Charles Avison's Essay on Musical Expression

• Contents: Introduction; Charles Avison, An Essay on Musical Expression (1752-53); William Hayes, Remarks on Mr. Avison's Essay on Musical Expression (1753); Charles Avison, A Reply to the Author of Remarks on the Essay on Musical Expression (1753); Charles Avison, Miscellaneous 'Prefaces' and 'Advertisements': 'Preface' - 6 Concertos in 7 Parts op. 3 (1751); 'Advertisement' - 8 Concertos in 7 Parts op. 4 (1755); 'Advertisement' - 6 Sonatas for the harpsichord op. 5 (1756); 'Advertisement' - 26 Concertos (1758); 'Advertisement' - 6 Sonatas for the harpsichord op. 7 (1760); 'Advertisement' - 6 Sonatas for the harpsichord op. 8 (1764); 'Preface' - 12 Concertos op. 9 (1766); Charles Avison, 'Remarks on the Psalms of Marcello' (1757); Appendices; Bibliography; Index.

'Avison comes over very well here... He doesn't fit neatly into the pattern of conservative or progressive, unlike his critic William Hayes, Oxford's Professor of Music and a man of more limited musical sympathies. Pierre Dubois deftly sets both in the intellectual climate of the time... Avison may have some quirky ideas, but he presents them extremely clearly (far more so than the Professor) and offers insights into how one composer understood his art.' Early Music Review 'Pierre Dubois' new edition is to be warmly welcomed and especially because, conveniently, it also contains transcripts of William Hayes' critical response to the original edition, and Avison's own retorts to them... Dubois' own introduction is apt and pertinent, and the accompanying endnote textual commentary is also capable and appropriate... the ready availability of this edition, and its associated documentation, will be of immense significance to readers who wish to acquaint themselves with the perceptive and firmly held views of an articulate and distinguished 18th-century English composer and theorist.' The Consort 'We should [...] be grateful to Pierre Dubois for assembling and editing these texts and for sharing his view of Avison's place in the eighteenth-century discourse on aesthetics.' Music and Letters