John Jenkins, 1592-1678, and the Lyra Viol

Author(s): Andrew Ashbee

Source: The Musical Times, Vol. 119, No. 1628 (Oct., 1978), pp. 840-843
Published by: Musical Times Publications Ltd.
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JohnJenkins,
andtheLyraViol
1592-1678,
AndrewAshbee
was provedright:thoughits use to accompany
the voice was merelya passing fad, the lyra
viol achievedconsiderablepopularityas a solo
instrument
rightup to the end of the century,
but the lute, while still used as a continuo
otherwiselargelydisappears from
instrument,
view.How farthemusicforthetwoinstruments
was consideredinterchangeable,
however,needs
furtherstudy. Roger North's reminiscenceof
his elder brother Francis 'touching his lyra
viol, lute fashionupon his knee' is intriguing.5
Jenkins'sgreat lifespanthus roughlycorresponds to thatof the lyraviol's popularityand,
as he playedtheinstrument
himself,it naturally
featuresprominentlyin his vast output. The
unkindly
ravagesof timehave dealt particularly
withthispartof his work,and manypieceshave
come down to us onlyin a fragmented
state; we
musthope thatnew discoverieswill fillsome of
the gaps. Jenkinswas 33 when James I died,
and presumably he had already begun to
attribute
compose (thoughwe cannot definitely
any copies of his musicto theJacobeanperiod).
By about 1630,however,some of his pieceshad
enteredcirculation,includingseveral solos for
lyra viol. Ten are found in a tablaturebook
belongingto JohnBrowne(1608-91), apparently used and expanded while Browne was a
He was a lutinist
and usedthelyraway
profes't,
studentat the Middle Temple in the 1620s,6
uponthevioll,whichfollowedthemannerofthe
and
some had also foundtheirway to Glouceslute,and he had a verygreathand upon the
ter to be included(anonymously)in one of the
consortviol .... He was once carryedto play
on theviolbeforeKingCharlesI, whichhe didin
great collectionscompiled by the singing-man
JohnMerro (d 1639).7
his voluntary
and
way,withwonderful
agillity,
odd humours,
as (forinstance)touching
thegreat
The lyra viol solo, encompassingas it does
stringswithhis thumb,whiletherestwereheld
both melodic and harmonic interest,gained
inanotherway.Andwhenhe had done
imployed
acceptance as an ideal formof musical divertheKing saydhe did wondersupon an inconsision, particularlyfor the lone 'young gentlederableinstrument.
man' such as thelaw studentor undergraduate.
Most of the lyra viol solos which have come
ElsewhereNorth mentionsvariouslythat this
down
to us are overtlygeared to an amateur
was
on
the
bass
or
viol.
performance
lyra
marketand generallyavoid beingtoo demandThe firstmention of the viol played 'by
tablatureafterthe leero fashion' is in Robert
ing technically.Most, too, are relativelytrivial
Jones's The Second Booke of Songs and Ayres
musically: dances, masque music, popular
tunes, preludes, and the like-though this is
(1601), with furthercontributionsby Hume,
Ford, FerraboscoII and otherssoon following. not to deny that many are attractive.Jenkins
Hume's claim that 'the statefullinstrument must have composed vast numbers of such
Gambo Violl, shall withease yeeldfullvarious
pieces in his day; most surviving sources
and devicefulMusic as the lute' was naturally contain at least a few items by him. Furthermore, many were publishedby John Playford
challenged by Dowland.4 In England, Hume

