John Lenton (before 4 March 1657 – May 1719) was an English composer,

violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...

ist, and singer. Scholars believe he may have been the John Linton

baptized Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost ...

on 4 March 1657 at St Andrew, Holborn.Holman, Peter. "Lenton, John".
Grove Music Online
'' (subscription required). ed. L. Macy. Retrieved on November 27, 2008. Little is known about his early life. On 2 August 1681 he was appointed to King Charles II's famed troupe of 24 violinists (part of the

King's Musick Kings or King's may refer to: *Monarchs: The sovereign heads of states and/or nations, with the male being kings *One of several works known as the "Book of Kings": **The Books of Kings part of the Bible, divided into two parts **The ''Shahnameh'' ...

, which comprised the musicians of the royal court) to replace a member who had died;de Lafontaine, Henry Cart, ed. (1909)
The King's Musick: a transcript of records relating to music and musicians (1460-1700)
''London: Novello & Co''. . Retrieved on 12 December 2008. he served as a member of the troupe for the remainder of his life. Lenton played at the coronations of

James II James II may refer to: * James II of Avesnes (died c. 1205), knight of the Fourth Crusade * James II of Majorca (died 1311), Lord of Montpellier * James II of Aragon (1267–1327), King of Sicily * James II, Count of La Marche (1370–1438), King C ...

William III William III or William the Third may refer to: Kings * William III of Sicily (c. 1186–c. 1198) * William III of England and Ireland or William III of Orange or William II of Scotland (1650–1702) * William III of the Netherlands and Luxembourg ...

, and

Mary II Mary II (30 April 166228 December 1694) was Queen of England, Scotland, and Ireland, co-reigning with her husband, William III & II, from 1689 until her death in 1694. Mary was the eldest daughter of James, Duke of York, and his first wife ...

.Ashbee, Andrew (2004).
Lenton, John (bap. 1657?, d. 1719)
. ''

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography The ''Dictionary of National Biography'' (''DNB'') is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published since 1885. The updated ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' (''ODNB'') was published on 23 September ...

''. Oxford University Press. Retrieved on 12 December 2008. Besides performing, he also contributed to the royal court's repertoire, composing suites to celebrate William III's return to London around 1697 and to celebrate the new year of 1699. He juggled his demands with the King's Musick with duties at the

Chapel Royal The Chapel Royal is an establishment in the Royal Household serving the spiritual needs of the sovereign and the British Royal Family. Historically it was a body of priests and singers that travelled with the monarch. The term is now also applie ...

(where he probably became acquainted with

Henry Purcell Henry Purcell (, rare: September 1659 – 21 November 1695) was an English composer. Purcell's style of Baroque music was uniquely English, although it incorporated Italian and French elements. Generally considered among the greatest E ...

), of which he was appointed Extraordinary Gentleman on 10 November 1685 and Groom of the Vestry in 1708. Lenton found time outside royal service to compose at least 12 suites for plays produced between 1682 and 1705, mostly for Thomas Betterton's theatre company at

Lincoln's Inn Fields Lincoln's Inn Fields is the largest public square in London. It was laid out in the 1630s under the initiative of the speculative builder and contractor William Newton, "the first in a long series of entrepreneurs who took a hand in develo ...

. Lenton's later life mostly consisted of editing, writing, and publishing. In 1692, he collaborated with his fellow court musician Thomas Tollett to publish ''A Consort of Musick of Three Parts''. Its sequel, ''A Three Part Consort of New Musick'' (1697), became popular enough to warrant three editions. Lenton also edited the fourth volume of ''

Wit and Mirth, or Pills to Purge Melancholy ''Wit and Mirth: Or Pills to Purge Melancholy'' is the title of a large collection of songs by Thomas d'Urfey, published between 1698 and 1720, which in its final, six-volume edition held over 1,000 songs and poems. The collection started as a sin ...

'' (1706) and the second volume of ''

The Dancing Master ''The Dancing Master'' (first edition: ''The English Dancing Master'') is a dancing manual containing the music and instructions for English country dances. It was first published in 1651 by John Playford. History It was published in several e ...

'' (1710). Perhaps Lenton's most notable work is ''The Gentleman's Diversion'' (1693), which he partially engraved himself. This publication is one of the earliest known extant violin treatises. Scholars had thought that no copies of the work survived, but in 1982, a copy of the first edition was found at the

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

public library. At the time, it was proclaimed that Lenton had "the honourable (if perhaps temporary) distinction of having written the earliest extant treatise on violin playing in any language." Written for amateurs and beginners, the treatise spends a considerable amount of text explaining basic music principles and notation before making recommendations on holding the instrument, fingering and

bowing Bowing (also called stooping) is the act of lowering the torso and head as a social gesture in direction to another person or symbol. It is most prominent in Asian cultures but it is also typical of nobility and aristocracy in many European coun ...

. The work also contains 28 "Easie Lessons" as practice pieces, many composed by Lenton's colleagues at the royal court.Boyd and Rayson, 331. Lenton died sometime before 13 May 1719, when his replacement was named to the King's Musick. His widow, Anne, received ownership of his estate on 21 May.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lenton, John English violinists British male violinists Gentlemen of the Chapel Royal 1650s births 1719 deaths