Four and Twenty Fiddlers

`This is an enormously detailed and copiously referenced study ... It is a superb piece of work and it outdates all previous work on the history of the violin and on its use in this country. ... We have waited a long time for this book, for we have known for many years that Peter was working on it. It has been worth the wait. The references are as copious and as detailed an any doctoral thesis, but it doesn't read like a thesis, nor like anything that started life as a thesis - it reads like a book, a well-written and well-researched book, and it's going to stand as the study of the violin and its history for many years to come.' FoMRHI Quarterly No 74, January 1994 `With its useful appendices, illustrations, music examples and other scholarly apparatus, Holman's excellent book fills a gaping void in the published literature on the violin.' BBC Music Magazine `In 17 logically ordered chapters, Holman charts the course of the Court violin consort with the utmost scruple and authority, providing some fascinating insights into the complex structure of both the Court and the Royal Muses ... Particuarly praiseworthy is Holman's discussion of the early English violin ensemble repertory ... this is a first-class book, the structure, balance and thoroughness of which are immensely impressive ... Holman writes clearly and interestingly ... His fascinating, stimulating and splendidly produced volume will be of great value not only to scholars of Tudor and Stuart music, but also to historians, string players and anyone involved in performing music of the period. It is a veritable mine of information and adds considerably to our sympathy and interest in an undeniably remarkable period of transformation in English music.' The Strad `It takes extraordinary critical understanding and breadth to reconcile the emergence of an important family of instruments to a huge corpus of music ... as well as extracting archival documentation from the "labyrinthine bureaucracy" of the Court and interpreting it within the relevant social and political values of the day. This is where Holman's main achievement lies ... One of Holman's most notable strategies has been to prepare the way for re-evaluation by providing essential and specific background information, and it is this firm foundation which allows him to make real advances into areas hitherto illuminated only by speculation ... Overall, this is a study of magnificent proportions which has re-orientated our perspectives of English baroque music beyond the absorbing discoveries of the violin's widespread use in court and country.' Musical Times `thorough command of the archival evidence. Thorough discussion of the official complement of royal string players reveals the varying types of ensembles ... Much of the data has now been published ... but it needs interpretation, and that is provided brilliantly here. Anyone performing English string music from Henry VIII to Purcell will need to read this' Early Music News `Nearly a quarter century ago, when Peter Holman was still a student, Thurston Dart told him that the history of the origin of the violin in England could not be written for lack of surviving historical sources, music, and instruments. Now Holman triumphantly proves his distinguished teacher wrong with a seminal study that generously maps for the first time a fascinating terra incognita. This is required reading for anyone interested in Renaissance and Baroque instrumental music, or in the art of piecing together a convincing historical narrative from fragmentary, widely-scattered information. Neal Zaslaw 'highly-original book ... it combines fine historical writing, sure-footed interpretation of archival materials and musicological expertise of the highest order ... The book is lucidly written and pleasant to read. Highly recommended, with reservation.' Dr Ian Payne, BRIO Vol. 31, No. 1 'This is a fascinating and very readable work of musicology, and it is not likely to be supplanted in the forseeable future. Graduate; faculty.' V.J. Panetta, Wellesley College, Choice, Feb '94 'This is a masterly survey of the available evidence, ambiguous and fragmentary though this is at times. This book will undoubtedly stimulate further argument and enquiry into the many questions it tackles. It is comprehensively documented, and commendably up to date it its references, so that the reader can easily follow up whatever aspects take his fancy. For all working in the field of English music during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, it will be an indispensable companion.' Andrew Ashbee. Music and Letters. Vol 75 no 3. 'This is material to be savored through randomly opening the book and enjoying whatever page falls at hand. Scholars will happily pore over the academic documentation while others enjoy traversing the rich road of English musical history. References are abundant and clearly identified. Scholarship is thorough. ... the writing is pleasantly readable. Four and Twenty Fiddlers is one of the most highly recommended "reads" of recent early music publications.' Robert W. Butts. Early Music Newsletter 'a very special book ... much detailed information lurks between these covers: the many tables and lists, in which evidence is cited very precisely, will be a boon to other scholars ... The reader who can resist applauding when the seemingly inevitable punch line is reached must be rare indeed. ... in this volume Holman has succeeded in thoroughly mining what evidence there is and in making exquisite sense of it.' Sandra Mangsen, University of Western Ontario, Notes, December 1994 `This is afirst rate study that should prove useful to scgolars in a variety of disciplines, musical and otherwise, and offers much more than its title promises.' Sixteenth Century Journal XXXVI:4