The first comprehensive account of the life and influences of Cyril Scott, not merely a composer but an artist in the broadest possible sense of the term.

Rose Allatini is remembered today for writing 'Despised and Rejected', the only novel to be prosecuted under the Defence of the Realm Act during the Great War as 'liable to prejudice recruiting in His Majesty's forces. The book's positive depiction of homosexuals and conscientious objectors alarmed the wartime authorities. But Rose Allatini was also the author (under several disguises) of nearly forty other novels, over seven decades. This monograph sets out to dispel the myth that these other books were no more than romantic pot-boilers. The novels' themes include: critiques of the position of women in London and Vienna at the start of the twentieth century; an exploration of the experience of mental illness; warnings of the rise of Nazism in thirties Austria, depictions of the experiences of refugees in London during the Second World War; and speculations about spiritual healing. Rose Allatini was a novelist who went where many others did not care to venture.

My book begins with a brief consideration of what we mean by “English music” and what factors are involved. I explain the reasons behind my choice of composers for consideration, and for the omissions from the survey.

Traversing London's musical culture, this book boldly illuminates the emergence of Edwardian London as a beacon of musical innovation. The dawning of a new century saw London emerge as a hub in a fast-developing global music industry, mirroring Britain's pivotal position between the continent, the Americas and the British Empire. It was a period of expansion, experiment and entrepreneurial energy. Rather than conservative and inward-looking, London was invigorated by new ideas, from pioneering musical comedy and revue to the modernist departures of Debussy and Stravinsky. Meanwhile, Elgar, Holst, Vaughan Williams, and a host of ambitious younger composers sought to reposition British music in a rapidly evolving soundscape. Music was central to society at every level. Just as opulent theatres proliferated in the West End, concert life was revitalised by new symphony orchestras, by the Queen's Hall promenade concerts, and by Sunday concerts at the vast Albert Hall. Through innumerable band and gramophone concerts in the parks, music from Wagner to Irving Berlin became available as never before. The book envisions a burgeoning urban culture through a series of snapshots - daily musical life in all its messy diversity. While tackling themes of cosmopolitanism and nationalism, high and low brows, centres and peripheries, it evokes contemporary voices and characterful individuals to illuminate the period. Challenging issues include the barriers faced by women and people of colour, and attitudes inhibiting the new generation of British composers - not to mention embedded imperialist ideologies reflecting London's precarious position at the centre of Empire. Engagingly written, Simon McVeigh's groundbreaking book reveals the exhilarating transformation of music in Edwardian London, which laid the foundations for the century to come.