· vi preface racter may be sa id, brieﬂy, to consist of a series (few or many, a ccording to...

P R E F A C E .

THE substance of the following pages —the result

of an a ttempt to tra ce the origin,growth

, and

development of English Glees and Part-songs— was

rea d a s a series of Lectures a t the City of London

College, under the auspices o f the Society for the

Extension of University Tea ching.

’ It wa s no por~

tion of their purpose to off er anything else than

the History of the subject. Such ma tters a s would

of necessity require to be made clear to musical

students were reserved for the technica l explana

tions which followed ea ch Lecture . The only point

which seems to call for elucida tion in the present

form these Lectures have a ssumed, may be pre

sented here for the benefit of those who may think

it necessa ry. This is a short explana tion of the

difl'

erence between a Glee and a Madriga l .

Taking the Ma driga l first, a s the older of the

two, and therefore a s entitled to priority, its cha

vi PREFACE

racter may be sa id, briefly, to consist of a series

(few ormany, a ccording to the na ture of the theme)

of conversa tiona l phrases, or of pa ssages in imita

tion, one part answering another, and interwoven

so a s to form ha rmony, the whole consisting of one

movement.

The Ma driga l may be sung by any number o f

voices to a part, but without instrumenta l a ecom

paniment. Mechanica l a ccura cy is an essentia l in

the performance. The words o f many of the best

specimens genera lly conta in some epigramma tic

sentence or conceit. ’

The Glee should be constructed in severa l move

ments, a ccording to the fancy of the composer and

the meaning of the words, but should ha ve not less

than two of contra sted chara cter. It should not

be sung by more than one voice to a part , and

should be capable o f a grea t amount of expression .

The words may be o f any chara cter, gra ve or gay .

For other informa tion the rea der is referred to the

book. If he knows more o f the subject than the

author, he is implored to be generous. If less,then , when he ha s finished the perusa l, perhaps he

will know quite a s much .

C ON TE N T S .

CHAPTER I.

INTRODUCTION.

FAG!

The worth o f musical art a s an element of social enjoyment— The love o f music the most universally spreadthrough allpeoples, and o ver all cla sses—A glance a t

the early history o f the a rt—The importance o f the

study o f particular branches—The origin o f polyphonicha rmony

—A sketch o f the rise and progress of part

CHAPTER II.

THE ORIGIN OF VOCAL HARMONY. FROM EARLYTIMES TO THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY.

A gla nce a t the music of the Ancients—The music of the

Hebrews—The Egyptians—The Greeks—The Romans—The European races in the time of the Christian era

—Music of the early Christian congregations— PopeGregory the Grea t and his reforms—The invention of

nota tion—The introduction o f the organ—The contri

butions o f Hucbald to the art and science—Organum—Falso-bordone—Descant—The invention o f counter

point—Neumaa—Mensuralmusic

CONTENTS

CHAPTER III.

THE ORIGIN OF VOCAL HARMONY FROM THE

EARLIE ST TIME S TO THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY

continued.

Time-signs—Ea rly compo sitions in harmony, sa cred and

secula r— The eff ect o f the Crusades uponmusical artThe troubadours— Their songs the precursors o f the

madrigal; the forerunner o f the glee—The glee a

distinctly characteristic and individual form o f com

position peculiar to England .

CHAPTER IV.

DEFINITION AND DE SCRIPTION .

The origin o f the word glee ’

as applied to a musical com

position— Quota tions from old writers showing themanner and variety o f the applica tion o f the term

CHAPTER V.

DEFINITION AND DE SCRIPTION— Contd'nued.

The early English transla tion o f the First Book of Moses,The Story o f Genesis, ’ 1250 — Robert Manning ’stransla tion of the l5oth Psalm , 1305— Chaucer ; thePromptorium Pa rvulorum—The gleemen , minstrels,jocula tors— The trouba dours, c‘b ‘

.

CHAPTER VI.

SIXTEENTH AND SE VENTEENTH CENTURIE S .

A short sketch o f the hi story o f the ma drigal -The Flemish,

Italian, and English writers o f m adrigals

PAGE

CONTENTS ix

CHAPTER VII.

SIXTEENTH AND SEVENTEENTH CENTURIE Scontinued.

PAGE

triumphs o f Oriana— The Huguenot version o f the

Psalms — The Puritans and their singing -Social

musical enterta inments, their cha ra cter and influence—The Commonwea lth—The restora tion o f mona rchyin England—The Ca tch clubs and ta vern music

Pelham Hum frey, Henry Purcell, and their contribu

tions to secular vo cal art—MichaelWise , John H ilton ,

John Playford, and the ‘ fugal duets ’o f the qua si

cla ssical era— Thoma s Brewer, and the earliest piece o f

music called a glee

CHAPTER VIII.

THE END OF THE SEVE NTEENTH CENTURY .

Musicians before and a fter the restora tion o f Cha rles II.Christopher Simpson—Willi am and Henry LawesRobert Coleman— The musica l ta verns in London and

elsewhere— John Jenkins—The influence o f Henry

Purcell

CHAPTER IX .

THE FIRST HALF OF THE E IGHTEENTH CENTURYav,contznued.

William Cro ft , John Blow , John Eccles, John Barrett ,Dr. Maurice Greene , and the writers o f the ca tches o f

the period—The so cial and convivial cha racter o f themeetings o f the time reflected in the words selected f ormusical settings -Descriptive ana lysis o f the musical

compositions for voices which immedia tely precededthe glee proper

CONTENTS

CHAPTER X .

THE SE COND HALF OF THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY

The influence o f Handel’s mnei‘c a ff ecting many o f the

forms o f COHlpOSlt O , the glee being one o f the excep

t ions—The unSa trSt‘

a ctory conditi on o f musical litera

ture

CHAPTER XI .

THOMAS AUGUSTINE ARNE AND HIS LABOURS.

The indefinite chara c ter o f the pieces of music called gleesabout the yea r 1760 ~ The f orm a t ion of the Catch Cluband the encouragement o f glee-wri ’t ing— Th’

e inst itution

o f pri z es The first pri z e-winner, George BergHolmes

’ca tches , s o c alled, rea lly gle es— Dr. Arne ’s

glees In m any instances Ident i cal In form with the

ca tch

CHAPTER XII.

THE SE COND HALF OF THE E IGHTEENTH C ENTURYcontinued.

SamuelWebbe, his life and labours— His ea rly struggles atself-educa ti on— H1s am i able and simple-hea rted dis

po si ti on— The va riety o f the chara‘ct’er o f hi s gleesCri tica l exam ina ti on o f 11 18 glees ~ His best works-f a iledto obta in priz’es

CHAPTER XIII.

THE SE COND HALF OF THE E IGHTEENTH CENTURYcontinued.

The effect o f Webbe’s genius upen his contempora ries

Lufim ann Atterbury , Dr. Alcock, Jo ah Ba tes, Ri cha rd

CONTENTS x1

PAGlt‘

Bellamy, John Danby, Lo rd Mom ington, Dr. Cooke,John Hindle,Ma tthew PeterKing, RichardWa inwright ,Stephen Pa xton, W . Pa xton, and other o f the lesser

glee composers

CHAPTER XIV.

!

THE SECOND HALF OF THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURYcontinued.

The progress o f musical a rt -The growth o f instrumental

a nd vocal f orms— John Sta ff ord Sm ith , his musicaleduca tion , his pupils , hi s ant i qua rian ta stes— H is odesa nd glees— Critical analysi s o f some o f his beautifulworks

CHAPTER XV .

THE SECOND HALF OF THE E IGHTEENTH CENTURYcontinued.

Reginald Spofi’

orth, the foreshadowing of the modern p artsong in his glees—The cultiva tion o f Vocal music no

longer restricted to pro fessional singers— Dr. Callcott

and his three-pa rt glees— The Influence o f the poems

o f Cha tterton and Ossian upon the glee-writersRicha rd John Samuel Stevens and his settings o f thewords of Shakespea re, Ossian , a ndOthers

CHAPTER XVI.

THE END OF THE E IGHTEENTH CENTURY AND

THE BEGINNING OF THE N INETEENTH.

William Horsley, Mus. Ba c . , Oxon— The purity of his style,

the gra ce of his melodi es , and his poetical fancy, a s

xii CONTENTS

shown in his glees— SamuelWesley, the elder, his lovef or the works o f John Seba stian Ba ch—His own

ma sterly independence o f style—His works indica ting

a complete a dvance in trea tment , while yet ma inta ining a reverence for the old contrapuntal rules

Theodore Aylwa rd, Samuel Arnold, and o thersThomas Attwood, the pupil o f Mozart—His gleesintended for domestic use

CHAPTER XVII .

PAGE

THE END OF THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY AND THE

BEGINNING OF THE NINETEENTH .

l‘

homa s Cooke , his versa tility— His perversions o f cla ssicalworks— Sir Henry Rowley Bishop , and his glees witha ccompaniments—The refining tendency o f his music

—The national chara cter o f his melodies—The um

deserved neglect o f his compositi ons

CHAPTER XVIII .

THE GLEE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY.

John Goss one o f the f ew glee-writers who excelled inthe composition of Church music— The decay o f gleewriting—The loss o f the art through the cultiva tion o f

instrumental music a nd o ther causes —Robert Luca sPea rsall and his happy union o f the glee and madrigalstyles

— The introductlon o f the so-called German glees— The origin o f the pa rt-song—J. L . Ha tton , HenrySma rt, Ma cf arren, and other writers o f pa rt-songsCollections o f glees Glee societies and choralunionsThe advantages to be derived from a study o f thesubject— Conclusion

INDEX

ENGLISH GLEES AND PART-SONGS.

