Archive Item of the Month – July 2021
A letter from Christian Kramer (d.1834) addressed to C. Hamilton, of 19 Wardour Street.
This letter touches on several areas of musicological interest including provenance and the ownership of manuscripts, printing, publishing and editorial history, as well as the professional and personal connections between individuals.
Kramer was a performer, composer and arranger who had studied with the composer Peter von Winter (1754-1825), of whom the RSM holds an autograph of a March. A concert in the Argyll Rooms for William Hawes (1785-1846, Member A222) on Friday 30 April 1824 reveals that the programme opened with the overture from Handel’s Occasional Oratorio with “additional accompaniments” by C. Kramer. At the time of this letter, Kramer was also Master of the King’s Musick (1829-1834), spanning the reigns of two monarchs, namely George IV for whom he also led the private band, and William IV. We could therefore assume some authority on the discussions relating to the manuscripts in the Royal Collection.
George Frideric Handel’s (1685-1759) autograph manuscripts were bequeathed by the composer to his friend and colleague John Christopher Smith (1683-1763, Member EM354) who, when he died, left them to his son John Christopher Smith (1712-1795, Member EM440). J.C. Smith junior who had been a teacher to Augusta of Saxe-Gotha (1719-1772), Dowager Princess of Wales, was apparently awarded a royal pension upon her death. It seems likely that he gave the manuscripts to King George III not long after this and certainly Charles Burney (1726-1814, Member EM053) consulted the manuscripts in the Royal residence for his publications which included An Account of the Musical Performances in Westminster-Abbey and the Pantheon, May 26th, 27th, 29th; and June the 3d, and 5th, 1784, in Commemoration of Handel (Printed for the Benefit of the Musical Fund, 1785).
George IV had presented the ‘King’s Library’ to the British Museum in 1828; this did not include the “Royal Music Library” as the composer Felix Mendelssohn studied the Handel autographs in 1829 in a royal residence (which building is not clear at that moment as it was the period of conversion from the “Queen’s House” into “Buckingham Palace”) as did Vincent Novello (1781-1861, Member A247) during the 1840s. We know that the “Royal Music Library” was transferred to the British Museum in 1911 and formally presented to the nation by Queen Elizabeth II in 1957. Kramer seems mistaken in his reference to the presentation of “Handel’s own manuscript scores” although the publication of F. Madden’s Catalogue of the Manuscript Music in the British Museum (London: Trustees, 1842) lists one volume of Handel’s concertos with the shelf mark “George III. Mss.317” [i.e. Kings MS 317] and therefore may refer to this volume at least.
The letter also refers to George Frederick Anderson (1793-1876, Members A273) who married the esteemed pianist Lucy Philpot. Mrs Anderson taught piano to Queen Victoria and some of her children, and George, who Kramer appears to refer to in an assisting role, became Master of the Queen’s Music in 1848 (as well as RSM Treasurer from 1849).
Vincent Novello edited a collection of Purcell’s Sacred Music, comprising seventy-two individual works, which he published in the period 1828-1832. Seven volumes of his manuscript copies were already part of the British Museum catalogue (Add. MSS. 9071-9077) by 1842.
Transcription of the letter:
Windsor, Febr. 22d 1829
Sir,
Amongst the various manuscript Works of Handel in His Majesty’s possession, there is one particular hand writing which I at one time thought was or might be Handel’s own, but I have a different opinion now, since I know that His Late Majesty presented Handel’s own manuscript scores to the British Museum, and I cannot for an instant entertain the idea that such a giant should reconcile himself to the Drudgery of making Duplicates of His own scores. I was mislead by finding a book on which the bookbinder had put in gold letters “Sketches of the Messiah”, and in the Hurry and a mere superficial inspection, I fondly thought it was genuine, but subsequent inspection reluctantly compels me to consider it as the attempt of a contemporary [sic] Student or Amateur, to reduce the full score to the Organ grasp.
If Mr. Anderson can spare you a leisure Hour, you are however well come to look at the Collection. Will you have the goodness to shew the contents of this Letter to my friend Mr Novello, and tell Him that Purcells Manuscripts went to the Museum at the same time with Handels. I am laid up with the gout, and writing is rather painfull or else I would write to Him myself.
I am Sir
Your
Obd. Hbl. [Obedient Humble] Servant
C. Kramer
P.S. My best wishes towards the Complete success of the very laborious and highly meritorious undertaking.
Further literature:
- Burrows, Donald, The Royal Music Library and its Handel Collection (London: British Library Journal, 2009).
- Hyatt King, Alec, Handel and his autographs (London: Trustees of the British Museum, 1967).
