Nineteenth Kenneth Karmiole Lecture on the History of the Book Trade
Lecture by David Hunter, Librarian Emeritus, University of Texas at Austin
Until eleven years ago, when David Hunter found Handel’s signature on several share transfer slips in the records of the Royal African Company at The National Archives, Kew, London, no one had thought to investigate the ways in which the profits of the slave trade and the plantation economy made their way into the musical world in London and elsewhere in Britain and its Caribbean and North American colonies. Those ways included subscription to opera and concert seasons, to music publications, the purchase of musical instruments, the hiring of teachers, private music-making sessions, and even the trafficking of a minor, Muzio Clementi. The bio-bibliographical research method, using printed lists of subscribers, such as those at the Clark Library for the Concerts of Antient Music, involves checking names against databases, notably “Legacies of British Slavery,” as well as in numerous collective and individual family histories. Its success in identifying families whose income derived largely from plantation ownership is unrivaled. It has also turned up a distinctive bibliographical genre, hand-held fans printed with a plan of the boxes at the King’s Theatre and the occupants’ names. As reparative history, the effort is both necessary and rewarding.
The lecture will be presented live by Dr. David Hunter remotely, to in-person attendees at the Clark and online via livestream, with Q&A and discussion with the audience to follow. A display of related materials from the collections will be on view at the Clark before the lecture, and a light reception for all attendees will follow the program.
The lecture is free to attend with advance registration. It will be held in-person at the Clark Library and livestreamed on the Center’s YouTube Channel. No registration is required to watch the livestream. Seating is limited at the Clark Library; walk-in registrants are welcome as space permits.
Registration will close on Tuesday, November 12 at 5:00 p.m.