CHAPTER I.

INTRODU C TORY.

The worth o f musical art a s an element o f social enjoyment—The love o f music the most universally spread throughall peoples, and o ver all cla sses—A glance at the ea rly

history o f the art— The importance o f the study of par

ticular branches—The origin of polyphonic harmony—Asketch o f the rise and progress of part-writing.

THE worth of the art of Music a s an element of

socia l enjoyment is so universa lly recognised tha t

it scarcely needs a word sa id in defence of the

pra ctice of musica l skill in conjunction with others.

There is no science or art which inspires so much

delight in all cla sses of society in every part of the

world. Even among those na tions who have but an

imperfect idea of a Supreme Being, music, either

voca l or instrumenta l, forms an integra l element

of social enjoyment and religious worship . The

people of more cultiva ted sta tes wisely make music

a va luable portion of the plan of educa tion, a s it is

B

2 ENGLISH GLEES AND PART-SONGS

sa id the better to fit them for society. However

much a man may know in all other branches of

art and science, he will scarcely find anything so

available a s music. A few may be a ttra cted to

him to hear his rela tion of some new or interesting

fa ct or discovery in art or science, but it is music

a lone which is ca lled into exercise a s a means of

enjoyment in which all can join.

The transa ctions o f scientific bodies may be

read by a limited number to whom the business in

hand is more or less interesting . The records of

musica l events and productions appea l to all, and

the most eagerly read portions of the da ily and

weekly journa ls are those which rela te to the record,

description, and criticism of musica l doings. If

music is only capable o f exciting temporary emo

tions, the question then a rises, Why is it so exten

sively cultiva ted‘

2 If ithasno power in permanently

influencing the human chara cter, why should people

o f all shades of thought unite with one consent

into admitting it into schools and homes 9 Wha t

is the rea son tha t we find in nearly every town

and village, here and abroa d, the constant desireto form societies for its pra ctice and cultiva tion

Looking higher than the power it possesses o f

welding into a harmonious whole all sorts of con.

MUSIC IN WORSHIP 3

flicting elements of chara cter, it may be notedtha t

a s an a id to religious exercise its va lue is set a t the

highest point next to doctrine. It is a dmitted tha t

religious worship ga ins in power and impressive

ness in proportion to the dignity and solemnity of

the music brought to its a id.

If there wa s nothing beyond the emotiona l ex

citement temporarily crea ted by the effect of beau

tiful music in worship, its use would have been

abandoned long ere this. Instead o f this there are

congrega tions, now making the best endeavour to

turn it to profitable eff ect, who for a long time not

only discouraged its use, but a ctua lly made it the

subject of specia l condemna tion.

In a ddition, it may be mentioned tha t there are

many religious communities who have a lways given

music a pla ce in their formula ries, who now a re

carefully extending the na ture and importance of

this a id to worship by every possible means in their

power.

It can scarcely be urged with any chance of

a cceptance tha t the sta te of educa tion is in so rudi

mentary a condition tha t it is necessary first to

awaken the a rtistic feelings before the mora l senses

can be a cted upon,and so fitted to receive the

truths o f religion . The mora l sense is intuitive,B 2


and is experienced by all, even by those who do

not a ccept religious tea ching. Musicmay strengthen

the mora l sense, it is true, though not in so strong

a degree a s may be effected by means of other

works of art, particularly pa inting. It is because

it is hea lthful in tone andpure in purpose, perhaps,

tha t it is so earnestly sought a fter a s a handma id

to religion . The emotions may be temporarily ex

cited by the sounds of music, but music can never

by itself give rise to unworthy thoughts . It is only

by a ssocia tion with words, or some declared idea ,

tha t it is capable of producing certa in influences.

No one hearing instrumenta l music for the first

time can be moved by other influences than those

whi ch the sounds crea te. The impression on the

mind may be strengthened and deepened by many

causes . The beauty or a ssocia tions of the place

in which it is heard, the menta l condition of the

bearer, and other causes will be a t work in order

to produce effects which may be recalled upon

repetition o f the same stra ins elsewhere and at

another time.

It is only when music is connected with words

that the emotions excited by the words become in

tensified, and capable of reproduction with more orless force. The stories told of the eff ects o f abstra ct

MUSIC AND EMOTION 5

music are due more to the imagina tions of poets,to the constant pra ctice of their trade to confound

cause with result, to the genera l principle of ex

a ggera tion which is too often a dopted when they

wish to convey a mora l lesson . Those who listen

to a symphony— the most exa lted form of abstra ct

music— without knowledge of the picture it maybe a ssumed to present

,never rea lise the a ccepted

picture . If they a re capable of ana lysing their

own sensa tions and describing them in words, the

probability is tha t they will a scribe a meaning

to the music which wa s a ltogether foreign to the

a vowed intention .

English people listen to the f Rakoczy March’

without being tempted to lay their hands upon a

sword and go forth with a burning desire to slay

the enemies o f their country, which is sa id to be

the feeling of every true Hungarian when he hears

its stra ins . They can even hea r with different

sensa tions the skirl ’ o f the bagpipe which sets

Scottish blood on fire . There are even Scotchme'

n

who can hea r the sounds of this instrument with

out particular excitement, when the sounds a re

unconnected in their minds with a specia l idea .

It is because the melody Lochaber no more’

reca lls the love o f home, and causes nosta lgia , tha t

6 ENGLISH GLEES AND’

PART-SONGS

it is forbidden to be played in the Scotch regiments

when they are on foreign service. For the same

rea son the Swiss mercenaries were forbidden to

play the Ranz desVa ches out of their na tive moun

ta ins. When, therefore, music is employed in

religious worship, it finds its most sa lutary influ

ence when it is given in un ion with words, or in

the elucidation of a recogni sable object. To reca ll

this object and to empha sise its va lue, to enable

those who are moved by it to remember why they

are so moved, and to strengthen the lessons derived

from its a ssocia tions, music is rightly employed to

such an exa lted purpose, and, being so employed,

it must be considered a s o f grea ter worth for its

educational than for its emotiona l design.

That it ha s been regarded in this light from the

remotest ages, the history of the art itself shows.

Its origin is veiled in obscurity . The sacred

writings make no mention of the inventor o f the‘

art, and give no clue a s to its di scovery. The

most ancient writers offer no definite informa tion

a s to thosewho found out its charms, though many

conjectures are ma de and suggestions proposed.

The difficulty is overcome by a ssigning the inven

tion to those convenient but scarcely trustworthyauthorities the gods. Jupiter, Apollo, Pan,

Mercury,

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a ccidenta lly struck his foot aga inst the shell of a

dried turtle . He heard the shell give forth sounds

more or less musica l , the sounds coming from the

dried sinews over the concavity of the shell, which

formed a sort o f impromp tu resonance box. The

probable theories a ssume tha t the first musica l in

struments, the string and the pipe, were suggested

by the weapons used in hunting— the tightened

bowstring and the hollow reed with which darts

were blown to a distance a t birds and animals

sought for a s prey.

When once the fa ct of the discovery became

recognised, the desire to extend it by improvements

followed, and more convenient methods of utilising

the knowledge so ga ined suggested themselves.

Varieties of sound were thus at the command of

those who were able and willing to take the trouble

to ca ll them into opera tion.

It is not known, nor can it be even guessed,which form o f music, the voca l or the instrumenta l ,wa s the first discovered or employed. The opinion

tha t voca l music is the older o f the two seems to be

most common. This idea is based on the belief

tha t speech is of higher antiquity than manua l

dexterity. It is a sserted by some, tha t men learnt

to sing by a ttempting to imita te the song of birds.

MUSICAL GIFTS AND CULTURE 9

This implies a somewha t low opinion of the ea rly

fa culties of man to suppose tha t he should find

one of hismost delightful plea sures in the imita tion

o f the language o f anima ls.

’ It is more likely tha t

by his na tura l constitution and organisa tion he

should have been prompted to exercise his fa culties

a f ter his own na tura l manner independently. It

is better to believe tha t music , which wa s a t first

the expression of joy or sorrow, should have been

derived from the tones of the voice under the influ

ence of those pa ssions . Music is held to be a

na tura l gift, but it cannot be sa id how far the ex

istence o f tha t na tura l gift can be tra ced to heredi

tary conditions. The cultured mind o f a man is

due to his own individua l exertions in the endeavour

to take to himself and to a ssimila te the knowledge

he may a cquire through the experience of his con

temporaries and predecessors. The capa city for

cultiva tion, the inna te powers which fit him for

entering upon a course of menta l tra in ing, are parts

o f the inheritance he enjoys, the results of a series

o f developments o f menta l forces derived through

long genera tions . It is in a ccordance with the

recognition o f these fa cts, and the a ssumption tha t

in early sta ges of society the forefa thers of the

present ra ce were equa l in condition with contem


porary savage tribes, tha t the conjectures a s to the

origin of arts and sciences are founded .

The un iversa lity of the love for music in the

human mind is indica ted by the possession of some

sort of method of exercise, voca l or instrumenta l,

common to all, however far removed some may be

from the centres o f communica tion.

The history of the art has yet to be written.

All tha t ha s hitherto been done can only be held to

be contributive and not even fina l concerning its

early use. A compa rison o f the chara cter o f in

struments and o f their known history sifted from

tradition will in course of time revea l a s much in

degree a s the knowledge o f human ra ces derived

from the study of their severa l languages lays before

the philologist.

