The University of Liverpool and the British Library (BL) invite applications from suitably qualified candidates for a fully-funded AHRC Collaborative Doctoral Partnership PhD Studentship starting in October 2018. The period between 1750 and 1850 witnessed an explosion in music publishing activity in the UK, as publishers exploited a growing market of amateur musicians and the development of new printing technologies. The successful candidate will investigate issues relating to the social, commercial and economic contexts of music publishing in Britain, using the BL’s printed music collection and related manuscript and archival sources as the basis for analysing the broader historical trends that shaped their content. It is anticipated that the studentship will generate enhanced catalogue records and accurate publication dates for the printed editions examined, as well as a greater understanding of publishing practice and its contexts more generally.

The project is concerned equally with the bibliographical dimensions of the printed text and the broader historical framework in which music publishing was located, with potential themes to include:

• The role of the publisher-bookseller in the creation of new markets for printed music;
• The publishing history of specific compositions, composers and/or genres, including later editions, arrangements and compilations as well as first editions;
• The use of subscription lists, paratexts and other devices to cultivate markets for composers and sustain interest in them;
• Music publishing/selling in provincial towns, e.g. spa towns such as Bath or Brighton, or industrial towns such as Glasgow, Liverpool or Newcastle.
• Co-publishing arrangements between publisher-booksellers in different places;
• Relationships between publishers-booksellers and provincial concert societies, libraries, teachers and amateur musicians.

See further details at the link below.