This three-volume work tells the complete story of American popular songs, their authors, and the business they set in motion. Volume one explores the inception of the music publishing business in Elizabethan England and traces music activity in England until 1790, examining popular balladry, copyright problems, the start of music printing, religious music, professional music makers, musical theater, eighteenth-century music, and such leading musical figures as Purcell, Handel, and Haydn. Also discussed are the beginnings of music in the United States, including musical theater, black music, and the Great Awakening and its relationship to music publishing [Publisher description].