It cannot a t present be a ffirmed, on the one hand,

tha t the origin o f all musica l instruments is to be

tra ced to the usages o f one pa rticula r tribe neither

can it be sa id , on the other, with any ba sis o f cer

ta inty, tha t the knowledge o f music and the use of

instruments a rose spontaneously and simultane

ously in many directions .

The researches made in the tombs o f Egypt and

in the mounds of Nineveh have let in some light on

historica l study, only to show tha t those peoples

ORIGIN OF MUSICAL SY STEMS 11

who were a ccepted for ages a s the sources of civili

sa tion are themselves only tributaries from a fount

whose rise is still hidden from the explorer. The

tempests and convulsions of time ha ve so destroyed

or disconnected the sequences of events, tha t even

our kn owledge of the science and pra ctice of the

art of music among the Greeks and Romans,wha tever we may know or guess concerning their

litera ture and ordina ry life, is for the most part

conjectura l and doubtful .

It wa s not until the method wa s invented o f

writing and naming notes and a ssigning to ea ch

name a pla ce in an a ccepted position tha t the

knowledge of music became a s it were moulded to

a form capa ble of improvement and extension.

The first philosophica l musicians who noted tha t

in the performance o f a sca le certa in sounds re

curred a t interva ls which bore the like rela tive pro

portions to ea ch, though situa ted a t the distance

of eight notes apart, and ga ve those recurring notes

the names of the tones with which they corre

sponded, by their very limita tion of nomencla ture

were enabled to increa se the power of recognising

music . Their systems, nomina lly taken from the

Greek, a t once displayed a point of depa rture which

led to a grea ter degree of cultiva tion than Greek

1 2 ENGLISH GLEES AND PART-SONGS

music wa s capable o f a tta ining. It wa s a refine

ment to apply to every sound a separa te and distinct

t itle so tha t it could not be confounded with any

o thermusica l sound . But while this pra ctice would

be found to answer very well so long a s all music

consisted o f melody, it was a grea t hindrance to

the progress o f the art , ina smuch as it prevented

the employment of harmony or combina tions of

melodies.

The use of the letters of the Greek a lphabet, in

m any ways, direct, indirect, upside down, or lying

on their sides, was considered necessary in order to

a ccommoda te the nomencla ture to the variety of

sounds produced by voice or instrument, ea ch having

a different nota tion . The use of the first seven

letters of the a lphabet only, in large capita ls for the

grea t octave, small letters for the next octave, and

double letters for the higher range, wa s a clear ga in

to the reader. The invention of the syllables ut, re,mi , f a , sol, la , now in ordina ry use, wa s a still greater

ga in . The suggestion o f their employment is a ttri

buted to Guido o f Arezzo, who is sa id to ha ve taken

them from a hymn for the festiva l o f St . John . He

proposed them a s a sort o f memoria. technica to a

brother monk a s a means by which he could reca ll

themelody o f the hymn, ea ch phra se o f which rises

GUIDO’S NOMENCLATURE 13

a note higher, a fter the manner of the notes of the

sca le.

The a ddition of the seventh syllable is declared

to have been recommended centuries la ter by one

who remarked tha t the fina l sentence of the verse

of the hymn wa s formed of the words Sancte

Johannis,’

and the letters S and J or I formed the

syllable si . The sound now a ssocia ted with the

syllable is not suggested in the hymn . The next

step in a dvance wa s formed when another monk,

Hucbald, indica ted to the eye the rela tive position

of the sounds required in singing certa in words .

He a lso ma de the discovery tha t, by means of his

system of writing down notes, it wa s possible to

record the simultaneous sounding o f two notes in

harmony. It had taken nearly three centuries to

a rrive a t this fa ct . It occupied three more, a t

lea st , before the pra ctice of harmony wa s reduced

to a science, governed by specia l laws. One of the

most stringent of these laws required the avoidance

of progressions which had been formerly permitted,

and out of which the laws themselves had grown .

There can be no doubt tha t the knowledge,

of the va rieties of harmonic combina tions existed

from an early period, though only isola ted examples

of the manner in which it wa s employed have been


preserved . Wha t these were, and to wha t condition

o f art they point, will serve a s subject-ma tter for

more elabora te trea tment la ter on. Still, as it is

necessary to offer an idea of the subject-ma tter of

the whole course, a reference to the further progress

o f the art is required, so tha t out of the general

the particular may be deduced.

The origin of themelodieswhich have descended

to the present time froma remote antiquity is a s

difficult to tra ce a s to discover the persona lity of

the author o f the first a ttempts to formula temusical

sounds out of the tones of the voice under the ex

citements o f pa ssion when the provocative cause

was removed . We may consider tha t when the

means by which these sounds could be reproduced

were recognised, the next thing to whichmen turned

their a ttention wa s towards the manner by which

they could be permanently represented, so tha t the

word or sign which embodied the thought Should,when presented to the eye , reca ll the thought.

Among na tions tena cious of their old customs, but

who trust to tra dition a s frequently a s to written

documents, the method o f reca lling these sounds

would be handed down by word o f mouth , probably

a fter the manner o f m en before the invention of

writing.


of division into more subtle parts, such a s thirds of

tones or less so the octave consisted not o f thirteen

semitones but of twenty-seven, and even so manya s thirty-three. For this rea son most Ea stern

instruments, and allperformances o f Ea stern music ,

seem to be out of tune to European ears, a s doubt

less most European harmonies are unbearable to

Orienta l sensibilities. The story o f the Turkish

dignitary who wa s preva iled upon to attend a per

formance a t the Grand Opera a t Paris, andwho

wa s most delighted with the flourishes made by the

severa l instruments in an independent ca cophony

during ‘f

tuning time,’

a s reminding him o f the

music of his na tive country, can be readily under

stood by many, and best of all by those who have

hadthe opportunity of hearing the performance o f so

famous a body of chosen instrumenta lists a s tha t o f

the Court band o f the King of Siam , which appeared

a t the Inventions Exhibition . The European scale

is held to be the most perfect in its order, inasmuch

a s it a ccords with the chara cter o f our sensations.

It could scarcely be substituted for another without

an a ltera tion a lmost of our na ture. Certa in it is

tha t all our previous idea s of melody and ha rmony

would have to be abandoned, with wha t result to

the art of music may be left to the imagina tion .

EUROPEAN TONALITIES 17

Out of this European sca le the numberless

varieties of melodies which delight the souls of

men have been constructed ; and, by means of in

genious combina tions of concordant sounds, those

same melodies have been harmonised so a s to form

an aggrega te of plea sure. This plea sure has been

removed from the emotiona l to the intellectua l

world by the successive discoveries of men o f

genius. In many of the old pieces of harmony

produced in the early centuries, a fter certa in prin

ciples had been a ccepted, will be discovered a ttempts

to get free from the trammels and monotony of

one all-pervading tona lity . These efforts are in

teresting to the student of the present day, who

ha s all the wea lth of the tona lities a t his com

mand without fear of viola ting rules by transgres

sive excursions into remote keys. The course

of study which prescribes a certa in following of

the rules of the old ma sters, though despised, if

not condemned, by many modern musicians, is not

w ithout its a dvantages. A pupil who has conquered

the difficulties of the mechanical trea tment of a

pa ssage in one tona lity, such a s appears in the

study of counterpoint, would certa inly experience

less trouble in understanding the like rela tions

in other keys than those in which he made his


origina l essays. Those who are permitted a t the

outset to exercise freedom o f trea tment in the use of

keys crea te their own embarra ssment . It is a poor

a rgument to quote the pra ctice of writers with

whom the choice o f a key is a condescending con

cession to popular prejudice in favour o f a distinct

tona lity.

The study o f music Should, therefore, be ba sed

upon the lines of historica l succession a s far as

possible . That is to say, the method of procedure

should be a lmost a fter the manner in which suc

cessive discoveries and improvements have been

made in the art .

If the ma ster or pupil finds it necessary to skip

a century or two, a s it were, a s men o f genius have

done from genera tion to genera tion , it should be

done with judgment and a distinct understanding of

the rea sons for the leap.

Those who have a tta ined a certa in position in

their studies will not regret the time spent in com

munion with old composers. Wha tever particular

branch may be selected for study, either from

necessity or choice, it will be!

found tha t a ttention

to colla tera l branches springing from the same

parent tree will increa se the interest in the chosen

from adopted. No knowledge o f a specia l subject

THE STUDY OF MUSIC 19

is complete without some other informa tion to

support it . In fa ct, it will be found a s difficult to

isola te a subject of study a s it would be to rea ch a

dwelling-house without passing through the roads

which lead to it .

The student will doubtless find himself attra cted

to the examina tion of particular pha ses of musica l

history in the course of his progress. Now while

it is desirable to avoid paying undue a ttention to

one section of a subject, there is a lways an advan

tage in concentra ting the thoughts for a time,

especia lly if the rela tive connection of the theme

with others be not lost sight of. It is in this

spirit tha t we enter into the examina tion of ‘ the

historica l development of glees and part-songs.

’

The subject of the glee itself is a lmost completed

a s an item in the history of music . It occupies a

period of scarcely more than a hundred years of

history . But it did not spring, Minerva-like, all

clothed, a rmed and powerful, self-conta ined and

origina ted from phenomena l causes. It wa s the

result of slow growth, andwa s the extrinsic outcome

o f a series of developments which had been in

prepa ra tion for centuries. It ha s served a musica l

purpose itsmonuments are still extant andva luable

it ha s become the parent of a child scarcely so

0 2


worthy a s itself, though possessing a vita lity which

may ultima tely lead to a new departure.

