{"product_id":"1721-alexander-malcolm","title":"1721 ALEXANDER MALCOLM. First Work on Theory of Music Published in Scotland. Excellent Provenance.","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003eA wonderfully provenanced true first edition of Alexander Malcolm’s foundational work on music theory. His \u003cem\u003eTreatise of Musick\u003c\/em\u003e remains significant as the first comprehensive, systematic treatise on music theory published in Scotland and one of the most thorough English-language musical texts of the early 18th century. It bridged mathematical acoustics, notation, composition rules, and historical musicology, serving as a landmark foundational text that influenced British Enlightenment music theory and provided a rigorous rational basis for understanding music as both a science and an art.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNot traced at auction since 1967 and rare in the trade, this particular example bears the bookplate and personal card of Orlando A. Mansfield, both neatly laid in. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003eDr. \u003cspan class=\"citation-5 citation-end-5\"\u003eOrlando Augustine Mansfield (1863–1936) was a prominent English organist, composer, musicologist, and pedagogue.\u003csup class=\"superscript\" data-turn-source-index=\"1\"\u003e\u003c!----\u003e\u003c\/sup\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan class=\"citation-4 citation-end-4\"\u003eHe served as the first president of the Incorporated Guild of Church Musicians and was a prolific composer and arranger, producing over 1,000 musical works, primarily for organ, choir, and piano.\u003csup class=\"superscript\" data-turn-source-index=\"2\"\u003e\u003c!----\u003e\u003c\/sup\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan class=\"citation-3\"\u003eIn addition to his compositions, he is widely recognized for his pedagogical and theoretical writings, including \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci data-path-to-node=\"0\" data-index-in-node=\"425\"\u003e\u003cspan class=\"citation-3\"\u003eThe Student's Harmony\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cspan class=\"citation-3 citation-end-3\"\u003e (1896), as well as numerous historical essays and analytical articles for leading music journals in both the United Kingdom and the United States.\u003csup class=\"superscript\" data-turn-source-index=\"3\"\u003e\u003c!----\u003e\u003c\/sup\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMalcolm, Alexander. Treatise of Musick, Speculative, Practical, and Historical. Containing an Explication of the Philosophical and Rational Grounds and Principles thereof; The Nature and Office of the Scale of Musick; The Whole Art of Writing Notes; and the General Rules of Composition. With a Particular Account of the Ancient Musick, and a Comparison thereof with the Modern. Edinburgh. Printed for the Author. 1721. First edition. \u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003eTextually very good with some light handling and foxing. All six folding plates present and in generally very good condition; with with likely late 19th or early 20th century professional repairs. Boards detached. Else, really a very nice example of a very scarce work.\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Specs Fine Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52370327699492,"sku":null,"price":850.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0093\/3910\/9435\/files\/09-29-2026SpecsFineBooks-3.jpg?v=1790698765","url":"https:\/\/specsfinebooks.com\/products\/1721-alexander-malcolm","provider":"Specs Fine Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}