The+great+northern+tunebook+william+vickers+collection+of+dance+tunes+ad1770+free -

Title: The Great Northern Tunebook (also known as the William Vickers Manuscript)
Date: Approximately 1770
Compiler: William Vickers (likely a land surveyor or musician from North East England)
Nature: A handwritten manuscript of dance tunes from the 18th century
Modern Edition: The Great Northern Tunebook – published by the Northumbrian Pipers’ Society, edited by Dr. Matt Seattle
Free Access: The PDF edition is legally available for free download under a Creative Commons license (CC BY-NC-ND)

This is a modern scholarly edition of one of the most important English manuscript tune books from the 18th century. William Vickers, a gentleman from Newcastle upon Tyne (or possibly Wylam, Northumberland), compiled this manuscript around 1770. It contains over 500 dance tunes, making it the largest known English country dance manuscript from its period.

Search exactly:
"Great Northern Tune Book" Vickers
You will often find a borrowed or downloadable PDF of the 2008 edition (public domain in some jurisdictions, or uploaded by contributors with permission). Title: The Great Northern Tunebook (also known as

Direct link example pattern (note: links change; search fresh):
archive.org/details/greatnortherntun0000vick

As of 2026, the following resources provide legal, free access: Note: No payment or subscription is required

| Source | Description | Link / Search Keywords | |--------|-------------|------------------------| | Internet Archive | Scanned original manuscript + typeset edition | “William Vickers tunebook 1770” | | Traditional Tune Archive | Annotated tune index | “Vickers, William (Great Northern)” | | The Village Music Project | Transcribed ABC notation | “Vickers manuscript” | | Folkopedia / English Dance & Song Society | Historical commentary | “Great Northern Tunebook” |

Note: No payment or subscription is required. Files are available as PDFs, MIDI, and ABC text. William Vickers (fl

William Vickers (fl. 1770–1780) lived near Newcastle upon Tyne. His occupation as a surveyor likely required travel, enabling him to collect tunes from diverse sources: local fiddlers, urban music publishers, and oral traditions from the Scottish Borders. The manuscript’s date “1770” is inscribed on the title page, placing it in the early reign of George III.

At that time, dance tunes were disseminated via cheap printed sheets (e.g., John Johnson’s 200 Favourite Country Dances) and handwritten manuscripts exchanged among musicians. Vickers’ book is unusual for its size and the inclusion of tune titles that mix local dialect, political references, and standard dance forms.