The examina tion into ‘ the history and develop

ment o f the glee ’

should possess a peculiar interest

for English students in music , ina smuch a s it is

distinctly na tive. English musicians a lone have

produced, andEnglish singers a lone can perform it

properly. Wha t further contributions to musical

art have been furnished by Englishmen will be

pointed out subsequently. There can be no doubt

tha t the pra ctice of singing music in parts ha s been

observed in Grea t Brita in from a very remote

period. Mr.William Chappell, in his most va luable

Popular Music of the Olden Time,’

a work which

ha s been written to refute the sta tement that

England is not a musica l na tion, quotes a passage

transla ted from Cambrics descriptw,

’ by Gerald

Barry or Giraldus Cambrensis. This pa ssage, from

a book written about the year 1185, tells us that :‘ The Britons do not sing their tunes in unison,like the inhabitants o f other countries, but in dif

ferent parts. So tha t when a company o f singers

meets to sing, a s is usua l in this country, a s many

different parts are heard as there are singers, who

all fina lly unite in consonance and organic melody.

In the northern parts of Brita in,beyond the

GIRALDUS ON ENGLISH SINGING 21

Humber, and on the borders of Yorkshire, the in

habitants make use of a similar kind of symphonious

harmony in singing, but with only two differences

or varieties of tone and voice, the one murmuring

the under part, the other singing the upper in a

manner equally soft and plea sing. This they do,not so much by art, a s by a habit peculiar to them

selves, which long pra ctice ha s rendered a lmost

na tura l, and this method of singing has taken

such deep root among the people tha t hardly

any melody is a ccustomed to be uttered simply or

otherwise than in many parts by the former, and

in two parts by the la tter. And wha t is more

a stonishing, their children, as soon a s they begin

to sing, a dopt the same manner. But a s not all

the English, but only those of the north sing in

this manner, I believe they had this art a t first,

like their language, h'

om the Danes andNorwegians,

who were frequently a ccustomed to occupy, a s well

a s longer to reta in, possession of those parts of the

island.

’

The musica l qua lities whi ch distinguished the

Welsh and the Northern folk seven hundred years

ago are still possessed by their descendants. The

love of music they exhibited then ha s been extended

since to other parts of the country, and a t the

ENGLISH GLEES AND PART-SONGS

present day it may be a sserted with truth that

there are few countries in the world where the love

for music, and the enjoyment derived from its exer

cise, a re more genera l than in our own little sea

girt isle .

The inference to be deduced from the sta tement

of Giraldus and our present experience is that,

a lthough there are unfortuna te gaps in the records

of history whi ch relate to popular habits and cus

toms, there is sufli cient evidence to lead to the con

viction tha t the capability for singing in harmony,and the delight in the exercise, have been con

tinuous.

The habits o f a people are diffit to uproot ; and

this habit of part-singing, though scarcely referred

to by subsequent writers, prepared the minds of the

people for the welcome they gave to music in all

its forms, both sa cred and secular.

The majority of the musicians of the golden age

of the art in England, the time of Queen E lizabeth,

sprang from the people. Their genius extended its

influence to all classes the higher delighting in

the subtleties o f scientific construction, as shown in

the ma driga ls the lower finding sola ce and consola

tion by the performance of songs, and in the singing

of psalms and hymns a s well in the churches as in


which eff ects are obta ined, and by thi s pra ctice to

strengthen the habit of observa tion . This habit

once formed is of inca lculable va lue to the student,

and may be turned to a ccount in many ways,

whether he be a performer, a producer, a composer,

or an interested hearer.

In the construction o f these works, moreover,the observa tion o f the effects o f contrast and the

rela tion of parts to the whole cannot be without

a, degree of importance in connection with other

studies . The artistic tra ining which must follow

the due recognition o f the advantages of a com

pa rison of the eff ects of Opposite qua lities will give

a new life andmeaning to the pra ctice observed by

the writers in contriving movements which set off

ea ch other.

The efforts of genius wherever produced, and

with wha tever object or founda tion they may have

been undertaken or ba sed, are better appreciated

by one who ha s disciplined his mind so tha t it

is capable o f readily receiving impressions and

turning them to a ccount .

The time that is judiciously spent in a cquiring

a knowledge of music, voca l or instrumenta l, or in

studying the prin ciples o f ha rmony,will not be

ill-spent, if it ends in prepa ring the mind for the

AIM OF THE STUDY OF MUSIC 25

ready reception of other ma tters . The mere per

sona l gra tifica tion arising from the performance of

music should not be the only a im of such a study.

In sa tisfying the cla ims of the ear, the demands

o f the mind must not be overlooked . With these

principles in view, the performance of music will

not only become a persona l delight, but it will also

be ma de the point from which a ra dius of intel

lectua l a dvancement can be formed.


CHAPTER II.

THE ORIGIN OF VOCAL HARMONY. FROM EARLY

TIMES TO THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY.

A glance a t the music o f theAncients— Themusic of the Hebrews—The Egyptians

v The Greeks— The Romans— The European races in the time o f the Christian era—Music of the

early Christian congregations— Pope Gregory the Great andhis reforms— The invention o f nota tion— The introduction of

the organ— The contributions of Hucbald to the art and

science u Organum— Falso-bordone—Descant— The inventionof counterpoint—Neumaa—Mensuralmusic .

IN the preliminary chapter genera l references only

were made to the state of music among the ancient

peoples. On the present occa sion the deta ils of the

subject may be more fully dea lt with . At the same

time the proposed examina tion can only be cursory,

from the fa ct tha t ancient music ha s only a rela tive

bearing on the subject. In dea ling with the music

of the earliest peoples, it would, perhaps, be most

convenient and fitting to arrange the na tions in

ethnological groups. The Mongolian ra ces, repre

sented by the Chinese and Japanese, the Aryans of

ORIGIN OF NATIONAL MELODIES 27

India , and Similar ra ces, are the most primitive

people a ccording to the descriptions of their know

ledge of the science and a rt of music . Of the two

groups, the Aryan would seem to be possessed of

powers the more conformable to European development.

It would be interesting to tra ce the similarity

of idea s which exists between the na tiona l music of

the old Celtic ra ces in Europe and certa in of the

Indian melodies. The marked resemblance of the

forms of melody and rhythm which they present

would possibly be found to be due to something

more than an adventitious design .

The historian of the future will probably be

led to make some interesting comparisons, and pos

sibly to deduce certa in fa cts which have hitherto

escaped observa tion . There is nothing so likely but

tha t musicians will be a ble to show in time to come

tha t the va lue of na tionalmelodies, a s a study of his

tory,will be a s grea t to the musician a s the know

ledge of words is to the philologist. The employ

ment of a particular sca le in various parts of the

world by people of various nationa litieswill probably

be made the starting-point for a series of discoveries

of the greatest importance and interest to the

musica l historian .


Meantime, we must be content with the informa

tion we possess, and gladly welcome every contri

bution which displays new research. With this

thought in mind, those who wish to know all that

is known concerning the musica l powers o f the

Isra elites— one o f the representa tive ancient nations— may read with profit Dr. Sta iner’s little book

on The Music of the Bible.

’ This gives a lucid

a ccount and description of the musica l instru

ments and terms rela ting to music in the various

portions of the sa cred writings, and incidenta lly

includes nearly all tha t is known about the pra ctice

o f music among the ancient Hebrews. Despite the

many disturbing influences which have been at

work through the long course of ages, the Jews

cla im to have preserved a lmost without change the

traditiona l melodies of their worship . Whether this

c la im can be susta ined is doubtful . Some o f these

melodies have been transcribed in modern nota tion,

a nd the everla sting principle of beauty, and the

charm o f expression which distinguishes them, may

be a dduced a s proof, it they are a ccepted a s of

genuine antiquity, o f the love of music inherent in

the chosen people having existed throughout allages.

There can be no doubt tha t, with all the care taken

t o preserve the tra ditiona l melodies unchanged,

EGYPTIAN AND HEBREW MUSIC 29

corruptions have crept in . Outside influences would

be at work to effect these changes, and thememories

and sympathies of the singers would be insensibly

pressed upon. Written references, recognised by

the congrega tion , could not be appea led to if they

did not exist, and the fancy and imagina tion o f

the interpreter would superinduce a ltera tions a lmost

without consciousness tha t they were ma de. Many

of these tradi tiona l melodies lose a little by being

reduced to rhyt hmi ca l proportions, a s would of

necessity follow when they were described in modern

nota tion. There is sufficient peculiarity of cha

racter still to be tra ced in these melodies to Show

that they were origina lly formed out of Ea stern

sca les , such a s those referred to in a former page.

By transforma tion into modern nota tion they maypossibly lose a little of their ancient chara cter, but

to cars a ccustomed to European interva ls none of

the gra ces of expression and pa thos are wanting.

It is a sserted on rea sonable grounds tha t the

Hebrews derived their musica l systems from the

Egyptians and the Cha ldeans . The ancient monu

ments of those na tions show tha t music wa s exten

sively pra ctised a s well in religious a s in civic and

social ceremonies . The forms and a ssumed charac

ters of the instruments described and depicted bear


a considerable resemblance, and there is good basis

f or the a ssertion .

In the earlier chapters of the Bible mention is

ma de o f music andmusica l instruments, the first in

connection with Juba l, and the next with Laban.

The song o f Moses is the first a llusion to vocal

music, and the song of Miriam is interesting, not

only a s the earliest recorded instance of an address

to the Deity in a song or psa lm of pra ise, but a s a

sublime expression of triumphant and pious feeling.

The pra ctice o f singing, a ccompanied with instru

ments and dances, wa s probably derived from the

customs of theEgyptians. In la ter ages the Greeks,

who a re sa id to have learnt their music from the

same people, continued the custom of dancing to

music a t their solemn a ssemblies. Not only in their

a cts o f religious worship, but a lso in their games,

wa s instrumenta l and voca l music pra ctised.

