Christopher Simpson (c.1605–1669) was an English musician and composer, particularly associated with music for the viola da gamba. Various sizes of viol The viol or viola da gamba family of musical instruments is related to the vihuela, rebec, etc. ...

Christopher Simpson was born between 1602 and 1606, the son of a Yorkshire cordwainer. It is thought that his family had Catholic sympathies and that he may have been a closet Jesuit. He fought in the English Civil War, on the Royalist side and, in 1642, was a quarter-master in the army of the Earl (later Duke) of Newcastle. Following the siege of York, Simpson took refuge at the manor of Sir Robert Bolles, at Scampton, Lincolnshire, where Bolles employed him as a tutor to his son John. It was during this period of his life that he wrote The Division-Violist (published 1659). Jump to: navigation, search The White Yorkshire rose. ... A cordwainer (or cordovan) is somebody who makes shoes and other articles from fine soft leather. ... The Society of Jesus (Latin: Societas Iesu), commonly known as the Jesuits, is a Roman Catholic religious order. ... Jump to: navigation, search The term English Civil War (or Wars) refers to the series of armed conflicts and political machinations which took place between Parliamentarians and Royalists from 1642 until 1651. ... The noun or adjective, Royalist, can have several shades of meaning. ... William Cavendish, 1st Duke of Newcastle (1592 - December 25, 1676) was an English soldier, politician and writer. ... Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs) is a county in the East Midlands of England. ...

It is thought that Simpson returned to London in about 1652. In about 1663 he bought an estate near Egton, Yorkshire. He died, either in Lincolnshire or London in 1669.

His book, The Division Violist is a set of practical instructions, organised into three sections: Of the Viol it self, with Instructions how to Play upon it; Use of the Concords, or a Compendium of Descant; and The Method of ordering Division to a Ground. The book is a parallel text in English and latin. It was a highly successful publication and continued to appear in new editions for sixty years after the death of its author. With the revival of early music during the 20th century, and renewed interest in the viol, Simpson's book was read with renewed interest by those who sought to rediscover the "authentic" technique for playing the instrument.

A small number of Simpson's musical compositions survived, mainly in manuscript form. For example, he composed a set of fantasias entitled The Monthes and Seasons, which consist of two treble and one bass viol parts, with continuo. All his surviving instrumental works are for viol, an instrument about which he wrote that: "a viol in the hands of an excellent violist may (no doubt) be reckon'd amongst the best of musical instruments. To play extempore to a ground is the highest perfection of it".

References

• Christopher Simpson: The Division-Violist: or An Introduction to the Playing upon a Ground, printed by William Godbid, and sold by John Playford, Facsimile reprint edited with introduction by Nathalie Dolmetsch, London: J. Curwen, 1955
• Percy Scholes: Oxford Companion to Music, OUP