The Music of Isle of Man in the 19th century

The church music is the most documented Manx music in the 19^th century, Lining out was a common method, as it was throughout Great Britain and Irdeland. West gallery artists performed for special events, using locally-composed or renowned composition. Organs were a later significant that became standard in most of the island’s churches. The first collection of Manx church songs was printed in the year 1799, and was accompanied by many other collections, though it was not until the 1807s and 1880s that Manx music started to be published in any great quantity, as drawing-room ballads, religious songs and choral arrangements all became famous. The explosion of this music initiated with a boom in the tourism industry for the isle, and Manx music-hall and dance-hall songs and dance saw increased demand. Derby Castle and the Palace Hall became two of the most prominent venues in the British Isles, during this period and there were a number of thriving smaller developments. Manx language songs in particular benefited from the Gaelic renewal from the 19^th century onwards.