Poetica l and musica l contests are frequently men

tioned, and some o f the grea test names in Greek

litera ture a re a ssocia ted with these Observances .

The establishment o f the games is regarded as

the period which divided the ages o f fable from

those o f authentic history. The majority o f the

poets whose works have been preserved belong to

this la tter age. Music and poetry were so closely


of the early Christians. Tha t vocal music was em

ployed in the primitive churches may be proved

from a variety of pa ssa ges in the works of Tertul

lian and others who wrote in the first few centuries,but tha t it wa s of the simplest kind there can be

no doubt.

Origen says : We sing hymns to none but theSupreme Being and His only Son, in the same

manner a s they sing to the sun, moon, stars, and

all the host of heaven.

’

In the writings of Clemens Alexandrinus there

is the following curious pa ssage : ‘ This is the

chosen mounta in of the Lord ; unlike Cithaeron,which has furnished subjects for tragedy, it is dedi

osted to Truth, a mounta in of grea ter unity over

spread with cha ste shades. It is inhabited by thedaughters of God, the fa ir lambs who celebrate

together the venerable orgies, collecting the chosen

choir. The singers are holy men ; their song is

the hymn of the Almighty King. Virgins chant,

angels glorify, prophets discourse, while music;

sweetly sounding, is heard.’

Philo, speaking o f the Therapeutic, says : After

supper their sa cred songs began ; when all. were

risen, they selected two choirs, one of men and

one of women, and from ea ch of these a person of

EARLY"

CHRISTIAN MUSIC 33

majestic form wa s chosen to lea d the band. They

then chanted hymns in honour of God,composed

in different mea sures andmodula tions, now singing

together, and now a lterna tely answering ea ch other.’

Eusebius, in the time of Constantine, a fter the

yea r 312 , when the Christian religion wa s lega lly

established, makes reference to the music of

worship, for he tells us there wa s one common

consent in chanting forth the pra ises of God, the

performance of the service wa s exa ct, the rites of

the Church decent and majestic, and there wa s a

pla ce appointed for those who sung psa lms— youths

and virgins, old men and young. In these records

there is just enough to imply that music was not

only pra ctised in church, but tha t it must have

been the means whereby many a socia l hour wa s

beguiled .

The persecution and oppression which the early

Christians were ma de to suffer, while it rendered

caution necessary to the pra ctice of the rites of

their fai th, doesnot seem to ha ve ma terially altered

its form . Their hymns were supported by the

voices alone, for their worship was chiefly in

secret . When Constantine and his mother Helena

built ma gnificent churches for the fa ith, the primi

tive character of sa cred music suffered a change

D


Choirs of tra ined singers were instituted, and the

hymns of the congrega tion were trea ted a s of

seconda ry importance only . The Council of Lao

dioca (367) enjoined only those who were duly

appointed to sing in the churches. By degrees cor

ruptions crept in, and, when the a ddition of certa in

rites of hea then worship to the simple Observances

of the Christian religion was insisted upon by the

Emperor Julian the Aposta te, the change threatened

to arrest the development of music for the Church

and home. The desire to consolida te into one

form the music for the Church was not completely

carried out until the time o f St . Ambrose (333

when his system, founded upon tha t of the ancient

Greeks, served to pla ce music in the Church on so

firm a basis tha t it la sted unchanged for nearly

two hundred years. It must be remembered that

a s yet there were only the neuma ta employed to

indica te the nota tion of this Ambrosian Chant.

These neumes, or signs, were sa id to have been

suggested by Ephra im in the pla ce of the letter

nota tion of the Greeks. They were origina lly

intended to Show the inflections, modulations, and

pauses required in reading the Gospel and other

portions o f the service.

When PopeGregory in 590 turned his a ttention

THE GREGORIAN SY STEM 35

to the reforma tion of the music of the Church,

he endeavoured to reconcile the various systems

in use, and succeeded in constructing one har

monious whole out of many conflicting elements .

He a dded to the four Ambrosian Sca les, known a s

the Authentic, four more, which he ca lled Plaga l , or

Oblique. The Gregorian system held undisputed

sway in the Church until the beginning of the

ninth century (590 Gregory, who had intro

duced Christianity into Britain (in sent

singers to this country, and the first chora l service

wa s given at Canterbury. The pra ctice a fterwards

Spread to other churches in Kent, where for a long

time it rema ined sta tiona ry. The mission of John to

the monks of Wearmouth, in the year 988, helped

the art of music to fulfil a wider mission than it

had hitherto a ttained in this country ; and the

sprea d of music throughout the land da tes from

tha t period .

The sta tement of Giraldus a s to the habits of the

Welsh andYorkshire folk of his time may not have

been confined to those people, but the absence of

more positive informa tion precludes the possibility

of determining the ma tter.

The music for the Church in early times wa s

a lways unisonous and only in the definite chara cter

D 2


of its sca les, and the regula ted order o f its melodies,

did it show the a dvances made by science. The

music o f the people wa s, strange to say, of a more

scientific chara cter, ina smuch a s it exhibited a

movement towards tha t combina tion o f powers

which wa s herea fter to give new life and expansion

to musica l development . The absence o f any de

finite or recognised method o f writing down any

musica l thought restricted the powers of musical

invention. The neumes employed exclusively for

sa cred song would not be ca lled into the a id of writ

ing secular tunes ; moreover, a s these were to a cer

ta in extent unauthorised, the Church would take no

cognisance of them . Secula r tuneswere, therefore,

only preserved by uncerta in means, those of oral

tradition .

The neumes were origina lly written over the

syllables they were intended to afiect . The first

improvement wa s introduced when a linewa s drawn

to show the rela tive rise and fa ll of the voice in con

nection with the tone a dopted in reading by the

speaker. This linemade the reading easier, andgave

rise to a still further improvement, when another

line wa s a dded . The lineswere a t first used singly,and gave no information a s to the pitch required.

Afterwards they were coloured, and a ccording to the

HUCBALD’

S INVENTIONS 37

colour a certa in definite pitch wa s understood.

Thus red stood for F , and all melodies with a red

line began and ended on tha t note. Yellow stood

for C , a s the tonic . In the eleventh century both

lines were used together.

The introduction of the single line prompted

the forma tion of the neumes into gra dua ted heights

and shapes, but even then their interpreta tion wa s

variable, and wa s influenced by the capa city or the

intelligence of the singer.

The proposition of Hucbald, a monk of St .

Amand, Tournay, in Flanders, in the tenth

century, to discard the neumes, and to employ a

la dder showing the rela tive positions o f the notes,

though not a dopted a t the time, led to the invention

of the sta ve. The words to be sung to music were

written between the lines of this la dder, the number

of lines being a s extended a s the compa ss o f the

piece to be sung. After a time it wa s discovered

tha t the division of the syllables was troublesome,

and all needful cflect could be ga ined by writing

the words in one row benea th, by pla cing dots on

the lines to show the notes required to be sung,

and tha t the number o f lines could be reduced by

utilising the spa ces a lso, ea ch position representing

a particular recognised gra de. The names of the


notes were indica ted a t the commencement and at

the end o f the lines ; and then the next improve

ment, suggested probably by the na tura l love of

idleness inherent in man, wa s to point out the

position o f one note on the supposition that the

others would be ca lcula ted from their relation to

tha t note. This wa s done a t first by means of the

coloured lines, and a fterwards by certa in signs

which might stand for the coloured lines. Thus

four lines could be made to include a whole octave

o f sounds. Guido o f Arezzo substituted a green

lin e for the yellow,reta ining the red for F. His

notes show a chara cter and shape out of which

modern notation ha s been formed . The neumata

system of writing wa s employed so la te as the

fourteenth century in a modified form, though the

pra ctice of writing notes of a more definite outline

had preva iled for more than two hundred years.

Tra ces of the neumes may be found in books of

Gregorian nota tion printed abroa d at the present

time.

The history o f nota tion is not without an element

o f interest, but there a re ma tters connected with

the discovery which have more distinct bearing

upon the subject of the present inquiry.

About the year 1000 , when Christian peoplehad


in the Church a s early a s the seventh or eighth

centuries . These organs were of limited range, and

a ccompanied the singing by playing the same notes

which were sung. The organist in course o f time

discovered tha t certa in notes could be sounded

together in plea sant concord, and made use o f the

eff ect so learnt a t the conclusion of musica l sentences

only. It must be remembered tha t the clumsy

construction of the organs a t tha t time did not

admit of the keys being pressed with eff ect by the

fingers. There wa s rarely more than an octave of

compa ss. Ea ch key wa s three to four inches wide.

The player, who armed himself with thick gloves,

litera lly struck the keys, using only one hand at a

time, and from this mode of performances he was

called pulsa tor organorum ,

’ ‘ the smiter of the

organs,’

a term not inapplicable to players upon

other keyed instruments in the present day.

When the organist ’s doubled notes were imitated

by the singers, it is rea sonable to a ssume tha t the

pra ctice wa s ca lled a fter the name o f the instru

ment from which it wa s taken. It is certa in that

Church singers were ca lled ‘ organisers,’

even though

they exercised their cra ft without a ccompaniment.

Hucbald, to whom ha s been a scribed the inven

tion o f the stave, gave the first clear rules for the

GUIDO D’

AREZZO 41

performance of this sort of harmony in which onlyfourths and fifths are permitted ; the use of two

consecutive thirds wa s a s strictly forbidden a s in

the present day consecutive fifths and octaves are

enjoined to be avoided . Whether this prohibition

arose from the defective method of tuning the thirds

a ccording to the Pythagorean system, or wa s the

result of a desire to a tta in perfection by the use o f

interva ls ca lled perfect, can only be left to con

jecture.

