Novello

Typical Octavo Edition cover (1887)

Octavo Edition best seller: Prout's Messiah (1902-1960)

Typical instrumental work cover (1904)

Typical Novello's Albums cover (1892)

Typical Novello's Octavo Anthems cover ca.1900

Typical cover ca.1930

History

Novello is one of the world's longest-running publishers of choral music. Its most famous series is the "Novello's Octavo Editions" series, published from the 1830s to the present.

The company's origins date to 1811 when Vincent Novello published A Collection of Sacred Music as performed at the Royal Portuguese Chapel. The publishing enterprise was under way in earnest when Novello and his son Alfred (1810-1896) opened a shop in London's Soho district in 1829. Alfred soon realized the value of making standard works available in inexpensive editions, which in turn enabled the rapid growth of chorus and singing societies throughout England. The firm expanded rapidly with the publication of popular choral collections such as Novello's Choral Handbook, a collection of music printed in separate parts. and Singing for the Million. (by Joseph Mainzer, 1801-1851 pub 1841). By 1836, Novello was able to issue an octavo vocal score for Mendelssohn's oratorio St. Paul at a price so low that competing publishers could not believe this was possible.

In 1844, Novello launched the periodicals The Musical Times and the Singing Class Circular, which included at least one new choral work in octavo format. These proved so popular that the octavo format was soon established the one most often used for choral music and vocal scores - a practice which continues to the present day. By 1847, Novello established their own printing facilities. Using an improved version of moveable type for musical notation, the choral series known as "Novello's Octavo Editions" was established. Along with thousands of choral works by Mendelssohn and other contemporary composers, vocal scores for Handel's operas and oratorios were issued.

In addition to choral works, Novello finally started publishing instrumental works in the 1880s.These were by contemporary British composers such as Elgar, Coleridge-Taylor, Davies, Parry, Bantock and Stanford. As with choral music, amateurs' needs were met with educational works (Novello's Music Primers) and series such as Novello's Violin and Pianoforte Albums and Novello's Pianoforte Albums.

Absorbed firms include Coventry & Hollier (1849-1851), Ewer (1867), Elkin & Co. (1960), Goodwin & Tabb and W. Paxton & Co. (1971). Novello was finally bought out by Music Sales, Ltd. in the 1990s and merged with Chester and Hansen. In 2018 Music Sales (now known as Wise Music Group) sold its printed music division to Hal Leonard of the US, explaining the move is this announcement: “Printed music has played a special role in the long history of Music Sales, but our direction of travel has been very clear in recent years as we continue the expansion of our portfolio of copyrights in all styles and genres across the world.” Hal Leonard now claims to be the world's biggest music publisher.

Editions

• Purcell Society publications (1878-)

Series

• Novello's Octavo Anthems (1875-)
• Novello's Chorister Series
• Novello's Octavo Choruses
• Cantiones Sacrae
• Church Music Review
• Novello's Opera Choruses
• The Musical Times (1844-)
• Novello's Glee-Hive (Various) (1851-)
• Novello's Part-Song Book (1869-)
• Novello's School Songs
• Novello's Parish Choir Book (1866-)
• Novello's Short Anthems (1889-)
• The Orpheus (male voices)
• Novello's Tonic Sol-fa Series
• Novello's Music Primers
• The School Music Review (1892-)
• Novello's Octavo Edition of Two-part Songs for Female Voices (1890-)
• Novello's Octavo Edition of Trios, Quartets &c. for Female Voices (1875-)
• Novello's Christmas Carols
• Arrangements from the Scores of the Great Masters
• Novello's Violin and Pianoforte Albums
• Novello's Albums for Violoncello and Pianoforte
• Novello's Albums for Pianoforte and Stringed Instruments
• Novello's Pianoforte Albums
• Novello's Albums for the Organ
• Novello's Selected Pieces for the Organ
• The Recital Series of Original Organ Compositions
• Novello's Organ Music Club
• Original Compositions for the Organ

Imprints, Agencies, Addresses

Imprints

• Vincent Novello (1811-1866)
• J. Alfred Novello (1829-November 1861)
• [Novello's] Sacred Music Warehouse (1834-1856)
• Novello & Co. (November 1861-1867)
• Novello, Ewer & Co. (1867-1897)
• Novello & Co., Ltd. (1898-

Addresses

• 67 Frith Street, Soho (1829-1834)
• 69 Dean Street (1834-1867)
• 24 Poultry (May 1845-July 1856)
• 389 Broadway, New York (August 1852-1859)
• 35 Poultry (November 1861-June 1876)
• Clinton Hall, Astor Place, New York (1859)
• 1 Berners Street (December 1867-end of 1906)

• Novello, Ewer & Co., 1, Berners St. W. and 80 & 81, Queen St. E.C.

Plate Numbers

Novello's plate numbers are in the following format: ####. Dates in italics are estimated.

Very recent issues have different kinds of plates (some of which may be edition signifiers instead). Taking Sallinen works for example, his 4th symphony Op.49 has plate(?) 89 0110 07 , ©1981; his piano trio Op.96 (©2010) has plate(?) NOV 081411; the works listed above, e.g. the 8th symphony, have plates similar to NOV956087.

Catalogs

• 1890 Catalog of Novello, Ewer & Co.
• 1904-07 Catalogs of Novello & Co.

Sources Consulted

• The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, edited by Stanley Sadie.

New York and London: Macmillan Publications, 1980.

• The Macmillan Encyclopedia of Music and Musicians in One Volume, compiled and edited by Albert E. Wier

New York: The Macmillan Company, 1938

• Humphries, Charles and William C. Smith. Music Publishing in the British Isles from Beginning Until the Middle of the Nineteenth Century. Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1970.

Authority control

• VIAF (Novello & Co.)
• VIAF (Novello, Ewer & Co.)

Links

• Scores published by Novello