Novello and Co - Publishers of affordable sheet music

 

Henry William Brooke 1848 - 1929

Henry W Brooke was a great-grandson of James Willis and Elizabeth Tebb through Elizabeth Willis (who married George Topham) and Marianne Topham (who married Henry Strangways Brooke). 

Henry W Brooke married Amy Eliza Littleton, the daughter of Henry Littleton. They were married in 1876 and Brooke was working for his father-in-law from 1881 onwards. Henry Littleton was a  music publisher. He joined the firm of Novello & co in 1841 and became a partner in the business in 1861. When Joseph Alfred Novello retired in 1866, Henry Littleton became the sole proprietor. When Henry Littleton died in 1888 the business was continued by his two sons. Novello and Co Ltd was formed, Henry W. Brooke became a director. 

Novello & co was established in 1811 when Vincent Novello published a collection of sacred music, composed by himself. He continued to publish church music including masses by Mozart and Haydn. In 1829 his son Joseph Alfred Novello took over the business, which operated from Frith Street in Soho. Joseph was just nineteen years old and was also a singer. He is credited as the first person to publish affordable sheet music. 

“Joseph Alfred took over in 1829 and after several company name changes reflecting other partners’ involvement, he reverted to the original Novello & Company name and established a virtual monopoly in low-cost mass sales of choral music. It brought the English speaking world performing editions of Bach, Handel, Haydn Mendelssohn and many others. Later it published individual choral works by Dvorák, Gounod and Saint-Saëns.

Educational publishing constituted an important part of the Novello catalogue throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. Elgar, Bliss, Dyson, Holst, Howells and Moeran were signed. In the 1970s the list grew to include names such as R.R. Bennett, Bush, Frankel, Horovitz, Joubert, Leighton, McCabe and Musgrave. Novello acquired Elkin & Co in 1961 and Paterson’s Publications in 1989. These brought Scott, Quilter and Malcolm Arnold to the catalogue. Novello joined Wise Music Group in 1993 and today remains a major choral publisher and champion of new music.” https://www.wisemusicclassical.com/publishers/novello

I’ve already written about Julian Willis, the brother of our ancestor Charles William Willis. Julian died in 1904. In his will he appointed Henry William Brooke and another cousin, Frederick Fisher as executors of his will. He held shares in Novello and co Ltd and these were left to his wife, Fanny Alicia.