John Playford

John Playford
John Playford
Born	1623; Norwich, England
Died	1686
Occupation(s)	Bookseller, publisher, composer, music theorist
Years active	1639–1685
Known for	The English Dancing Master (1651)

John Playford (1623–1686) was a bookseller and publisher based in London, also known as a minor composer and a member of the Stationers' Company. He focused primarily on music publishing, producing works on music theory, instructional guides for various instruments, and psalters intended for church singing. His most notable achievement was the 1651 publication of The English Dancing Master.

Biography

Born in Norwich as the younger son of John Playford, he began his apprenticeship under publisher John Benson from 1639/40 until 1647. Subsequently, he established a shop within the porch of Temple Church in London. While serving as clerk to the church, it is believed he resided above his shop with his wife Hannah up until 1659. His business ventures included brief partnerships with John Benson in 1652 and Zachariah Watkins in 1664–65. Throughout the Commonwealth period (1649–60) and the early years of Charles II's reign, Playford effectively dominated music publishing in England. His store became a gathering place for music aficionados, counting patrons such as Samuel Pepys among its frequent visitors.

Although Playford issued significant publications on music theory and instrumental instruction, his enduring fame rests on The English Dancing Master (1651), which offered both melodies and directions for performing English country dances. This work appeared after Playford’s career shift following his capture by forces loyal to Cromwell during the Civil War, when he had been working as a correspondent. Many tunes now linked to him were actually popular folk melodies predating his editions.

During the Restoration era, Playford advocated for refined musical tastes, dedicating his 1662 collection Cantica Sacra to Queen Henrietta Maria. In 1666, he expressed regret over the waning popularity of solemn music amid evolving cultural trends and responded by reissuing instructional texts such as Skill of Music (1674) and The Whole Book of Psalms (1677), innovatively incorporating church melodies as cantus parts.

In terms of printing advancements, Playford introduced the 'new-ty'd note' in 1658—quavers or semiquavers connected by horizontal bars—a method later adopted by Dutch printers. From 1665 onward, he eliminated every semibreve from dance tunes and began using copperplate engraving by 1672. Despite embracing these innovations, he retained traditional practices like endorsing lute tablature for violin players and opposing clef reforms proposed by Thomas Salmon in 1673. His printing collaborators included Thomas Harper (1648–52), William Godbid (1658–78), Ann Godbid alongside John Playford the younger (1679–83), and eventually operated solo (1684–85).

By 1665, Playford had relocated to a spacious residence near Islington Church where his wife managed a boarding school until her passing in 1679. Around 1680, he moved again to Arundel Street close to the Thames. Following an extended illness that year, he withdrew from active management of his business, handing control over to his son Henry Playford. His final personal publication was a collection of catches released in 1685; he also supervised the 1686 edition of The Dancing Master.

Playford passed away circa November 1686 at his Arundel Street home. An unsigned will dated 5 November 1686 was not proved until August 1694. Presumably interred at Temple Church per his wishes, his funeral attracted prominent musicians such as Henry Purcell and John Blow. Several elegies honored him posthumously, including one by Nahum Tate set to music by Purcell.

His personal compositional output was modest but included vocal and instrumental works featured in collections like Catch ... or the Musical Companion (1667), Choice Songs (1673), Cantica Sacra (1674), The Whole Book of Psalms, and The Harmonicon.

Henry Playford

Following the death of Playford, his sole surviving son, Henry Playford (5 May 1657 – circa 1706), carried on the family enterprise close to the Temple Church. Collaborating with Robert Carr, he issued three volumes of The Theatre of Musick; subsequent editions and other compositions were published independently by him. In 1694, Henry transferred the copyright of The Dancing Master to the printer John Heptinstall. From 1696 until 1703, his business was based at the "Temple Exchange," located opposite St. Dunstan's Church on Fleet Street. Among the printers he engaged were John Playford the younger (1685), Charles Peregrine (1687), E. Jones (1687, 1696), John Heptinstall (1696), and William Pearson (1698). Around 1701, Henry founded weekly music clubs that flourished in both Oxford and London.

