Co-authored by James D. Brown (also known for A Biographical Dictionary of Musicians) and Stephen S. Stratton, British Musical Biography is an alphabetical reference work to the key achievements of British musical artists, composers and authors from as early as 1042 AD to the end of the nineteenth century. It first appeared in 1897 as an experiment in publishing and was motivated partly by patriotism on the part of the authors. It includes the names of British composers and performers, their dates of birth and death, brief biographies, and details of important works, their first performance, and date of first publication. Interpreting their brief to include the whole of the British empire, the authors have included the names of well over 2,500 famous and lesser-known musicians born in Britain and its colonies.