The Short

Acknowledgements
This book is the result of more than ten years research; but it owes nearly as much to practical collaboration and
informal discussion with scholars and practising musicians as to my own archival work. To list all those who have
contributed ideas or forced me to re-examine my own interpretations of the evidence, or simply whose published work
in this field, though not directly referred to in the book, has provided a starting point for my investigation is
impossible. I hope those to whom I have not directly referred will pardon me.
My interest in the study of performing practice, and its relationship with scholarly editing, was stimulated in the early
1980s by Christopher Hogwood's invitation to advise the Academy of Ancient Music on the texts for their recordings
of Beethoven Symphonies. In the next few years I enjoyed a fruitful exchange of ideas with Roy Goodman, Caroline
Brown and other musicians associated with the Hanover Band, though the exigencies of the professional world made
it difficult to put many of these ideas into practice to any great extent. I also had the great good fortune of getting to
know Roger Norrington, whose enthusiasm prompts him not only to address the spirit of the music, but also to
respond boldly to historical evidence about performing styles and techniques. He has not been afraid to experiment
with radically different approaches to performing well-known works, often in the teeth of resistance from players who
were, understandably, reluctant to attempt unfamiliar techniques in the limited time allowed for professional concerts
and recordings.
The book that has finally emerged from these experiences and my own archival research has benefited greatly from
many other practical experiments and academic exchanges. I cannot fail to mention the following, whose contributions
have been more than incidental (though some of them may scarcely be aware of this): Robert Bottone, Duncan Druce,
Angela East, Geoffrey Govier, Peter Hanson (and the other members of the Eroica Quartet), John Holloway, Yuki
Konii, Colin Lawson, Harry Lyth, Hugh Macdonald, Richard Maunder, Rudolf Riedel, David Rowland, Simon
Standage, Judith Tarling, and Elizabeth Wallfisch. In addition I am grateful to the following archives and