Nicholas Lanier (1588-1666) was not only the first person to hold the office of Master of the Music to King Charles I, he was also a practising painter, a friend of Rubens, Van Dyck and many other artists of his time, and one of the very first great art collectors and connoisseurs. He is especially remembered for the part he played in acquiring, on behalf of Charles I, the famous collection of paintings belonging to the Gonzaga family of Mantua. Many of these paintings still form an important part of the Royal Collection today. In this book the different strands of Lanier's colourful life are...

The first edition of The English Chamber Organ was published in 1968. This new, revised edition takes into account the considerable research into chamber organs that has taken place over the last thirty years. Much of the book has been completely rewritten and expanded, and it includes a number of organs not detailed in the first edition. As its revised title suggests, this new edition covers foreign-make imports as well as British-made organs that were sent overseas. Part one comprises a series of chapters that cover the history of the chamber organ, its origins and development. Part two...