanding the place of musical culture in Elizabethan times. In addition, Smith has compiled the first complete chronology of East's music prints, based on both bibliographical and paper-based evidence.
Review Quotes: "...the book is a valuable one: the data themselves are significant, and the theories stimulating...he has marshaled much new evidence and produced a fascinating series of hypotheses well worth further consideration." --Renaissance Quarterly
"Smith has solved many mysteries concerning East's fascinating life and work....Jeremy Smith's book is a most welcome and invaluable addition to the growing literature on early music printing, and adds significantly to our knowledge of almost every facet of Elizabethan music printing."--Music and Letters