The University of Kentucky is pleased to announce the availability on the Web of digital images of a volume of about one hundred eighteenth-century English songs in its collection. The volume was owned in the eighteenth century by Domenico Dragonetti, who gave it to his friend Vincent Novello. By around 1850 the volume was in private hands and disappeared from sight. It resurfaced in 1965 at an estate auction in Oxfordshire, and the University of Kentucky purchased it in 1967. It has until recently not been studied or catalogued.

The book, which was bound in the late eighteenth century as Old English Songs, was compiled at that time from at least two pre-existent collections, filled out by a few miscellaneous works. The earlier of the two collections, with printed and manuscript song sheets from the late seventeenth century to about 1715, now forms most of the latter half of Old English Songs (items 52–99). It contains works by Purcell and Handel, as well as small groups of songs from some of the best-known theatrical works of the day: Arsinoe, Love's Triumph, Camilla, Pyrrhus and Demetrius and Thomyris. The first part of the volume (numbers 1–51) also appears to have been a pre-existent collection, though its integrity is not as certain. The repertory overlaps considerably with that of the other collection, though some items date from as late as the early 1720s. Included are a number of works by Purcell and songs from Thomyris, The Beau Demolished, Arsinoe, The Island Princess, Camilla, Calypso and Telemachus, The Temple of Love, Creso, Antiochus, Arminio, Rinaldo and others, as well as independent songs. The opening portion of this collection (including most of the Purcell songs) differs somewhat from the rest, as it appears to be a section of a manuscript book, not separate song sheets, probably copied around 1715. The collector added a few later works at the end (items 100–103, datable from 1745 to 1759), probably at the time of binding.

The website, <http://athena.uky.edu/oes/intro.htm>, includes a more detailed history and description, as well as a preliminary catalogue, prepared with the assistance of the members of the autumn 2005 musicology seminar at the University of Kentucky.