Her Musick Book - Concert and Presentation

Uncover the story of the Arthour-Wight Manuscript and experience its music as it would have been heard centuries ago.

Carefully compiled in the 1730s by two young women of Scottish high society, the Arthour- Wight Manuscript – etched with their own handwriting – was discovered more than 200 years later tucked safely inside a piano at Riversdale Homestead, Goulburn’s oldest settlement.

Discover the theories as to how the manuscript made its way to Australia and what the research reveals about the musical pursuits and personal lives of Margrat Arthour – born into an influential and controversial Scottish family in 1710 – and her friend, Helen Wight.

The presentation is followed by a 1-hour concert of music from the Arthour-Wight manuscript played on period instruments. The music has been arranged for baroque violin, viola d’amore, and baroque flute, along with recorded vignettes to weave the historical sound-world of 1730s Edinburgh into the program.

Duo: Shane Lestideau/ Meredith Beardmore