When Henry Jenkins,a Maidstone carpenter,

died in 1617, he bequeathed 'to his son Henry
A TrebbleViall, to his son JohnA Bandore &
to his son William A Trebble Viall
.'
part of a collectionof 'Seven Vialls & Violyns,
One Bandora & a Cytherne'listed in the inventoryof his goods.1 If, as we assume, John
was the composer,the choice of a bandora for
him suggeststhat he was already treadingthe
path to later fame as a musician whose penchant was directedtowards stringinstruments
which adopted both solo and continuo roles,
particularlythe lute and lyra viol. When,aged
68, he finallygained an officialplace at court,
it was as a lutenist:'June16, 1660: Mr. Jenkins
for the lute, in Mr John Cockshall's place'.2
Withouttheinterruption
oftheCommonwealth,
thereis no doubt that he would have received
such an appointment much earlier; indeed
Roger NorthinsiststhatJenkinswas one of the
court musicians to Charles I, though no evidencehas been foundto confirmthis.Nevertheless, we know that he was associated with
several royal musicians in the performances
of the extravagantmasque The Triumphof
Peace in 1633-4 and that he once played
expresslyforthe king:3

Kent Archives Office, Canterbury Consistory Court, xliv,

f.260 (will) and PRC 28/9, f.294 (inventory)
2H. C. de Lafontaine: The King's Musick (London, 1909), 114
3Roger North on Music, ed. J. Wilson (London, 1959), 295
4in A Pilgrimes Solace (London, 1612)

840

5North, op cit, 258

6see A. Ashbee: 'Instrumental Music from the Library of
John Browne (1608-91), Clerk of the Parliaments', Music
& Letters, lviii (1977), 43-59
70xford, Bodleian Library, Mus. Sch. D245-7

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Tuning
defhf
ededf
edfhf
efdef
fdedf
fdefh
feded
fedfh
fefhf
ffhfh
fhfhf
?

3
3

3
1

4
2
7
7
1
9

2
2

10

10

Sources
'Browne' (formerly'Braye') tablature book (owned by Robert Spencer)
Oxford, Bodleian Library, Mus. Sch. D245-7
Cambridge University Library, Hen. Dep. 77(1)
Cambridge University Library, Hen. Dep.77(2)
Los Angeles, Clark Memorial Library, 'Mansell' tablature book
Manchester, Henry Watson Music Library, MS 832 Vu 51
Oxford, Bodleian Library, Mus. Sch. F575
Oxford, Bodleian Library, Mus. Sch. D221
I Dublin, Archbishop Marsh's Library, MS Z3.5.13
J 'Boynton' keyboard and tablature book (owned by C. Vere Pilkington)
K British Library, Add. 59869 ('Cartwright')
L Oxford, Bodleian Library, Mus. Sch. F573 [staff-notationtranscriptions of lyra viol solos]
M J. Playford: A Musicall Banquet (1651)
N J. Playford: Musick's Recreation: on the Lyra Viol (1652) [- 1655?]
0 J. Playford: Musick's Recreation: on the Viol, Lyra-way (1661)
P J. Playford: Musick's Recreation on the Viol, Lyra-way (1669)
Q J. Playford: Musicks Recreation on the Viol, Lyra-way (1682)

A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H

(misattributed and incomplete works are ignored)

in his books for 'young Practitioners'including an arrangementof Jenkins'smost

celebrated(if most inconsequential)piece: the
round A Boat! A Boat! Haste to theFerry!,set,
aptly, to the tuningknown as 'bandora set'
(fefhf).8 The table above summarizes the
whereabouts of Jenkins's known lyra viol
solos, grouping the pieces according to the
tuningrequired,and ex.1 shows thetuningand
openingof a typicalAlmainas it appears in the
original tablature and transcribedinto staff
notation (note the ornamentsfrom BL Add.
59869).
Tablature notation does not fixan absolute
pitch,of course,and the50 or so knowntunings
can be adapted to anysize ofviol (an instrument
slightlysmaller than the consort bass seems
Jenkins'slyra viol music,
best). In transcribing
I have always assumed the higheststringto be
tuned to d'-Playford's advice to 'raise or
screwup the Treble,or firststring,as highas it
will convenientlybear withoutbreaking'is as
hazardous as it is imprecise!-since this is
establishedpracticefor all his music wherethe
lyra viol is combined with other instruments.
Such consistencyshows Jenkinsto have used a
numberof keysvirtuallyunknownat thetime8Tunings are notated according to intervals between the strings,
from the top downwards, measuring each by the first ('a' is
open, 'b' first fret etc) needed to produce a unison with the
string above.

