British Isles
From the 14th century, numerous British composers contributed to the European music in accordance with the international trends and standards, often of the highest quality. But when an average music lover in the Western world is asked to name his most favourite composers, probably no British name would appear; he generally prefers music from the 18th and 19th century, which was dominated by Italian, German/Austrian and French composers. Before 1700 however, England sometimes played a decisive role in the musical world. The sonority of Dunstable (early 14th c.), the contenance angloyse, inspired the continental composers, as did the keyboard music from the Elizabethan and Jacobean era. During the latter era, English musicians were eagerly sought-after in Germany and Scandinavia. The greatest composer on British soil, George Frederick Handel, was of German birth indeed, but owed a lot to the genius of the Englishman Purcell. And despite the foreign influences since 1700, the famous current choral practice is above all rooted in a national tradition.
In the 1960s, English pop groups aroused a revolution in the popular musical world.
