Priscilla Bunbury's Virginal Book is a musical

commonplace book Commonplace books (or commonplaces) are a way to compile knowledge, usually by writing information into books. They have been kept from antiquity, and were kept particularly during the Renaissance and in the nineteenth century. Such books are simi ...

compiled in the late 1630s by two young women from an affluent Cheshire family. It is important more for its fingering indications than for the quality of the music it contains.

The manuscript

The manuscript is an upright volume measuring 11.5 inches by 8 inches in a tooled

leather Leather is a strong, flexible and durable material obtained from the tanning, or chemical treatment, of animal skins and hides to prevent decay. The most common leathers come from cattle, sheep, goats, equine animals, buffalo, pigs and hog ...

binding. The front cover bears the words ''PRISCILLA BVNBURY'' in tooled lettering, and the back cover the initials ''PB''. It contains thirty two-pages pre-ruled with six-line staves. There are thirty-five neatly written pieces of music, but the first and last pages, together with the pieces they bore, are missing. Apart from the music, there is a medicinal recipe and other scribblings. At least two different hands can be discerned. As of 2001, the manuscript was in a private collection in England.

The authors

The first owner of the book was Priscilla Bunbury (1615–1682), daughter of Sir Henry Bunbury of

Little Stanney Little Stanney is a suburban village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It is located on the Wirral Peninsula between Chester and Ellesmere Port. At the 2011 ce ...

in Cheshire and his second wife Martha. The second owner was also a Priscilla Bunbury (c. 1675 – after 1707), daughter of Sir Thomas Bunbury, a grandson of Sir Henry and his first wife, and goddaughter of the first Priscilla.

Five pieces are attributed to Robert Hall, of whom nothing is known. Five are by

Orlando Gibbons Orlando Gibbons ( bapt. 25 December 1583 – 5 June 1625) was an English composer and keyboard player who was one of the last masters of the English Virginalist School and English Madrigal School. The best known member of a musical fami ...

, and three by Randall Jewett, a member of the

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which sp ...

Chester Cathedral Chester Cathedral is a Church of England cathedral and the mother church of the Diocese of Chester. It is located in the city of Chester, Cheshire, England. The cathedral, formerly the abbey church of a Benedictine monastery dedicated to Saint ...

and brother of the better-known Randolph Jewett, possibly a pupil of

. The entire "Battle" sequence by

William Byrd William Byrd (; 4 July 1623) was an English composer of late Renaissance music. Considered among the greatest composers of the Renaissance, he had a profound influence on composers both from his native England and those on the continent. He ...

is included as one piece (also found in

My Ladye Nevells Booke ''My Ladye Nevells Booke'' (British Library MS Mus. 1591) is a music manuscript containing keyboard pieces by the English composer William Byrd, and, together with the ''Fitzwilliam Virginal Book'', one of the most important collections of Renais ...

). Twenty one of the pieces are not attributed. # ntitledWhoop, do me no harm, good man (Orlando Gibbons) #The White Ribbin #The freind's Good Night #The Celebran (Orlando Gibbons) #A jig #Put up thy dagger Jemmy (unattributed, but also found in the

Fitzwilliam Virginal Book The ''Fitzwilliam Virginal Book'' is a primary source of keyboard music from the late Elizabethan and early Jacobean periods in England, i.e., the late Renaissance and very early Baroque. It takes its name from Viscount Fitzwilliam who beque ...

Giles Farnaby Giles Farnaby (c. 1563 – November 1640) was an English composer and virginalist whose music spans the Transition from Renaissance to Baroque in instrumental music, transition from the Renaissance to the Baroque period. Life Giles Farnaby was ...

) #Money is a Gallant thinge #Rappaks jig #The maukin #George #La holland #Mrs Prissilla Bunburie hir Delight #Almaine Mr Gibbons (Orlando Gibbons) # ntitled(Randall Jewett) #A maske (Orlando Gibbons) #Berchen Greene Hollan #A french Lesson #Swinnertons Almaine #A Maske #A Coranto #The Buildings #Churtons farwell (Randall Jewett) #Almaine (Randall Jewett) #Grayes Inn Maske (Orlando Gibbons) #The new Rant #The parson of the parrish #Captaine owens Delight #A horne pipe (Robert Hall) #The battle by mr:bird (William Byrd): The soldiers : The foote march: The horse march: The trumpetts: Irish march: Bagpipe: fife and drum: march to the fighte: Tantara: ntitled ntitled The bells. (Also found in

and Elizabeth Rogers' Virginal Book) #The buildinge # (Robert Hall) # (Robert Hall) # (Robert Hall) # (Robert Hall) #

The fingering

Pieces 1-28, corresponding to the hand of the first Priscilla Bunbury, contain full fingering indications. As far as the right hand is concerned, these follow the modern system, with the thumb numbered "1" and the little finger "5". The system is however reversed for the left hand, where the little finger is numbered "1" and the thumb "5". It is evident that the author favoured the use of the third finger for the right hand and the third finger and thumb for the left hand on "strong" notes.

The manuscript

The authors

Contents

The fingering

See also

Further reading