Carden, A. D.; Rogers, S. J.; Moore, F.; Green, J. The Western Harmony, or, The Learner's Task Made Easy: containing A Choice Collection of Tunes for Church Service, some them entirely new, Suited to the various Metres in Watts' Hymns & Songs, & The Methodist and Baptist Hymn Books, to which is added A few of the most approved Anthems; Selected by A. D. Carden, S. J. Rogers, F. Moore, and J. Green. Nashville: Published and Sold by Allen D. Carden and Samuel J. Rogers, and for sale at the Bookstores..in the Principal Towns in Tennessee, Kentucky and Alabama. Republican Office - Carey A. Harris, Printer, College Street, Nashville, 1824. First Edition. [8779]
Leather spine, marbled paper over card, joints good, binding rubbed & worn. Oblong 13.5 cm (5 1/4 x 9 inches), dark stains to the first few leaves, dark foxing throughout. Leaf 113-114 torn at top corner with loss to the ends for four stanzas; rear fly page torn with loss. (1)-151 (1); text complete. Good. Hardcover.
Stanislaw 32.
Allen Dickenson Carden (1792-1859) b. Tennessee; d. Franklin, Tennessee. "Singing-school teacher and tunebook compiler. Nothing is known of his early activities or training, but in 1817 he was active as a teacher in Tennessee, Kentucky, and Virginia, and in 1823 he taught the first singing-schools in Nashville. His first tunebook, Missouri Harmony (published in St. Louis, printed in Cincinnati, 1820, rev. 1850/R1975), was the most popular tunebook of the South and West until the Civil War, and went through 22 editions by 1857. Carden procured music type and published his other tunebooks himself; The Western Harmony (Nashville, 1824) and United States Harmony (Nashville, 1829) [but they] did not achieve the success of Missouri Harmony, however. Carden remained in and around Nashville from 1830 to 1850, when he moved to Williamson County (probably Franklin, Tennessee)." - David L. Crouse, The New Grove Dictionary of American Music.
With a signed provenance card from the collection of A. Merril Smoak, Jr., DWS.