In response to competition from inexpensive music vendors, Henry initiated a thrice-weekly music concert in 1699 at a coffee house where his compositions were sold and showcased. He remarked on the high expenses associated with quality paper and disapproved of the trend of selling individual songs cheaply, which he believed devalued comprehensive collections. In 1703, he sought subscriptions for Monthly Collections of Music, which were distributed from his premises on Arundel Street in The Strand. Between 1703 and 1707, his offerings expanded to include prints, paintings, and various decorative items. By 1706, his warehouse was situated near the Middle Temple Gate. His name appears on the fifth edition of The Pleasant Musical Companion (1707), though it is worth noting that publications were frequently dated earlier than their actual release; after this point, Henry ceased appearing in advertisements or on title pages. He passed away sometime between 1706 and 1721; his will provided a bequest to Henry Purcell and left the majority of his estate to his wife Ann (née Baker), whom he married in December 1688.

John Playford the Younger

John Playford the younger (1656–1686), nephew of John Playford the elder, entered into partnership in 1679 with Ann Godbid, widow of William Godbid, at the Little Britain printing establishment—widely recognized as England’s foremost centre for diverse music printing and expert craftsmanship. This firm also produced mathematical texts.

They issued the sixth edition of The Dancing Master in 1679 along with other musical works. By 1684, John operated independently following Mrs. Godbid’s disappearance from business records. His last contribution for his uncle was printing the seventh edition of The Dancing Master (1686); he also printed one of Henry’s works, The Theatre of Musick (1685). John died in 1686 and was interred at Great Stanmore church. In his will, he left his possessions to his mother Eleanor and sisters Anne (who married William Killigrew) and Eleanor (later wed William Walker). The printing house and residence were advertised for sale in the London Gazette dated 6 May 1686.

Selected publications

The English Dancing Master (1651)
A Musicall Banquet (1651)
Catch that Catch Can (1652)
A Booke of New Lessons for the Cithern & Gittern (1652; revised in 1666 as Musick's Delight on the Cithren)
Musick's Recreation on the Lyra Viol (1652)
A Breefe Introduction to the Skill of Musick (1654)
Court Ayres (1655)
Choice Musick to the Psalmes of David (1656)
The Whole Book of Psalms (1661)
The Musical Companion (1667) – a collection of songs and catches
Apollo's Banquet for the Treble Violin (1669)
Psalms and Hymns (1671) – four-part psalm tunes
Musick's Handmaid (1678) – harpsichord song arrangements
The Division Violin (1685) – featuring twenty-six pieces progressing from straightforward melodies to intricate variations incorporating advanced techniques such as scordatura, fingered double stops, and wide interval leaps

Bibliography

Nelson, Russell C., John Playford and the English Amateur Musician (1966), doctoral thesis, University of Iowa.
Pullen, Ginger Lee, Five Collections of Lyra Viol Music Published by John Playford (1979), doctoral dissertation, University of British Columbia.
Randel, Don Michael, The Harvard Biographical Dictionary of Music (1996), Belknap Press.
Temperley, Nicholas, "John Playford and the Metrical Psalms," Journal of the American Musicological Society, vol. 25, no. 3, 1972, pp. 331–378.
Temperley, Nicholas, "John Playford and the Stationers' Company," Music and Letters, vol. 54, no. 2, 1973, pp. 203–212.
Thompson, Robert, "Manuscript music in Purcell's London," Early Music, vol. 23, no. 4, 1995, pp. 605–620.

Sheet Music

Nikolaus Newerkla. Playford Dances & Carolan Tunes, selected dance melodies arranged for recorders and basso continuo (Moeck, Germany, 2007).
Nikolaus Newerkla. The English Dancing Master, chosen tunes adapted for recorders and harpsichord (Bärenreiter, Germany, 2012).

Discography

John Playford’s Popular Tunes, performed by The Broadside Band. AmonRa, 1986.
English Country Dances: From Playford’s Dancing Master 1651–1703, The Broadside Band. Saydisc, 1991.
Country Capers: Music from Playford’s The English Dancing Master, The New York Renaissance Band. Arabesque, 1999.
Nobodys Jig, Les Witches featuring Odile Edouard (violin). Alpha, 2002/2008.
English Country Dances, The Harp Consort conducted by Andrew Lawrence-King. HMF, 2002.
Mr. Playford’s English Dancing Master, performed by Lautten Compagney, directed by Wolfgang Katschner. Berlin, 2005.
Oranges & Lemons, by The Playfords. Coviello Records, 2006.
In the Streets of London: A 17th Century Musical Pub Tour, PRISMA Ensemble, Fuga Libera FUG814 (2023).
Recordings by Quadriga Consort consistently include selections from the English Dancing Master.

External links