Ex. 1
a
^ g

a
^a

fA1
1f

j
a
j

rj

a a
a ]

A.,

/
8

9s:
P--,,e
rl**43#~i.i
II- o
rL

v
a
j 7J--

;,

9J. Playford: Musick's Recreation on the Viol, Lyra-way (London, 1682)

j J
jJ
e
I

l T

1
a

I
asm
na
'

J.

JP

a x h
-h

n J

B minor,Bb minorand F minor,forexample.

Of course, this is relative,dependingon the
pitch adopted in the firstplace; but it does
suggestthat the composer's giftfor exploring
and developingkey-colourin his music may
have been fosteredby the freedomof choice
available to him throughvariabletuningson a
such as the lute or lyraviol.
frettedinstrument
Playfordwrites:9
The firstAuthorsI have met withof Setting
Lessons thisway to the Viol,was Mr. Daniel
Farunt, Mr. AlphonsoFerabosco, and Mr.
John Coperario,who Composed Lessons not
onlyto play alone, but fortwo or threeLyraViolsin Consort...
'Two or threeLyra-Violsin Consort' evidently
popular as a genre for
proved sufficiently
composers of the next generation,such as
Jenkins,Ives and WilliamLawes, to add to the
repertory.None of Jenkins'sensemble music
forlyraviols seems to have survivedcomplete,
whichis a greatpitybecause a numberof the
pieces are both more substantial and more
interestingthan the solos. The Bodleian
Library, Oxford, MS Mus. Sch. D221 once
had the upper part of 73 pieces by Jenkinsfor
'Lyra with a Continual Basse', but nos.16-18
and part of no.19 are now missing.Here, in

' -r

'I-

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I
- I
'--'

IJ
^-

841

addition to the usual slightdance forms,are

more extendedpavans and fantasias.Chordal
writingis givengreaterattentionand a number
of the almains in particularincorporatequite
volatile division writing.Ten furthertunings,
not includedin the table, also appear.10Five
of them occur in the firstportion of D221,
which contains lyra viol parts of another 70
pieces by Thomas Gregoryand 25 by Jenkins.
From the restsin some of theseworksone can
deduce thatheretoo anotherpartis requiredto
completethem; but is thistrueof all ? The one
piece by Jenkinswhich is not unique to this
book is a corant also found in a manuscript
from Hengrave Hall, Suffolk (Cambridge
University
LibraryHen. Dep. 77(1)), whereit is
labelled 'A Coranto By Mr Jenkins for 2
viols: The newtuningto playa lone'. Curiously,
the two textsagreeclosely.Similardoubtsmust
be expressed about Jenkins's works in MS
Z.3.5.13 of Archbishop Marsh's Library,
Dublin, though I have included these in the
table. We cannot yet be sure that any of
Jenkins'spieces for threelyra viols have survived, thoughthe crypticheading 'Tertivs' on
MS II.B.3 in the DolmetschLibrary,Haslemere,
suggeststhatthe36 dances by himin themanuscriptbelongto thiscategory.
lOTheyare: dedeh; defhh;dfedf;dfedh;ededh; efdeh;efffe;
effff;fhfde;fhfed.

