[3] Jeffrey Mark, a librarian with the New York Public Library and the first to write about Drexel 5611, observed that the manuscript contains three works by French composers, indicating that it was compiled during the reign of Charles II of England.

Surveying numerous manuscripts containing French harpsichord music, Bruce Gustafson suggested "circa 1664?

"[5] In her discussion of the manuscript, Candace Bailey noted that Gerald Hendrie (editor of an edition of Orlando Gibbons's keyboard music) observed that Gibbons's composition "The Queen's Command" exists both in Drexel 5611 and in British Library manuscript Add.

Bailey observed that if the 1657 termination date is correct, Drexel 5611 represents the earliest sources of music composed by Matthew Locke.

[9] The manuscript's title page is preceded by a tipped-in image of Gibbons by engraved by J. Caldwell and published about 1750—apparently the work of a later owner.

(The engraving is the same as included in John Hawkins's A General History of the Science and Practice of Music published in 1776.

)[18] Jeffrey Mark observed that seven of the final ten works in Drexel 5611 were composed by Albertus Bryne.

[4] Klakowich discovered that the manuscript had once belonged to Charles Burney and was listed as lot 634 in the auction of his estate.

[24][25] Purchased for £16 10s,[26] the manuscript was one of about 600 lots acquired by Philadelphia-born financier Joseph W. Drexel, who had already amassed a large music library.

Most scholars suspect that the first scribe (who entered most of the works and the index at the front of the volume) was Thomas Heardson.

[27] He suggested that this copyist might have been an associate of Heardson's which Bailey considers a "reasonable proposal" (particularly as no other evidence presents itself).

87-89 on pages ....[27][9] This is particularly intriguing not just because of consecutive works by the same composer, but also because, as observed by Klakowich, the scribe appears to be the same one who penned the manuscript Ob.

Bailey attempted to reconcile the two conflicting viewpoints, noting that both manuscripts have a similar provenance (both are from Oxford), lending much weight to Bryne as the third copyist.

For example, in his edition of keyboard works by Orlando Gibbons, editor Gerald Hendrie discounts all of Drexel 5611's attributions.

[35] Klakowich therefore opens up the possibility that some of the attributions in Drexel 5611, rather than exclusively indicating composers, may sometimes refer to arrangers.

[37] Combining designated works with those exhibiting particular dance characteristics, Klakowich observed that Drexel 5611 contains 31 almands, 43 corants, 8 sarabands, and 1 galliard.

66, attributed in the manuscript to John Bull but probably composed by Orlando Gibbons), and the ground by Arthur Phillips.

Advancing this idea, Mark surmised that the few works which do not adhere to this scheme were probably later additions entered on what was originally blank pages.

)[34] She observed the kind of music contained in Drexel 5611 ranges from simple settings of popular tunes to more complex works with varied repeats.

[7] In this section she observed that the copyist must have had access to contemporary modern music of the period including the English Civil War and the Commonwealth of England.

[7] Bailey saw a second section from pages 66 through 130, characterized by a change of repertory that included works by foreign composers.

[7] Bailey identified the final section starting at page 131 and continuing through the end, beginning with a suite by Matthew Locke followed by ten works by Bryne.

(Klakowich,[41] Gustafson, Cooper 1989) Bailey noted that works of composers John Roberts and Albertus Bryne appear to have been influenced by French keyboard style.

Bailey considered Facy's works were "part of the final vestiges of the contrapuntal tradition of the virginalists and evince a kinship with similar pieces by John Lugge, possibly resulting from a personal relationship with Lugge, who lived relatively nearby in Exeter.