In the early nineteenth century, there developed an intimate and unique association between the eminently portable guitar, an instrument capable of full harmony, and new forms of travel. Between 1800 and 1820 a new fashion for picnics arose, together with a vogue for sketching parties to capture picturesque scenes or ruins. The guitar was an ideal instrument for the many different movements of a society that was becoming increasingly mobile well before the beginnings of the railway. By 1825, steamships could be hired for excursions down the Thames or, moving out through the estuary, to Margate or to Dieppe; this kind of excursion, complete with guitars, is described by Charles Dickens in Sketches by Boz. As a result, certain coastal resorts became important centres of amateur guitar playing, and one, namely Brighton, where this lecture will come to rest, grew in royal favour to the point where major players gave recitals there.

The transcript and downloadable versions of the lecture are available from the Gresham College website: http://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures-and-events/the-guitar-the-steamship-and-the-picnic-england-on-the-move

Gresham College has been giving free public lectures since 1597. This tradition continues today with all of our five or so public lectures a week being made available for free download from our website. There are currently over 1,500 lectures free to access or download from the website.
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