From lyra viol duets and trios, it was a

in a
logical step to incorporatethe instrument
mixedensemble.Tobias Hume led the way by
includingpieces 'for the Leero Viole with two
Treble Viols, or two with one Treble' in his
Musicall Humors (1605), but it was probably
towardsthe middle of the centurythat a more
regular grouping of treble(s), lyra and bass
viols and harpsichordwas established.Sets of
dances grouped in a singlekey were given the
generic heading 'Little Consort'; many were
for the popular ensemble comprising two
trebles,bass and continuo,but the'lyraconsort'
as specified above had a similar repertory.
Indeedthereare a numberofJenkins's piecesfor
two treblesand bass wherethe lyraviol served
purely as a continuo instrumentand it is
likely,of course, that some of theseadditional
lyra parts providedthe composer with a convenientand enjoyable way of directingmusicmaking in the households where he was the
'profes't musick master'. A memorandumby
Sir Nicholas Le Strangeon the flyleafof the
bass book of his collectionof Jenkins'sairs for
two treblesard a bass (c1645)11mentionssome
of these:
The LyraptforthosePag: 16. 18. 19. 24. 25. 26.
27 is forced,and was onlymade forfillingthe
11Chicago,NewberryLibrary,Case MSVM.1.A.18.J.52c

JOHN JENKINS
in

MUSICA BRITANNICA
A National Collectionof Music
The ConsortMusic of FourParts
editedbyAndrewAshbee
The ConsortMusic of Six Parts
editedby Donald Peart
Parts availableforNine SelectedAirsforFour-PartConsort
Also in Musica Britannica:consortmusicby Locke and WilliamLawes
and two volumesof Elizabethanconsortmusicin preparation
STAINER & BELL

82 HIGH ROAD, LONDON N2 9PW

842

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Musicke of a privateMeeting,for theywere

composedfor 1 Ba: 2 TR: and are
originally
theLyrapt.
compleatewithout
The page references
forthesepieces in the(now
lost) lyrabook are givenas 160-167-evidentlya
substantial collection. 13 similar pieces in
Christ Church MSS 1006-9 are headed 'Mr J.
Jenkins.For a Base two Trebles,lyra viol and
Harpscord'; although, again, the lyra part is
lost, the musicseemscompletewithoutit.
The bestknownof Jenkins'slyraconsortsare
thosefromthe Northfamilylibrary,now in the
Bodleian as Mus. Sch. C84, 85 and 88. Each
manuscriptcomprisestwo 'sets' of consortsfor
treble ('Violin' in C84 and 'Viol' in C85,
though the parts are similar), lyra and bass
viols and harpsichord. However, the more
floridmusic in C88, withsemiquaverdivisions
on the repeats,may have been rescoredfrom
earlierpieces for 'treble,bass and organ' only,
writtenwhileJenkinswas withthe Le Stranges
at Hunstantonin the 1640s and describedthus
in Royal College of Music MS 921, whereonly
While the additional
the treblepart survives.12
lyra viol parts in C88 may again be Jenkins
'writingin' a part for himself,they also give
evidenceof the trendaway fromthe viol/organ
orientated sound favoured earlier in the
centurytowards harpsichord,theorbo and/or
lyra viol acting as continuo to violins and a
bass, at least in the lightermusical forms.But
whereas the lyra viol in C88 formsonly part
of thecontinuo,doublingthe bass and amplifying the harmony,in the true lyra consorts,as
representedby C84, 85 and the firstfourpieces
in 88, it is givenan independentvoice. Not only
does the instrumentparticipate fully in the
imitativedialogues but, in breakingaway from
the bass, it is allowed to 'Retort against the
Treble;Imitating,and oftenStandinginsteadof
ThatPart, viz. a Second Treble'.13
to assess how greatwas
Again, it is difficult
Jenkins'scontributionto thegenre.In addition
to the 41 pieces in the threeNorthmanuscripts
(some of which are found incomplete elsewhere),1448 more (of which 18 are complete)
are found in books from Bamburgh Castle,15
20 'doubtful'treblepartsfor 'Mr JohnJenkins
his Lira Consort, harpewayflat,for 3 parts:
vizt 1 lira, 1 treb,1 bas' are in BritishLibrary,
Add. 31431, and seven bass parts in Chicago
(see note 11) bear Sir Nicholas Le Strange's
instructionthat they 'are not to be scor'd
because thereis eithera Lute or Lyra part for
12see A. Ashbee: 'Music for Treble, Bass and Organ by John
Jenkins', Chelys, vi (1975-6), 25-42
13T. Mace: lMusick's Monument (London, 1676), 246
14Cambridge, Fitzwilliam Museum, Music Box 2, Folder 8,
MS c430; Durham Cathedral Library MSS 179-80, 'D'; Royal
College of Music, London, MS 921; Manchester, Chetham's
School Library MS Mus. Mun. A.2.6
15Durham Cathedral Library, MSS 179-80, 'B'

