Understanding the musical world of Henry VIII’s court is vital when considering which instruments might have been used to perform the repertoire of The Mulliner Book. Caldwell notes that, “it would not do to be unduly dogmatic about the performance of this music.”[1] We simply do not know which instruments Mulliner might have performed this repertoire on. Therefore, taking a limited approach only using one instrument for the recordings in my project would not do this repertoire, nor the rich music world in which it was written, justice.

For The Mulliner Project I decided to produce my recordings on keyboard instruments that were known to be prevalent in Tudor society at the time, and that Mulliner would have realistic access to. Mulliner was known to be a keyboardist, having been an organist at Corpus Christi College, Oxford.[2] Therefore, he most definitely would have played the organ and portative organ. As no Tudor organs have survived the Reformation, and access to replicas is extremely difficult, I decided to use a modern eclectic pipe organ for this project. The portative organ I used in The Mulliner Project is a modern, but historically inspired instrument with a registration similar to a Tudor chamber organ and regal.

As organs typically required many assistants to pump the bellows, regular practise on these instruments would have been impractical. This has resulted in most organists throughout the ages becoming multi-instrumentalists, and therefore practising for the organ on other keyboard instruments. This practice still continues today, with most organ students encouraged to learn repertoire initially away from the organ. Organists throughout the renaissance and baroque periods would commonly practise on a combination of other keyboard instruments, such as the clavichord, harpsichord, spinet, or virginal, in preparation for a performance on the organ. This practical limitation, combined with the prevalence of these stringed keyboard instruments in all aspects of Tudor life, indicates that Mulliner probably played these stringed keyboard instruments too. In The Mulliner Project I recorded repertoire on modern recreations of historical harpsichords and spinets. Due to issues regarding instrument access, I was unable to record any music on a regal, clavichord, or virginal. However, this can easily be arranged at a later time and be part of a future expansion of this project.

[1] Mulliner, The Mulliner Book, ed. Caldwell, xxxiii.

[2] Mulliner, The Mulliner Book, ed. Caldwell, xxxiii.