None of the writers of the age immedia telysucceeding Hucbald give any clue to the reason for

the harsh rule of the organum .

’ They alla ccepted

it, and so far, a s it is sa id, compelled themselves to

do penance for indulging in one of the most beauti

ful and emotiona l of all the arts. Guido d’Arez z o

(990 to c . 1070 ) wa s the first who ra ised objections

to the pra ctice . He advoca ted the omission of the

upper pa rt when the organum wa s given in three

parts, and suggested the substitution of a method

by which the thirds may be made of occasiona l use,

to be followed by interva ls a lready a llowed . This

theory wa s a dvoca ted or supported by other writers

in different pla ces, principa lly byWa lterOdington in

England, by the three Francos (of Cologne, of Paris,

and of Liege) , by Odo, Abbot of Clugny, by John


C otton,John of Dunstable (both o f whom, like

Wa lter Odington, were Englishmen) , by John de

Muris, by Philip Vitria co , and others .

The use of the sixth as a more consonant

interva l than the third wa s next tolera ted, as

Johannes Tinctor (1434-1520) shows by examples

o f melody so harmonised. In most cases the

theoretica l writers and historians of music of the

Church bound themselves down by the old conserva

tive canons, which fettered their intellects in the

trea tment o f music . Sometimes they tell us how

t o write a ccording to rules tha t have been super

seded by later discoveries and pra ctices, and hold

to the old habits in spite of their knowledge of

things of more rea sonable design. Even Tinctor,

born two years a fter the dea th of Willem Dufay,the Fleming, who may be called the well-spring of

modern harmony, either did not know, or else he

p urposely ignored, the a dvances which had been

m ade in the art of harmony, andhadbeen carried to

so remarkable a degree o f perfection by this wonder

ful Netherlander. The organum had given place

to Fa lso-bordone, Fa lso-bordone to regula ted Coun

terpoint, and still the first wa s reverenced by many

tea chers as the standa rd o f perfection . Willem

Dufay, who was born a t Chimay, in the province of

FALSO-BORDONE, AND DESCANT 43

Ha ina ult, in the year 1360 , left music of sufficient

importance and va lue to prove his cla im to con

s idera tion a s one of the pioneers o f the modern

system of harmony and counterpoint . There are

pa ssages in some of his works, a s well a s those of

his immedia te successors, Jeban Ockenheim,Ja cob

Obrecht, and others which are indica tive of higher

genius in construction and expression than could

p ossibly be a tta ined by the strict observance of the

barbarous rules of the organum .

’

Yet it wa s

enjoined to be taught so la te a s the sixteenth

c entury. Perhaps some of the instructors in

c ounterpoint and fugue are not wholly guiltless in

the preserva tion of similar a rcha isms in the pre

s ent day.

Out of the organum , the fa lso-bordone arose.

This a dmitted of grea ter freedom : a s of the use

o f pa ssing interva ls otherwise forbidden ; thus

harmony of thirds and sixths above or below the

p la in song, and the discord of the second, are even

t o be found in pieces written in the fa lso-bordone

s tyle. When counterpoint, which may be a lso

a bove or below a given melody, wa s only made

a bove, it wa s ca lled descant ; this, which was some

t imes extempore, required a considerable amount

o f skill in its execution . While it may probably


have taught some lessons to the observant har

monist, it wa s subject to fewer restra ints than were

imposed upon the other forms of counterpoint .

In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries counter

point wa s often ca lled descant . It was divided

into three kinds, pla in,figurate, and double.

Thepla in wa s the same a s the first order o f counter

point, note aga inst note, or point aga inst point, a s

the term implies. The second admitted several

varieties ; andthe la st wa s reversible— tha t is to say,

tha t the top part should become the bottom, and

vice fo e/red,without any violation of a ccepted rules.

These pra ctica l subdivisions of the forms o f descant

or counterpoint were only arrived at a fter many

genera tions .

Out of the custom of organising the next

important step in the progress of art wa s devised.

This wa s the invention of the time-table and of

mea surable music . The neumes were subject only

to the interpreta tion o f the singer. So long a s he

wa s a lone, he could follow or disregard such rules

a s expediency or convenience might devise. When

two or more voices were ca lled upon to take part,

it wa s necessary to have some distinct understand

ing a s to the dura tion o f the empha sis la id upon

the words to be decla imed . So long a s these words

NAMES OF NOTES 45

were given to a melody in unison, a traditiona l

method of performance could be readily established

and ma inta ined, but when the performance wa s in

harmony, the dura tion of the notes to be sung wa s

required to be indicated. Notes ca lled long (longa ) ,

short (brevis) , were the only ones at first introduced,

on the supposition tha t syllables to be decla imed

were either short or long. The relative dura tion

of the ‘ long or short wa s still undefined and

unrepresented until it wa s discovered tha t certa in

notes were longer or shorter than others . Thus

the Maxima , a s grea ter than the Long, and the

Semibrevis a s shorter than the Brevis, found a

place in the time-table. Then, as now, the absolute

continua tion of these rela tive mea sures o f time

wa s guided by the spirit of the words with which

they were a ssociated.


CHAPTER III.

THE ORIGIN OF VOCAL HARMONY FROM THE EARLIEST

TIMES To THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY (continued) .

Time-signs—Early compositions in harmony, sacred and secular

—The eff ect of the Crusades upon musical art— The troubadours—Their songs the precursors o f the madrigal; theforerunner of the glee— The glee a distinctly characteristicand individual form of composition peculia r to England.

FRANCO of Cologne speaks o f notes a s being either

perfect or imperfect. The long was a lways perfect

when followed by a long, and the breve by the

breve. The long preceded or followed by a breve

wa s imperfect . Perfect time was formed of

mea sures or pulses of three, and was so ca lled in

honour of the Blessed Trinity. Imperfect time

was the ba sis of wha t we call duple measure.

Composers employed these divisions or arrange

ments of notes at will ; and, as there were at first

no indica tions of the mea sure by means o f signs

such a s are now commonly employed, the difficulty

of deciphering ancient music is proportiona tely


rhythm,hitherto subject only to rules required for

the due Observance Of poetical a ccount, become

a distinguishing element in the composition of

music.

The importance of this invention cannot but

have had an enormous influence in a ffecting the

whole na ture Of music. It is a sserted tha t these

discoveries were ma de by the disciples Of the Old

French School, which wa s founded in the eleventh

century, andexisted until the fifteenth . This,which

assumed to be the Oldest na tiona l school of music

tha t was ever instituted, wa s a t first a lmost exclu

sively clerical . The ea rliest trea tises on music are

sa id to have been the productions of its scholars

and teachers. As Professor Naumann, in his

Geschichte der Musik,’

says : ‘ As may be expected

from a body consisting Of learned monks, doctors Of

theology, and others, allthe trea tises were written in

La tin.

’TO this may be a dded tha t the diction

employed has lost much of its clearness by trans

mission. La ter on, the names Of men who were

musicians, and musicians only, were on the lists

tha t is to say, men who were tra ined to the art, and

who earned their bread by its pra ctice. From this)

body came the grea t schools Of music founded in

England and the Netherlands.

’

POLYPHONIC COMPOSITION 49

The works Of theEnglishmen who were supposed

to have been tra ined in the French School, such as

Wa lter Odington, the monk Of Evesham,who wrote

a trea tise on music about the year 1217, John

Cotton , John Of Dunstable (died and others

up to the beginning Of the fifteenth century, exhibit

a certa in amount Of regularity and order Of agree

ment with a preconceived plan , which could not

have arisen from perfect independence Of thought,so much a s from independent trea tment Of prepared

knowledge.

Tha t the a rt Of polyphonic composition was

known and pra ctised in England from an early da te

we have a singular proof in the existence Of the

interesting MS . in the Harleian Library in the

British Museum . This MS . ha s been declared by

experts to have been written before the year 1250 .

It revea ls many curious things. First Of all the

nota tion used shows tha t a t tha t early period a

defin ite system Of writing wa s recognised and

employed, from which little or no departure was

ma de for many centuries. Secondly, the composi

tion indica tes a high order Of skill in the trea tment

of polyphonic harmony. Thirdly, a still higher

degree Of skill in its construction, ina smuch a s the

harmony is formed out Of the repetition Of the

E


melody at sta ted distances apa rt, in the form of

wha t is ca lled a canon in the unison .

’

Fourthly,

tha t the ha rmony is further strengthened by the

a ddition of two parts which form a pes,’

a foot, or

burden. La stly, tha t themelody chosen has allthe

chara cter of a popular song, andmay possibly have

been one. The summary Of the ma tter is tha t the '

existence Of this, the Oldest musica l monument

possessed by any people in the world, proves that

the English musicians Of tha t fa r-away period

exhibited ta lent, ability, fancy, imagina tion, and a

knowledge Of contrivance Of which we have reason

to be proud. If the writer wa s the pupil Of the

famous French School to which reference has been

made, he wa s an honour to it for, a lthough there

are gramma tica l lapses which are now ca lled faults,they were not so considered in the days when the

pra ctice Of organum Of fourths and fifths, and a

‘ fa lso-bordone,’ which included interva ls Of seconds

in the harmony, wa s still pra ctised and reverenced.

Further, the trea tment shows an early example Of

the employment Of a popular melody a s the basis

upon which contrapunta l skill wa s displayed. The

words are in English and La tin . There are other

pieces Of the motett form in the same MS., and,

though they Show nothing particularly remarkable

EARLY SCHOOLS OF MUSIC 5 1

in themselves, they help to establish the presence

Of skill in the musicians Of the period, if not to

prove the existence Of a distinct school Of English

m usica l art . The Skill may not be questioned, but,i f the school existed , all record Of it ha s perished.

