This is an Early Music site featuring the English composers Robert Jones and Philip Rosseter, furthermore the works of these composers involve much more than music. Robert Jones set the poems to most of the great Elizabethan poets to music and Philip Rosseter was Thomas Campion's best friend and collaborator. Rosseter and Jones were involve in a theatrical adventure and their music was used for plays and masks. Thus, this site must additionally be a Shakespearean Poetry and Drama site.Of all the song composers of this brilliant period no one has been more completely or more unaccountably neglected than Robert Jones composer of ayres and madrigals, theatrical manager, and controversialist. - Peter Warlock from 'The English Ayre' (1926).
... one may witness a debasement of poetry by misguided singers of today who sing Lieder to an English audience having little or no German, and continue to ignore such men as Rosseter, Jones and Dowland. - John Jeffreys 'The Life And Works of Philip Rosseter' (1990).
Philip Rosseter
- (b. 1568? died on May 5th, 1623)
- Lute song composer
- Royal lutenists in the Court of James I.
- Friend of Thomas Campion.
- Theater and acting troupe manager.The Complete Works Of Philip RosseterThe Life of Philip Rosseter
Philip Rosseter Time Line
Thomas Campion (1567 - 1620)
English Poet and Lute Song Composer
A John Dowland page - his relationship with Robert Jones, Philip Rosseter and William Shakespeare.
Francis Pilkington's Life, Pilkington's Works or Pilkington's Lyrics
A little on Richard Alison
Thomas Ravenscroft (The music teacher of Philip Rosseter's sons)
For more about this Robert Jones / Philip Rosseter, Phreap site, further indexs and more on the site updates see, 'Construction, Highlights and Features'.
Robert Jones and me, Patrick T. Connolly
Under Construction. - On this slight update here on September 12, 2016, (to put a link in to the John Dowland page) I worry it could be the last as I am forced to change servers. For any news on the future of this site go to my Soundclick or e-mail -
phreap2000@yahoo.ca
This is an unfinished page that I hope to edit sometime in the future.
There can be no doubt that Robert Jones and Philip Rosseter were both admirers of Thomas Campian. However, hard evidence of their working relationship is scarce. In the vacuum of hard facts my mind sometimes takes to wondering about the some of the possibilities. I think it is possible that they both worked together on the music to Shakespeare's 'Twelfth Night or What You Will'. I think there is some circumstantial evidence to say that Robert Jones had a greater involvement in this play than he is given credit for. and if not him - there were not a lot of capable musician living in London. who else did music for theatre - Robert Johnson in closely associated with the music of Shakespeare but remember this is way before Robert Johnson's time.
Only the documents, regarding the Porter's Hall (or Puddle Wharf) theatre, lock these two musicians into a shared fate, where the life story of Robert Jones follows the same path as Rosseter. These documents show that Philip Rosseter was business partners with three people with the surname 'Jones' over a period of about ten years. First Richard Jones, then Robert Jones and lastly James Jones.
XXThus Philip Rossetter was associated with people named"Jones" for over ?? years. XX
whether these people were in the same family Jones is an interesting question and one I hope to study further.
At that time people did not distinguish an actor from a musician. All were called 'players'.
Actor Richard Jones (perhaps one of the top 20 English actors in a group that would include William Shakespeare) with that January 4, 1610, license, to train children, said he could not make a living in England and returned to Germany.
[this is just off the top of my head but see the quote below]
Rosseter January 4, 1610 - Robert Daborne Phillipp Roseter, Iohn Tarbuck, Richard Iones and Robert Browne
"JONES, RICHARD, - By 1622 Jones was a "musician" in the service of Philip Julius, Duke of Wolgast. Two petitions from him are preserved (Meyer, Jahrbuch, xxxviii. 209-10) On August 30, 1623, he asked permission, with his
fellows Johan Kostressen and Robert Dulant [son of John Dowland?], to leave Wolgast and return to England - and on July 10, 1614, he wrote to the Duke that he had failed to get profitable employment in England, and asked to be taken again under his patronage."
John Dowland himself seems to to not find any patronage in England from about 1608? to 1612? John Jeffreys writes "[Dowland ... was seeking patronage for nearly two years, an anxious time for Dowland, culminating in success with Lord Walden becoming, in 1612, his patron..." p 73]
Perhaps Richard Iones was related to Robert Jones. We know very little about Robert Jones and have to carefully place the clues together.
Wandering actors Philip Kingham & Ralph Reeve, Robert Brown, and Richard Iones wanted a home theatre and they had enemies (one being an aging William Shakespeare who lived around the corner from Robert Jones) who did not want another London theatre beside Shakespeare's Blackfriers.
