English family of music publishers and violin makers. The business was founded by John Hare (d London, bur. 9 Sept 1725), who by July 1695 was established in London as a printer and publisher. In August that year he acquired additional premises in London which he probably took over from John Clarke (the 11th edition of Youth’s Delight on the Flageolet, earlier editions of which had been issued by Clarke, was one of Hare’s first publications). He gave up these two premises for new ones in April 1706 and remained in business alone until December 1721. His son Joseph Hare (d London, bur. 17 July 1733) joined him in January 1722, and they published jointly until John’s death in September 1725. Joseph then carried on the business in his name, probably on behalf of his mother Elizabeth Hare (‘the elder’) (d Islington, London, bur. 8 July 1741), until June 1728 when he formed his own business. Elizabeth apparently continued her late husband’s business with John Simpsonuntil July 1734, when it was sold and she retired to Islington; Simpson then took over her sign and set up on his own account. Joseph Hare’s concern was continued after his death by his widow Elizabeth Hare (‘the younger’), who was active as a publisher at least until July 1752.
The number of independent publications by the Hare family is comparatively small. From 1695 until about November 1730, however, John, and later Joseph, Hare had close ties, perhaps family ones, with john Walsh (i), and a great number of Walsh’s publications bear their names in conjunction with his own. John Hare was also associated with Henry Playford for a time. The Hares presumably supplied the Walshes with the instruments sold to the royal court. Several Hare instruments have survived, those by Joseph indicating that he was among the first to adopt Stradivarian design in London.
Humphries-SmithMP
KidsonBMP
W.C. Smith: A Bibliography of the Musical Works Published by John Walsh during the Years 1695–1720 (London, 1948, 2/1968)
W. Henley: Universal Dictionary of Violin and Bow Makers (Brighton, 1959–60)
W.C. Smith and C. Humphries: A Bibliography of the Musical Works published by the Firm of John Walsh during the Years 1721–1766 (London, 1968)
B.W. Harvey: The Violin Family and its Makers in the British Isles (Oxford, 1995), 105–6
WILLIAM C. SMITH/PETER WARD JONES, DAVID HUNTER