For all tha t we know now it may have been para

mount . Of the work Of other schools Of the period

we hear little or nothing, and we can only suppose

tha t they flourished, and kept a live the tra ditions Of

the art , by the fa ct tha t when a depa rture is made

it is referred to some particularmusician who must

have received his educa tion from one school or

a nother. Admitting tha t music had ceased to be

a dominant power in the intellectua l studies Of

England, and tha t the tea chings Of the ancient

French School bore no more fruit in this country,

it wa s not so elsewhere . In the Netherlands a

number Of men Of genius a rose , who not only

improved upon the precepts they had a cquired,

but added many more, and revised much . They

elimina ted the weak anduseless, andso strengthened

the founda tions Of modern harmony . One Of the

names Of grea test lustre Of this period wa s Willem

Dufay.It is curious to note tha t most historians

admit tha t the honour Of having brought the

exercise Of descant into the boundaries Of purer

E 2


and more tra ctable harmony is Shared by Dufay

in conjunction with Giles Binchois and John Of

Dunstable , a Frenchman and an Englishman. In

priority Of birth Dufay ha s preference, but the

probability Of ea ch Of these men carrying out

independently the precepts Of the school in which

it is a ssumed all were educa ted, which their

genius,a llowed them to expand, is not at all un

tenable.

It is the disadvantage Of the historian, who

desires to tra ce all the influences a t work to produce

certa in results, tha t he is ever compelled to ‘

gO

ba ckwards and forwards in quest Of the truth .

’

In

the history Of music , especia lly Of tha t portion of

it which rela tes to the development Of harmony

and the cultivation Of voca l music, such a course of

proceeding is inevitable . The growth Of the dis

coveries and improvements in organising, in descant

ing, and the early a ttempts a t the va ried treatment

Of musica l effects, ha s led us up to the period Of the

beginning Of the fifteenth century, when musical

a rt became the expression Of concentra ted and

successive efforts at improvement . The greater

part Of these efforts were devoted to the service Of

the Church .

It is necessary once more to return to the early

THE CRUSADES AND ART 53

a ges to follow the line which wa s marked out and

pursued by musicians of a different chara cter before

showing how tha t these lines, apparently para llel,were still sufficiently out Of the direct plane to meet

or cross ea ch other at some distant point. The

union Of sa cred and secular music, Of voca l and

instrumenta l music, was ultima tely to be made,though ea ch pursued an apparently independent

way Of its own , and wa s brought into a ction by

different impulses.

The knowledge of many of the arts was grea tly

a dvanced by the wars Of the Crusa des, ina smuch a s

it brought the European soldiers into contact with

Ea stern civilisa tions. Unmoved by the pressure

Of circumstances with which Western progress wa s

hindered, the Ea stern arts had not gone ba ck even

if they had not a dvanced . The semi-barbarism

into which most Of the European tribes had lapsed,

by rea sons Of struggles among themselves, had

b lighted the growth Of art . Therefore the form in

which it wa s cultiva ted among the Eastern people,

a ga inst whom the crusa derswere waging a religious

warfare, must have a cted like a revelation upon the

minds of the Christian warriors. Certa in it is tha t

if they had nothing to learn from their enemies in

the way Of voca l music , they had opportunities Of


extending their knowledge Of the gra ces Of poetry,

and Of cultiva ting the use Of musica l instruments.

At the beginning Of the twelfth century, the

viol, the cithara , and lute were cultiva ted, and the

songs of the trouba dours imparted a new life to the

poetry and music Of the period. The term trouba

dour, which means an inventor, a finder out, was

applied to the poets who travelled through all the

southern countries Of Europe, singing their songs

in the pa la ces Of kings and the ca stles Of the nobles.

Their songs werecomposed in the Provenca l dialect,a compound Of La tin and Teutonic, formed as early

as the ninth century, a tongue Spoken in its greatest

purity in the provinces Of Dauphine and Provence.

The importance which attended the success of these

troubadours wa s recognised on all sides. The poet

was a privileged person . When he travelled, he

wa s a ttended by his ministra llis, who carried his

harp or his viol , and occa siona lly helped him to

sing his songs. The digni ty Of the ma ster was

shared in lesser degree by the servants, and they

became privileged in turn. In the eleventh century

the rhyming trouba dours were protected by the

Count de Poitou and many Of the most powerful

nobles. They were received with grea t considera

tion and respect, they travelled from one ca stle to


But their downfa ll wa s not a ccomplished until

they had effectively planted in the hea rts Of the

people a love for poetry, which ha s continued to

reta in its hold in their esteem to this day. Their

verses conta in the germs Of those principles Of the

poetica l art Of which , in Ita ly, Dante and Petrarca

were the immorta l exponents .

The troubadours, besides helping to develop

the a rt and practice Of music on its secular side,a lso banished schola stic quarrels and ill-breeding,polished themanners, established rules Of politeness,

enlivened conversa tion and purity . The urbanity

Of refined society is due to them ; ‘and,

’

a s is added

by a French writer,‘ if it is not from them we derive

our virtues, they at lea st taught us how to render

them amiable.

’

There are many references to music and per

formers in the Old English records, Showing the

estimate in which they were regarded by successive

monarchs. The contributions to a rt furnished by

the minstrels can only be guessed a t, there are no

known existing examples. It is sta ted tha t many

Of Chaucer’

s songswere set to music, but none have

been preserved . Alltha t we can ga ther is tha t music

wa s cultiva ted both a t home and abroa d, and that

our present inheritance da tes from the development

THE SONGS OF THE TROUBADOURS 57

Of the a rtistic lega cies bequea thed to us through

the musicians Of all ages. Wha t has been ca lled

the spora dic condition of musica l art up to the

beginning Of the fourteenth century wa s destined

t o be consolida ted, and to take a lasting and

reproductive form before the end Of the same

period .

Out Of the songs Of the troubadours a form Of

p oetry wa s evolved, which wa s destined to eff ect an

important change in musica l art . Besides the

heroic poems and those upon love which were

c omposed by the votaries Of the gay science,’

a s

the art Of the troubadours wa s ca lled, there were

songs designed to ca tch the popular ear, and to

a ppea l to the popular min d . Thesewere concocted

in langua ge which could be understanded Of the

people .

’ They conta ined references to certa in

homely transa ctions Of everyday experience, which

would commend themselves with force to the less

refined idea s Of those to whom they were a ddressed.

At first these poems were ca lled Villanelli ,’

in

Spanish Villancicos,’ probably from their being

a ddressed to the common folk. The bright or

sharp saying, the elucida tion of some little worldly

m inded custom, or the illustra tion Of a homely

proverb ma de these poems very popular. From


these were formed the ma driga ls Of la ter da te. The

chara cteristics Of the villanelli were preserved in

the early madriga ls in fa ct, many tha t we now ca ll

madriga ls a re a lso ca lled by others villanelli,’

a ccording to the na ture of the words.

The villanella ,’

says Morley in his Pla ine and

Ea sie Introduction to PracticallMusicks ,’ published

in 1598, is the lightest and lea st artificia l a ir known

in music ; it is made only for the ditty’

s sake, in

which many perfect chords Of one kind may be

taken at plea sure, suiting a clownish music to a .

clownish ma tter .

’

In the next lecture Opportunity will be taken to

enlarge more pa rticularly on this subject, a s having

greater bearing upon the more a dvanced stage

which it is hoped will be rea ched . Meantime it is

enough to say tha t the villanelli ’ preceded the

ma driga l a s a form Of poetry, and ran for a time

contemporaneously with it .

The madriga l, which a tta ined its most beautiful

expansion and development through the genius Of

English musicians, was abandoned Of the nation by

whom it wa s invented, and served,a s the culminat

ingpoint Of voca l a rt . The forces which had been at

work to crea te a love for instrumenta l music, and

which were ga ining ground abroa d a swell a s at home,

THE RISE OF THE MADRIGAL 59

now a sserted themselves, andmusic wa s cultiva ted

a fter a difierent manner.

Voca l music in parts wa s to give way to part

music for viols. The improvements ma de in the

virgina ls— a keyed instrument out Of which the

modern pianoforte ha s been devised— drew the

a ttention Of composers to the cha rms Of the instru

ment a s an element for the promotion Of social

intercourse and solitary consola tion . The song

with instrumenta l a ccompan iment now came into

favour, and the ma driga l wa s forgotten. The

longing desire for voca l part-music still existed,

and the solo became a duct, and the duet a trio .

The devices Of harmony and Of counterpoint

gave a specia l interest and excitement to musica l

performances .

In Italy, in the Netherlands, and in England

the most illustrious names Of the musica l art in the

severa l periods a re to be foun d a ssocia ted with the

madriga ls . They were avowedly in advance of the

style required for the use Of the service Of the

Church , andmay therefore be sa id to represent the

development of art in its highest forms known .

Music in France, a t the time when the ma driga l

wa s a t its grea test perfection in our own country,

wa s by no means worthy Of the na tion which had


n ourished the infant a rt, and had been the means

Of a iding its extension into the countries which had

now excelled it in its productions. Music in Ger

many had scarcely a tta ined scientific dimensions,though the labours Of Henry Isa a c had not been

a ltogether fruitless in implanting a love Of music

among the people through the melodies associated

w ith sa cred words in the reformed worship .

