This book outlines the history of music in Sheffield and district since mediaeval times. It traces the evolution of, among other things, the choral tradition for which the City is famous and discusses the numerous organisations responsible for promoting musical activities over the years. It also dwells on the cultural background to local music, showing how economic and social tendencies have been reflected in the development of musical affairs.
Among the main topics touched on are the Sheffield waits, the eighteenth-century subscription concerts, the Tonic Sol-Fa move-ment, the Sheffield festivals, the various operatic and orchestral societies, and the musical aspects of spiritual life and industrial welfare.
Some account is given of the many individuals who have endeavoured in different periods to create an informed musical public; especial tribute is paid to those notable Sheffield musicians who have helped not only to establish this City’s high reputation in the world of music but also to assert the significance of provincial musical enterprise in general.