them, though not yet found'. Furthermore,I

wonderwhetherany of thefollowingitemsfrom
the library of Thomas Britton,the musical
small-coalman, have survived?16
Item12: Two [setsofbooks]ofLyraconsortsby
Jenkins
and Wilson
Item112: 5 setsdittoforviolins,lyraviols,with
bassesbyJenkins
Item 125: 8 sets dittoof lyrapieces,most by
in 2, 3, 4, and 5 parts
Jenkins,
Item134: 8 setsforLyraviolsand otherinstrumentsbyJenkins
&c
Item140: 2 setsforthreelyraviols,and one set
fora lyraviol,violinand bass,Jenkins
Finally,the 'Base to a treble& 2 lyra's' for 14
pieces by Jenkinshas recentlybeen discovered
in MS 515 of the Beinecke Library,Yale University,17
comprising four 'sets of pieces in
two, three,four,and fivemovements';threeof
theseopen witha fantasia.
Player-composersof lyra viol music were
evidently among Jenkins's closest friends:
North mentions 'a particularfriendshipcultivated between old Mr Stephkinsand him',
but we may also add JohnLilly--who looked
after Jenkins'saffairsin London when the
composerbecame too old to travelto courtand perhapsAnthony(or 'Andrew') Marks, an
obscure figurewhose death promptedmusical
tributesfrombothJenkinsand Lawes.18
The presenttally of Jenkins'scompositions
involvinglyraviol, then,is approximately340,
but c200 of theseare incomplete.Few of them
require the performerto do 'wonders on an
inconsiderableinstrument',nor do they rival
the composer's best music such as his viol
fantasias and the fantasia-suites.Yet their
distinctivecharm is at one with North's
pictureof a benign old man supplyingmusic
on demand which,while respectingthe limitations of his players,maintainedthat 'pleasing
air' and craftsmanship
forwhichhis work was
renowned:19
He is Remembered
byall thatknewhimwiththe
as havingbinnotmorea prime
greatest
respect,
masterof musickthana well breddgentleman
that oblidgedall and offendednone. He had
neithervice nor humours,but formedhis behaviourto complaisance,by sincereteaching,
takingany part in consorts,and Encouraging
...
yongbeginners
16J. Hawkins: A General History of the Science and Practice of
Music (London, 1776), 1853 edn., ii, 792-3; also a 17th-century
catalogue of 'Musick Books belonging to the Cathedral of
GloucR' in the chapter librarythere includes 'A set of Musick in
four Books with black leather Covers in 4. fillettedwith gold,
Containing Six Consorts entitled within (The Violin part)
(The Theorbo part) (The firstLyra part) (The Harpsichord and
2d Lyra part) the Musick is composed by Mr. William Lawes,
Mr. Jenkins and Mr. Simpson'.
17I am indebted to Robert Ford of Yale for drawing my attention to this MS.
18There are six lyra viol solos by Mark(s) in Cambridge University Library MS Dd.5.20; he is the subject of a catch by William Lawes (Bodleian, Mus. Sch. B.2, autograph, p.108; also
printed in J. Hilton: Catch that Catch Can, 1652, p.93) and of a
three-part elegy by Jenkins in Christ Church MSS 736-8.
19R. North, British Library, Add. 32536, f.72v

843

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