Jones, William

Composer

b Lowick, Northants 1726, d Nayland, Suffolk 1800. Charterhouse School (1740–45) and Univ Coll, Oxford, where he studied music privately and was attracted by the writings of John Hutchinson (1674–1713), who with his followers opposed Isaac Newton’s teaching. Ordained in 1751, after several curacies he was Rector of Pluckley, Kent, 1765–77. He then became incumbent (technically, perpetual curate) of Nayland, Suffolk, from 1777 to 1798, where he also played the organ. FRS from 1775. Firmly believing that music is a gift of God, he composed for the organ and wrote Sound and Music in 1781 and Treatise of the Art of Music (theory and practice) in 1784. His more unusual theories, connected with maths and the physics of electric particles, leaned towards the Hutchinsonians; because they illustrated from nature the doctrine of theHoly Trinity (about which he had published works in 1756 and 1792) he was dubbed ‘Trinity Jones’; sometimes ‘Jones of Nayland’. His nickname for himself was ‘oudeis’ (Gk ‘nobody’) and a dining club ‘Nobody’s Friends’ was founded in his honour and long survived him, Wm Walsham How (see Authors’ index) becoming a member in 1884. No.5=780.