Boosey & Hawkes

History

Boosey & Hawkes is a British music publisher that claims to be the largest specialist classical music publisher in the world. Until 2003, it was also a major manufacturer of brass, string and wind musical instruments.

Formed in 1930 through the merger of two well-established British music publishers, Hawkes & Son, Ltd. and Boosey & Co, Ltd., the company owns the copyrights or agencies to much major 20th century music, including works by Bartók, Bernstein, Britten, Copland, Kodály, Mahler, and Richard Strauss.

The acquisition of Serge Koussevitzky's Editions Russes de Musique in 1947 represented a major turning point in the building of its 20th century music catalogue, and marked the addition of numerous works of composers like Stravinsky, Rachmaninoff, and Prokofiev.

Boosey and Hawkes, with headquarters in London, also publishes many prominent contemporary composers, such as Louis Andriessen, Harrison Birtwistle, Peter Maxwell Davies, Henryk Górecki, Heinz Karl Gruber, Robin Holloway, Magnus Lindberg, James MacMillan, Olga Neuwirth, Michael Nyman, Kurt Schwertsik and Mark-Anthony Turnage.

The company's New York branch has developed its own catalogue emphasizing the works of American composers, including John Adams, Elliott Carter, David Del Tredici, Walter Piston, Ned Rorem and Steve Reich.

Boosey & Hawkes Music Shop had a shop at 295 Regent Street in London from the 1930s until 2005, but now sells only online. Its offices relocated to the Aldwich, London in 2005. It still has the UK's largest selection of printed music from all publishers, and operates a worldwide mail order service.

Important Acquisitions

• Edition Russe de Musique (1947)
• Arrow Music Press (incl. Cos Cob Press) (1956)
• Anton J. Benjamin (incl. N. Simrock) (2002)

Editions

Imprints, Agencies, Addresses

Boosey (prior to merger)

London addresses

• Thomas Boosey, 4 Old Broad Street (ca.1792-1819)
• Thomas Boosey, 28 Holles Street, Oxford Street (ca. 1816-1854)
• Boosey and Sons, 28 Holles Street (ca.1854-1864)

• additional address at 24 Holles Street, (ca.1857-1864)

• Boosey and Co., 28 and 24 Holles Street (ca.1864-1874)
• Boosey and Co., 295 Regent Street, (1874-1930)

New York addresses

• Boosey and Co., 644 Broadway (ca. 1860-ca. 1862)
• Boosey and Co., 32 East 14th Street (between 1864 and 1874?)

After 1930 merger

• Boosey & Hawkes Ltd., 295 Regent Street, London W. 1
• Boosey & Hawkes Inc., 43-47 West 23rd Street, New York City
• Boosey & Hawkes (Canada) Ltd., 10 Shuter Street, Toronto
• Boosey & Hawkes (Australia) Pty. Ltd., National Building, 250 Pitt Street, Sydney

Plate Numbers

B.H.Bk.

Sources

• Humphries, Charles and William C. Smith. Music Publishing in the British Isles From the Beginning Unil the Middle of the Nineteenth Century. Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1970.
• The Musical World (January 5, 1861), p. 5.

Authority control

• VIAF (Boosey & Hawkes)
• VIAF (Boosey & Co., Boosey & Sons)
• VIAF (Hawkes & Sons)