ABSTRACT
At the start of the nineteenth century, the dearth of indigenous musicians had been grounds for establishing the Royal Academy of Music (RAM) in 1822. Proclaimed initially as an alliance with the senior RAM in the hope of securing a government grant, the circumstances proved prejudicial to such a partnership and the National Training School for Music (NTSM) came to be established independently. Apart from the RAM, all precursors to the NTSM had failed, and Daniel Defoe's proposal of 1727 was no different, although it was certainly the result of a considered opinion. It shares many of its objectives with later institutions, and Defoe makes a clear distinction between those who profess music and those for whom it is merely an acceptable pastime. Unlike the early Victorians, Defoe had advocated musical appreciation and participation as an appropriate diversion for the gentry and the 'better sort of Traders'.
