BOY 



BOY 



iciguof his late majofl)- George II., aboiit vliicli time lie re- 

 nioveJ to Kcniirigtoii Gore, where he cii'ltd liis days in 1779. 

 He was educated at St. Paul's ichool, and liegaii liisnuilical 

 career as a choriller in that catiiedral. When he loll his treble 

 voice, he was bound apprentice to Dr. Cireeiie, then organill 

 of the metropolitan churcii. The mailer and ioholar ieemcd 

 worth V of each other, living in ll)e iitmoft cordiality and 

 friendfliip ; the mailer loving tlie pnpil, and the pupil ho- 

 nouring and rtfpecling the mailer, to the end of their 

 lives. 



In 1734. he was a candidate for the place of organifl of 

 St. Michael's church, Cornhill, with Froud, Young, James 

 V/organ, and Kelway. Init though he was unfuccefsful in 

 this application, Kelway having been elected, yet he was 

 appoitited, the fame year, to the place of organill of Oxford 

 chapel; and in 17.;6, upon the death of Weldon, wlicn 

 Kelway, beiirg elected organill of St. Martin's in the Fields, 

 refigned his place at St. Michael's Cornhill, Buyce was not 

 only tlecled organill of that church, but organill and com- 

 pofcr in the chapel royal. 



The fame year he let " David's I-amentations over Saul 

 and Jonathan," which was performed at the Apollo Society. 

 About the year 1743, he produced his ferenata of " Solo- 

 mon," which was not only long and jullly admired, as a 

 plealing ?nd elegant compolition, but ilill affords great de- 

 light to the friends of Englilli muiic, whenever it is per- 

 formed. His next publication was " Twelve Sonatas or 

 Trios for two Violins and a Bafe," which were longer and 

 •more generally purchafed, performed, and admired, than any 

 produdlions of the kind in this kingdom, except thole of Co- 

 relli. They were not only in conltant ufe, as chamber mulic, 

 in private concerts, for which they were originally defigned, 

 but in our theatres, as aft-tunes ; and public gardens, as fa- 

 vourite pieces, during many years. 



In 1749, lie fet the ode written by the Rev. Mr. Mafon, 

 for the inllallation of the late duke of Newcaftle, as chan- 

 cellor of the univerfity of Cambridge, at which time he was 

 honoured with the degree of doftor in mufic bv that 

 univerfity. Soon after this event he fet the " Chaplet," 

 a mufical drama, written by tlie late Mr. Mendez, for 

 Drury-lane theatre, which had a very favourable reception, 

 and long run, and continued many years in ufe among the 

 flock pieces for that theatre. Not long after the firll per- 

 formance of this drama, his friend Mr. Beard brought on 

 the fame ilage the fecular ode, written by Dryden, and ori- 

 ginally fet by Dr. Boyce for Hickford's room, or the Callle 

 concert, where it was lirft performed, in Hill life. This 

 piece, though lefs fuccefsful than the " Chaplet," by the 

 animated exertions of Mr. Beard, was many times exhibited 

 before it was wholly laid alide. Thcfc compolitions, with 

 occafional fingle fongs for Vauxhall and Ranelagh, diffemi- 

 nated the fame of Dr. Boyce throughout the kingdom, a? 

 a dramatic and mifcellaneous compofer, while his choral 

 compofitions for the king's chapel, for the feall of the fou3 

 of the clergy at St. Paul's, and for the triennial meetings at 

 *he three cathedrals of Worcefter, Hereford, and Gloucef- 

 ter, at the performances in all which places he conftantly 

 prefided till the time of his death, eltablillied his repu- 

 tation as an eccleliaftical compofer and able mailer of har- 

 mony. 



Dr. Boyce, with all due reverence for the abilities of 

 Handel, was one of the few of our clnirch compofers who 

 neither pillaged nor fervilely imitated lum. There is an ori- 

 ginal and ftcrling merit in his productions, founded as much 

 on the fludy of our own old mailers, as on the befl models 

 of other countries, that gives to all his works a peculiar 

 (lamp and charafter of his own, for (Irength, clearnefs, and 



facility, wiihout any mixture of ftylcs, or extraneous and 



heterogeneous ornaments. 



