Musicology Commons^™

Ruling The Market: How Venice Dominated The Early Music Printing World, Elizabeth M. Poore

Musical Offerings

This paper attempts to prove that Venice was the main geographical center of music printing and publishing from the 1300s to the late 1500s using several economic, legal, and cultural factors. The primary research method was examining secondary sources on music printing, publishing, and European and Venetian history.

From the 1300s to the late 1500s, Venetian commercial trade and activity, including book publishing, reached unheard of levels. Venice held a powerful position in the European economy and its merchants were able to leverage this to great advantage when the new technology of printing became available. The specialized business of music …