Introduction

Summary

The Introduction establishes Herbert’s reputation as a musical poet. It lays out contemporary evidence for Herbert’s practical interest in music-making, and draws attention to a wider engagement with music among members of the extended Herbert and Sidney families. Remembered by early biographers for his musical skill, George Herbert is celebrated for his musical verse, much of which is still regularly performed today in musical settings as hymns, songs, and anthems. This chapter argues for the importance of attending to the aural and oral characteristics of Herbert’s verse, and – drawing on critical discussions about the nature of early modern lyric verse and the lyric mode – it establishes the need to develop a cultural poetics of listening.