The Antiquarian Reception of Charles Burney's A General History of Music
Devon Nelson, Indiana University
Abstract
Antiquarians affirmed the musical authority of Charles Burney鈥檚 A General History of Music (1776-1789) in their own writings because of the social connections of the author, the thoroughness and transparency of his research process, and the types and presentation of his evidence鈥攖raits highly valued in historical writing by intellectuals in late eighteenth-century Britain. Burney was connected to important intellectual figures who were trusted by antiquarians; he publicized the intensity of his research efforts in earlier travel publications, used evidence similar to other authoritative writings, and presented his materials in formats familiar to antiquarians. The reception of Burney鈥檚 history reveals British intellectuals' values in historical writing鈥攁n authoritative author clearly presenting evidence that readers can judge. By contextualizing the positive reception of a history book by discerning critics, this essay demonstrates the processes by which historical authority was cultivated in the late-eighteenth century.
Keywords
Burney, Charles, 1726-1814; antiquarianism; music histories; historiography; reception.
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