Last September, the venerable London publisher Duckworth published The Incomplete History of the Art of Funerary Violin by Rohan Kriwaczek. The book contains a fascinating account of how a new type of music emerged during the Reformation, which sought to recognise the deceased and the mourners’ sense of grief. A Guild of Funerary Violinists was established in 1580 and received a royal warrant from Elizabeth I (Kriwaczek himself is its latest president). The music thrived under the auspices of the guild, with members duelling at funerals to wring the most tears from mourners.

Mr Kriwaczek writes: “By 1833 the Cult of Funerary Violin had reached its zenith and Pope Gregory XVI, through the efforts of Cardinal Pacca, took action with a fanatical zeal unseen since the Albigensian crusade.