ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a brief biographical introduction to Baptist Noel, 4th Earl of Gainsborough (1708–51), and his family and a summary of his known cultural interests. The improvements he made to the Exton estate and his commissioning of paintings and sculptures are viewed as evidence of his desire to demonstrate the status, wealth and good taste of his house, while his subscriptions to printed music and literature (listed in Appendix I) are interpreted as signs of his interest in these sister arts. The sermon preached at his funeral is adduced as further evidence of these interests and of his personal qualities. It is suggested that Gainsborough probably learned to sing as a boy and continued to do so as a man. His awareness of music by Handel is explored, and attention is drawn to a poem attributed to Gainsborough and to the two musical settings of it that are known to survive.
