The Chartist National Hymn Book
Set to authentic music by Paul Guppy
In BOUGHT BY TYRANTS, SOLD BY KNAVES Paul Guppy sets the 16 hymns of The National Chartist Hymn Book (circa 1840) to West Gallery music.
Three of these are known to have been the tunes used at the time for the hymns; the others are drawn from contemporaneous MS and printed collections.
There are also four more ‘radical hymns’ – from the same period, though not directly linked to Chartism.
A substantial introduction outlines the historical context, ie the working-class political agitations of the mid 19th century – especially the Chartist movement.
There are also notes on words, music and performance.
The aim is to provide the songs with ‘authentic’ and singable music, with which the original singers would perhaps have been familiar; and for the whole to be of interest to choirs and social historians alike.
The first print-run having run out, BOUGHT BY TYRANTS, SOLD BY KNAVES is once more available: this time from the author (though as before all profit goes to the WGMA). The price is still £8 excluding P&P. Copies may be purchased from Paul Guppy via email