Mann, Joseph Arthur. Printed Musical Propaganda in Early Modern England. Studies in British Musical Cultures. Clemson SC: Clemson Univ. Press (in association with Liverpool Univ. Press), 2020. ISBN 978-1-949979-23-7.
Reviewed by Fiona Shea
In Printed Musical Propaganda in Early Modern England, independent scholar Joseph Arthur Mann, investigates seventeenth-century English musical propaganda, showcasing music’s unexpected role as a front for political messaging. Mann begins by contextualizing the state of music, politics, sovereignty, the print industry, and censorship during the seventeenth century. The remainder of the book explores the relationships between these subjects, focusing on the period between the English Civil War (1642–51) and the years following the passage of the Toleration Act (1689). In the book’s four chapters, Mann guides the reader through the history of early modern England by way of persuasive, dramatic, and occasionally humorous examples of musical propaganda.
The first chapter, “Cavaliers, Roundheads, and Musical Identity Politics, 1640–49,” is devoted to pamphleteering in the time leading up to and during the Civil War. It explores how the subject of church organs and psalm singing became a symbol for the differing political perspectives of the Royalists and Parliamentarians. Mann’s inclusion of colorful quotations, such as those from the pamphlet Gospel Musik, “so abominable, in which is sung almost every thing … tossing the Word of God like a Tenice-ball. Then all yelling together with confused noise” (p. 41), are not only entertaining to read, but support his argument that the subject of music provided a covert vehicle for propaganda authors to voice their political views within the confines of censorship.
As England plunged into new depths of political turmoil during the Interregnum Period (1649–60), music remained a symbol for cultural and political identity. This is the focus of the second chapter, “Orthodoxy and Cultural Identity through Music in the English Interregnum,” in which Mann continues to exhibit music as a political voice for Parliamentarians (through the advocation of Psalm singing) and Royalists (through song collection texts). Mann’s diligent examination of song texts, particularly by upper-class musicians such as John Playford, John Gamble, and Henry Lawe, demonstrates Royalists’ dependence on allegorical rhetoric as a means to promote a unified opposition to the Commonwealth during the time of Parliamentarian dominance. Mann’s textual analysis makes evident that musical propaganda from the Interregnum Period began evolving beyond the use of extensive symbolic representation (e.g., the evil organs of chapter one) and instead gained communicative value as a form in and of itself.
The increasing prominence of musical propaganda in specific musical formats during the time of monarchical reinstatement is further explored in the third chapter, “Supporting the Monarchy and the Church of England during the Restoration.” Propaganda authors, particularly members of the Royalist faction, were motivated to promote the impression of joy, salvation, and happiness at the monarchical reinstatement, and genres like broadside ballads and masques became essential platforms for spreading Royalist politics. Mann surveys numerous broadside ballads, masques, and pamphlets from the time period, including Anthony Sadler’s masque The Subjects Joy for the Kings Restoration (1660), the frontispiece of which is used as Mann’s book cover imagery. By representing such a large range of musical propaganda formats, Mann intrinsically mirrors the pervasiveness of these Restoration-era propaganda genres and their author’s intents to reach as wide an audience as possible.
“Musick one would think might reconcile them [non-Anglican Protestants]; if they had ears to hear, their hearts would be affected too, and they could no longer hold out in this harsh, jarring, ungrateful distance, but would fall in with the general tone, and join in a friendly consort with their brethren” (p. 185). The 1696 Charles Hickman quotation which opens Mann’s final chapter, “Music as Propaganda for the Church of England after the Toleration Act,” illustrates the period following the Glorious Revolution and Toleration Act as a time of hope and aspirational religious and political harmony. Mann takes the reader through the literature of Anglican and Dissenter church-music pamphlets written during the years 1690–1700, placing particular emphasis on the church-music pamphlet’s accessibility as a genre. One can also sense the shift in political tone during this period through not only quotations such as that which opens the chapter but also the writing of preachers such as John Newte and John Shuttleworth who encourage unity among all.
Mann’s in-depth consideration of musical-political relationships in early modern England provides an interesting and insightful perspective on the ways in which propagandists chose to communicate with their audience. Though the subject matter of this book is deeply grounded in music, Mann presents his findings using a clear historical approach, giving audiences an opportunity to learn more about the permeability of music in the everyday life of Early Modern Englanders through the lens of English history. This eloquent marriage of topic and presentation creates a book suited for music enthusiasts and history lovers alike.
Fiona Shea is currently pursuing a Doctorate of Musical Arts degree at the Shepherd School of Music at Rice University.
Cover image: Bonvin, Francois. Attributes of Music. 1863. Painting. 24 5/8 x 45 11/16 in. The Cleveland Museum of Art. Credit Line. 1980.233.
This review was solicited by SEL Studies in English Literature 1500–1900. A Review Copy of Printed Musical Propaganda in Early Modern England (Clemson Univ. Press, 2020) was provided by the publisher.