[HANDEL, George Frideric.] [COXE, William.]

Anecdotes of George Frederick Handel and John Christopher Smith. With select pieces of music, composed by J.C. Smith, never before published.

London, W. Bulmer and Co. for Cadell and Davies, 1799. 4to, pp. [8], iv, 64, 34 (engraved music) + 2 portraits (stipple engravings of Handel and J. C. Smith); occasional ink or pencil annotation to the music section; with an autograph letter of John Stanley (laid down on an inserted folio between pp. 50 and 51); nineteenth-century cloth, skilfully rebacked preserving the original spine, corners a little bumped. First edition. The author of this volume was the stepson of John Christopher Smith (1712–1795) who had acted, along with his father (also J. C. Smith), as Handel’s amanuensis; between them, during the composer’s lifetime, they had organised concerts and rehearsals, copied music manuscripts and worked as general secretaries. After Handel’s death in 1759 the elder Smith inherited the autograph manuscripts, which he in turn gave to his son; J. C. Smith junior gave the collection to King George III in return for a handsome pension, and the great composer’s manuscripts thus became part of the Royal Music Library and later the British Library. Smith junior became the first organist (1754–1770) at the Foundling Hospital where Handel was a governor. Handel had given the chapel its first instrument and it was here that the success of the oratorio Messiah had become established; Smith continued to give charity performances of the oratorio after Handel’s death. A new organ was erected in 1769 and at the opening performance the famous blind organist John Stanley (1712–1786) gave a concerto.Stanley was organist at St Andrew’s Holborn (just down the road from the Foundling Hospital) and at the Temple Church, which Handel regularly visited in order to hear him perform. He held both positions until his death. He was married to Sarah Arlond (daughter of Captain Edward Arlond of the East India Company) and it was her sister Ann who acted as his music copyist and helped him learn new works. Stanley was much in demand to direct performances of Handel’s oratorios and give opening recitals on new organs; he was elected as a governor at the Hospital in 1770 and directed the annual Messiah performances in 1775–77. He went into partnership with J. C. Smith in 1760 to continue the oratorio seasons at Covent Garden which had been established by Handel; during these seasons when the opera was forbidden, Stanley accompanied the performances and played a concerto during the interval.The letter included here is from John Stanley to Joseph Corfe, dated 26 November 1767, and discusses Stanley’s meeting with Smith about the following season’s oratorio concerts; he writes to ask if Corfe will sing in the Lenten concerts. Joseph Corfe (1741–1820) was one of the principal tenors in the Handel Commemoration concerts at Westminster Abbey in 1784 (see previous item). The book has the ownership signature of Joseph’s son Arthur Thomas Corfe (1773–1863) who followed his father as organist at Salisbury Cathedral from 1804 until his death. Curiously the List of Subscribers (pp. i–iv) does not include any musicians of the period although several members of the Coxe family (and by marriage the Rivers family) are included as well as some prominent music sellers.RISM B/VI/1 p. 241.

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