Carl Engel

Born near Hanover in 1818, Carl Engel studied music in Germany before moving to Manchester in the mid-1840s and then settling in London in 1850. There he built a reputation as a music teacher and a writer on musical subjects, combining practical musicianship with a deep curiosity about music history and instruments.

He is best known for books such as The Music of the Most Ancient Nations and Musical Myths and Facts. His writing often ranged widely across musical traditions, instruments, and old beliefs about music, with a style aimed at explaining specialist topics in a lively, readable way.

Engel also became known as an important collector of musical instruments and for his work connected with museum collections. He died in 1882, but his books still give modern readers a window into 19th-century thinking about music, archaeology, and musical culture around the world.