The Letters of Samuel Wesley: Professional and Social Correspondence, 1797-1837

'An outstanding scholarly resource that will interest greatly scholars from music to history to religion.' -Anglican and Episcopal History, Dec 2002'A fascinating professional and social life-history' -Anglican and Episcopal History, Dec 2002'A distinctive contribution to Wesley scholarship.' -The Tracker'For those studying Samuel Wesley's life or music, the collection will rightly be seen as indispensable.' -The Heythrop Journal'Philip Olleson's volume Professional and social correspondence 1797-1837 is beautifully produced and an indispensable companion to the Source book. Within its pages Wesley's voice speaks clearly and continuously.' -Musical Times'Scholars owe Philip Olleson an enormous debt of gratitude, because he has opened the door on an extremely significant, yet little known, area of research, and has given Samuel Wesley the recognition he truly deserves.' -Recusant History'The Letters reveals an enormous breadth of erudition and editorial control. At no point does one feel overwhelmed by unnecessary minutiae, or deficient in information... each page shows great mastery of his topic and fine methodological balance.' -Recusant History'Here is a book which brings Wesley's importance into focus, and provides the first thoroughly researched work of its kind. Olleson's meticulous edition will reposition Wesley in music studies of the period and will substantially revise our understanding of musical culture of the time.' -Recusant History'A welcome and long overdue initiative.' -The Tablet'This is a treasury of information which will remain a classic edition for many years to come. Philip Olleson is to be congratulated on his research and production. His promised supplementary volumes will be awaited with great anticipation.' -Methodist Recorder'The publication marks a turning point in our understanding of this extraordinary member of the Wesley family. It brings together for the first time some 400 letters to friends and fellow musicians, meticulously researched, superbly annotated and indexed and prefaced by a chronology of Samuels's life and a brief biography.' -Methodist Recorder'Wesley, whose own publishing ventures came to little, and whose contributions to musical learning were never given their due value... would have been amazed and delighted to see this beautifully produced book, doubtless pausing only a moment before dashing off a long and genial letter of approbation to its precise and literate editor, Philip Olleson.' -Times Literary Supplement'We must be grateful to Philip Olleson for his painstaking scholarship, his immense sympathy for his subject and his ability to give non-musical minds the possibility of appreciating the musical history of England in the early nineteenth century.' -The TabletSamuel Wesley (1766-1837), the son of the hymn-writer Charles Wesley and the nephew of John Wesley, was one of the leading composers and organists of his day, a rebel, and a misfit. He converted from Methodism to Roman Catholicism, and his controversial views on marriage led to the desertion of his wife and a long-term relationship with a woman 28 years his junior. His music has become increasingly well known in recent years, and these letters to his friends and fellow musicians are the most extensive of any musician of the period, offering an unparalleled view of life as a professional musician in London in the early nineteenth century.