Tantalizingly, many of his compositions, especially the large-scale vocal ones, survive only in the form of extracted individual movements, but one particularly attractive orchestrally accompanied cantata for tenor, Celia, a free-standing composition, provides an excellent introduction to his writing for the voice. With its specially written English text, Celia proved a popular item in concerts from the 1750s onwards, becoming a ‘signature’ piece of John Beard, the leading tenor of his day. Modern audiences will respond to its vivacity and tunefulness.

Music example: Celia (pdf)