Benjamin Cooke (? - 1743) was an organist, music publisher and music seller based at the Golden Harp, in New Street, Covent Garden from 1726 to 1743. Cooke had in 1723 married the widow of John Jones who had operated as an instrument maker and music publisher at the Golden Harp until 1720.
His second wife Elizabeth Wayet, the sister-in-law of Lancelot (Capability) Brown gave birth to the composer Benjamin Cooke(1734 - 1793).
As well as collections of dance music Cooke's production included a seminal edition of the collected works of Arcangelo Corelli in study scores comprising all five books of sonatas and the twelve concerti grossi. Indeed, Cooke was in many ways a pioneering music publisher with his insistence on sourcing music from composers or their agents rather than other publishers material.
Where's the book now, Ian, please? or is it your own copy? It beats the earliest country dance source I knew of (apart from actual dance manuals), viz Kitty Bridge's MS of 1745 in VWML. Thanks for sharing.
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