Most of these documents are reprinted in the Malone Society Collections and here are some brief quotes to highlight the events;
Malone Society Collections IV. p. 56. On 13 July 1613 they paid the Master of the Revels [pounds] 20 'for a license to erect a new play-house in the White-friars' ... the Council frustrated Rosseter's plans by their order of 29 July ...
... on 3 June 1615 the speculators had secured for their new theatre a royal licence. ...
June 3, 1615 - Licence for the erection of the Porter's Hall theatre in the Blackfriars - I. iii. p. 277
Phillipp Roseter, together with Phillipp kingman Robert Iones and Ralph Reeve ... lady Saunders house or otherwise Porters hall and now in the occupation of the said Robert Iones. ... Playhouse to be vsed by the Childern of the Revells of ... the Princes Players and for the ladie Elizabeths Players ...
The Child Actors by H. N. Hilledrand 1964 On October 31, 1617, a new Queen's Revels company was organized under the leadership of Rosseter, Robert Lee, William Perry, and Nicholas Long. ... [p. 250] This new company played in the provinces until 1623. ...
On April 9, 1623, a confirmation of a license of October 31, 1617, was granted Perry for one year. [46Murry II 272-3] With him were named as associates George Bosgrave, Richard Backster, Thomas Band, James Jones, Walter Barrett, James Kneller and Edward Tobye. The reason for procuring this confirmation was possibly the failing health of Rosseter. He died on May 5, 1623 ...
A theatre on the site of Robert Iones' house was demolished by civic authorities". The New Grove is wrong is (repeating the old mistake) saying Philip Kingham & Ralph Reeve, Iones and Rosseter got a license to train kids in 1610. That was the Robert Brown, Richard Iones and Rosseter license.
(an Inago Jones Theatre)
No one seems to ever suggest that having this theatre demolished may have caused some financial problems for those involved.
No one says that the reason Campion had only 20 pounds to leave his friend ('wishing it were more') is that he and his friend lost a lot of money in a theatre. Rosseter had to get out of London and tour the country, leading a
troupe that included a young player named James Jones. I had thought, as people do, that Campion's 'wishing it were more' line was funny, but now I think it is a sad line about hard times. Rosseter had a lot of kids.
Rosseter's family fled England and went to Holland. We hear of little more about Robert Iones.
Patrick Connolly - December 4, 2003 & February 14, 2004, May 4 & June 25, 2005.
This page has had
hits as of August 11, 2003.
This site is now being updated page by page. This site was overhauled on August 11, 2003, and the last major update was March 31 and April 7, 2003.
This Robert Jones / Philip Rossetter site was the first posted on December 27, 2001. It was the first update of my general web site in years. Before 2001 year ended, I threw up a few pages and created the best Robert Jones / Philip Rossetter site in the world to celebrate the 400 year anniversary of their 1601 books. For more on the site updates see, 'Construction, Highlights and Features'. This page was updated October 22, 2004. This page was last updated August 2, 2010 - to add a few links & embed 'The Sea Hath Many Thousand Sands' to celebrate the 400 year anniversary of Robert Jones's 5th (& last) booke ["The muses gardin for delights or fifth booke of ayers, 1610].
Page Bibliography
Malone Society Collections I, II & IV.
The Child Actors by Harold Newcomb Hilledrand 1926 or 1964
'The Life And Works of Philip Rosseter' by John Jeffreys (1990)
Roberton Publications, The Windmill, Wendover, Aylesbury HP22 6JJ.
Printed in Great Britain by Lavenham Press Ltd.
The 2001 edition of The New Grove Dictionary
'Philip Rosseter And His Songs' by N. Fortune in a 1965 issue of The Lute Society Journal
'The English Ayre' by Peter Warlock (1926).
Chamberlains' & Warden's Accounts COR: A7 (c) - book III
Coventry 1615 . . . . from the Chamberlains' & Warden's Accounts
The names of the players names named in the patent the Lady Elizabethes players bearinge date the xxxjth of May. Anno Undecimo Jacobi.
Iohn Townesend . . . . . - Sworne officers & non other
Iosephe More . . . . . . . . - named in the patent
William Perry
George Bosgrave
Thomas Suell James Jones
hugh haughton
Charles Martyn . . . . . . . . . - Boys
Iames Kneller
Iohn Hunt
Edward [?Tobye?]
Raphe
Walter Burrett
.5. horses in the Company
(reverse of sheet)
The Misdemeanor of one of the Lady Elizabeths players.
(an Inago Jones Theatre)