Copying Strategies in the Manuscript Dissemination of Luigi Boccherini's Trios Opus 1

Abstract

This article deals with the ways in which music copyists worked when they were producing manuscript copies of Boccherini's trios Opus 1. There are five basic strategies: (1) Copying from printed editions is usually very accurate. (2) Copying from other manuscript is often rather careless, creating many variants in details. (3) Some copyist introduce substantial revisions and improvements. (4) Some copyist (rare) make in fact arrangements of the work they copy. And (5) Some copyists transcribe the works for other combinations of instruments. In general one can say that manuscript copying ends up in the existence of many variant versions of the same musical work.