On the dtceafe of Dr. Greene, in 1757, he was appointed 

 mailer of the king's band, and, in 175S, on tlie death of 

 Travers, organill of the chapel royal ; of which he had fiic- 

 cecded Weldon, in I7,j6, as com])ofer ; fo that he enjoyed 

 three honourable appointments at once, which ultd to be 

 fupplied by three fevcral jirofeflbrs. The gout put an end 

 to the exillerice of tliis wortiiy man, and excellent compofer, 

 at the age of 69.- He was fucceeded in the chapel royal by 

 Mr. (afterwards Dr.) Dupuis, and, as a mailer of his ma- 

 jelly's band, by Mr. Stanley. 



BOYD, Mark Alexander, a defccndant of the an- 

 cient family of this name in Scotland, was born in Gallo- 

 way, in 1562, and placed for education at Glafgow, under 

 the care of his uncle, the archbilliop. But being of an un- 

 governable and turbulent temper, he quarrelled with his 

 preceptors, dellroyed his books, and renounced the purfnits 

 of literature. He then fought to pufh his interell at court ; 

 and when all the endeavours of his fi lends to ferve him in 

 that fituation proved ineffeftual, they fent him in a military 

 capacity to the wars of the United Provinces, with a view of 

 rellraining the violence of his temper. From hence he foon 

 removed to Paris, and loll his whole flock of money by 

 gaming. The dillrefs that cnfued fcems to have bro\iglu 

 him to refleftion, and he determined to apply to literaiy Hu- 

 dies. Accordingly he repaired to Bourges, and attended 

 the leftures of the famous civilian Cujacius. To this emi- 

 nent profeflbr he recommended himfelf by peculiar attention 

 and refpeft, and by adopting his tafte in Latin poetry ; and 

 thus he acquired a fondnefs for the antiquated ityle of En- 

 nius, and of the older Latin poets. From Bourges he was 

 driven by the plague to Lyons, and thence to Italy. On the 

 renewal of the civil wars in France, he removed thither, and 

 bore arms with reputation in the royal caufe ; and after a 

 variety of adventures he returned to his native country, where 

 he died in i6oi. The talents and performances of Boyd 

 have been mucli over-rated ; and he has been reprefentcd 

 as another " admirable Crichton." But llhough he poflefFed 

 a vigorous and verfatile genius, he never acquired, probablv 

 on account of his indolence and dlHipatian, any kind of dif- 

 tinguifhed excellence. Belides feveral manufcripts which be 

 left behind him, on political, critical, and poetical topics, 

 his " EpillolK Heroidum," and his " Hymni," were pub- 

 lillied in the " Delicia; Poetarum Scotorum," printed at 

 Amilerdam," in 2 vols. i2nio. 1657. His " Epiilolx" 

 were inlcribed to James VI. of Scotland, or James I. of 

 England, whom he reprefents as fuperior to Pallas in vvif- 

 dom, and Mars in arms. As to the charafter of his poetry, 

 it confills in an imitation of the word manner of Ovid ; and 

 his hymns, which have no tinfture of devotion, are poems 

 to which he has annexed the title of fomc flower or herb, 

 the qualities of which he has defcribed. Bifhop Tanner in- 

 forms us, that, belides his epillles and hymns, he publiHied 

 two books of " Epigrams." Biog. Brit. 



BOYDELL, John, a liberal patron of the arts, and an 

 honour to his country, was born at Dorrington, in Shropdiire, 

 on the 19th of January 1719. His father, who was a land- 

 furveyor, intended his fon for his own profeffion ; and, had it 

 not been for one of thofe little accidents which often deter- 

 mine the path that men are dellined to walk, he had walled 

 that life, which has been fo honourable to himfelf, and be- 

 neficial to this nation, in meafuring and valuing the acres of 

 Shroplhire fquires, and the manors of Welch baronets. • 

 Fortunately lor himfelf and the arts, a trifling incident 

 gave a different direftion to his mind, and led him to aim at 

 the delineation of fcencs more pidurefque than the ground- ' 

 X I phu ^ 