The grea t centres Of musica l art a t the early part

O f the seventeenth century were England, Ita ly, and

the Netherlands the la st named wa s the greatest,

t hough its period Of decay had set in . Italy,

destined to be the parent of a new and more

glorious development in the Ora torio and the

Opera , had a lready furnished England with the

means by which she wa s to show tha t her sons

could not only profit by the lessons Ofi'

ered, but

a lso turn them to such a ccount tha t they should

excel their prototypes . If interna l troubles had

not diverted men ’

s a ttention from the cultivation Of

a rt, there is no doubt tha t England would have

exhibited in a continuous line those powers in music

which were shown to be la tent when Pelham

Humfrey andHenry Purcell appeared to prove that

a rt, though dormant, wa s not dead .

Pelham Humfrey wa s one Of the first o f the

PELHAM HUMFREY AND HENRY PURCELL 61

children Of the Chapel Roya l a fter the Restora tion.

The promise Of his talent wa s so grea t tha t he was

sent at the expense of the king to study in France,wherehe became the pupil Of Lulli. On his return,he formed, a t the king

’

s request, a body Of violinists

on the model Of the Petits violons du ROi,’ which

were called FOur-and-twenty fiddlers all in a row.

’

For this body he composed some instrumental

music in the French manner. His anthems are

alsO very fine, though marked by many Of the

peculiarities Of the time in which he lived, and

the School in which he studied . In the fit union

of words andmusic, so tha t the poetry and spirit

of ea ch might be ma de to augment the va lue Of

the other, his compositions are a dmirable even

to musicians Of the present day, who find little

plea sure in the short movements and ritom elli

symphonies which they conta in . His pupil, Henry

Purcell, ma de little if any changes in the forms

suggested by the ma ster, but he excelled him in the

ingenuity and richness of his devices, the appro

pria te chara cter Of his harmonies, and the happy

empha sis with which the sense Of the text is ex

pressed. The beauty and pa thos Of his melodies

andharmonies are still the wonder and admira tion

of musicians Of the present day .

6 2 ENGLI SH GLEES AND PART-SONGS

His works would well repay the trouble of

becoming a cqua inted with them, and young ma

s icians may be recommended with confidence to

s tudy them . The grea tness of his genius is ad

mitted even by those who contend tha t England

ha s produced no composers . His influence upon

art was powerful in his own days, and, in one

respect, his example served a s a model for all

native composers to follow— the happy combination

Of the twin-born ha rmonious sisters, voice and

verse.

’

One form Of composition in which Purcell

e xcelled—namely, the Ca tch— wa s the immediate

p recursor Of the Glee, whose history and develop

ment form the cha in which at this time binds

ms in a common bond . The na ture Of these

c atches, their origin ,encouragement , and fina l ex

t inction, will be shown on another occa sion. The

glee is foresha dowed not only in the musical

trea tment Of certa in of the Old Villanelli,’ but

a lso in the Netherlandish chansons,’ madrigals,

ca tches, and other pieces Of part-music. Some Of

these patterns owe their origin to other countries

than our own. The glee is essentia lly and indivi

dually English.

The progress Oi the a rt Of music, like all other


The motetts and like compositions by the

musicians Of other countries are o f a totally distinct

chara cter to the anthems used for the service Of the

Church Of England. Foreign musicians, who have

heard some Of the best examples Of this beautiful

a id to devotion,’a s it ha s been ca lled, have a lways

a dmitted its excellence, and some have gone so far

in their admira tion a s to make the endeavour to

imitate it. Many Of these contributions are Of

striking merit, but they a re deficient in the spirit.

which inspired our na tive musicians, and so the

anthem stands an unriva lled monument Of English

musica l art, devotion, and expression .

As with the anthem, so with the glee. The

musica l litera ture Of all the other European nations

conta ins nothing Of like na ture. The English glee,

with its cleverly interwoven melodies fitting one

into the other with the utmost ingenuity, each

bearing some individual reference to the general

eff ect, is a perfectly unique production peculiar to

England.

It is a kind Of musica l sonnet in which the

poetica l idea , suggested in the Opening phrase, is

continued and intensified by every subsequent ex

pression, until the point is rea ched in the final

phra ses, and the beauty Of the imagery culminates

THE PRIDE IN NATIVE ART 65

whole. Above all it is English, and it may be

made the subject Of a little pardonable pra ise from

Englishmen, and the a dmirers of its many charms


CHAPTER IV.

DEFINITION AND DESCRIPTION.

The origin of the word ‘ glee a s applied to a musical composition.

Quotations from Old writers showing the manner and varietyof the applica tion Of the term.

THE tena city with which Old customs a re adhered to,

in reappearing under diff erent forms and names, is

a ma tter which can never fa il to arrest the a ttention

Of the student Of history and litera ture. The best

andmost distinguished o f our Opera and oratorio

singers would doubtless be much surprised if they

were told tha t they were the direct representatives

o f the ancient bards, the Scandinavian scalds, or

the Anglo-Saxon gleemen . The conditionsunder

which they pra ctise their art are different, the

cha ra cter Of the art itself ha s become modified and

changed, but the ma in principles whi ch surround

the exposition Of their abilities are the same. The

successive progress Of ages ha s added a va st num

ber Of extraneous accompaniments to the artistic

THE ANCIENT BARDS 67

life Of those who are the present representa tives

Of an ancient, honourable, and highly favoured

ra ce.

Am ong the ancient Britons, whose love for voca l

and instrumenta l music wa s an inheritance derived

from their far distant Aryan ancestors, the bards,

who were musicians and poets, were held in the

highest esteem. Ammianus Marcellus tells us tha t

thesebards celebra ted the noble a ctions Of illustrious

persons in heroic poems, whi ch they sang to the

sweet sounds Of the lyre.

’ Another early historian,

Diodorus Siculus, sta tes tha t‘ the British bards are

excellent andmelodious poets, andsing their poems,

in which they pra ise some and censure others, to

the music Of an instrument resembling a lyre.

’

He

a lso a dds elsewhere, their songs and their music

are so exceedingly a ffecting tha t sometimes when

two armies are standing in order Of ba ttle, with

their swords drawn and their lances extended, upon

the point Of engaging in a most furious conflict, the

poets have stepped in between them, and by their

soft and fascina ting songs ca lmed the fury Of the

warriors, and prevented the bloodshed. Thus even

among barbarians ra ge gave way to wisdom, and

Mars submitted to the Muses.

’

The instruments,r 2


which the Roman authors described a s lyres, were

probably the cruit and clearsach, the crowd andharp.The bards, who a lso excited the armies to bravery

a s they preceded them to fight, were the hera lds of

princes and the media tors Of pea ce. They were an

hereditary order, and exercised great influence'

over

the people ; they a lso were the channels Of all

historica l tradition .

In Wa les, about the year 940 , their privileges

were defined and fixed by the laws Of King Howel

Dha , and in 1078 the whole order wa s revised and

regula ted by a new code promulga ted by Griffith

ap Conan. Competitions in minstrelsy called

E isteddf odau were held from time to time, the

judges being appointed by the prince . These meet

ings under roya l commission were held down to the

reign Of Queen Elizabeth . The bardic spirit is

ma inta ined by societies to whose exertions we owe

the preserva tion Of the relics Of the lays of the

Welsh bards, none Of which , it is sta ted, can be

tra ced to MSS . o f a da te anterior to the twelfth

century .

The bards in Ireland were a lso an hereditarybody

divided into three cla sses— the Filhcdha , who sang

in the service Of religion and in war, and were the

counsellors and hera lds Of princes ; the Bra ith

THE BARDS OF IRELAND AND SCOTLAND 69

eamha im, who recited or chanted the laws ; the

Scana cha idhc, who were the chroniclers andgenealo

gists. The skill Of the Irish bards upon the harp

wa s known throughout the world . When the pro

fession decayed a fter the conquest of Ireland by

Henry II ., the bards and their successors found

refuge with the chiefs, and by their songs and

legends kept a live the na tiona l feeling. This occa

sioned severe mea sures aga inst them. Elizabeth

ordered the bards who were captured to be hanged

a s instiga tors Of rebellion . The profession survived,

though in a modified form , under the encouragement

Of the na tive gentry . The la st Of the ba rds was

TurloghO’

Carolan, who died in 1737 .

The bards Of Scotland are supposed to have been

simila r to those Of Ireland. All tha t is known with

certa inty concerning them is tha t there were poets

and bards in the Highlands down to the begin

ning Of the seventeenth century.

The Northern sca lds, to whom reference ha s

been ma de, resembled the bards in their constitution

and Offices. They were equa lly venera ted by their

countrymen,and fulfilled conditions similar to those

which ha ve been told Of the bards.

The Sa xons in Brita in had their gleemen or

musicians, who were highly privileged favourites.


The courts of kings and the residences Of the

Opulent Off ered them a constant a sylum ; their

persons were protected, and admission to castles

and private houses wa s granted to them without

the least restra int.

There were two orders Of the gleemen— the one

who were harpers and singers, the others were

merrymakers, whose cra ft wa s ca lled Gligga/men,glee games, because they indulged in tricks, jests,sports, gambols, and feats of dexterity more or less

amusing and exciting.

The story Of Alfred in the Danish camp can

be perfectly understood when the estima te Of the

position Of the gleeman or minstrel is taken into

consideration. His person wa s sa cred wha tever

language he spoke, and whether he was personally

known or not . He wa s protected byhi s profession,

and was free to come or go a s he wished.

Unlike the ba rds, the gleemen were not an

hereditary community . Their ranks were recruited

from all cla sses Of society. Many were poets as

well a s musicians, and some added to their artistic

accomplishments fea ts Of dexterity, mimicry, jug

gling, dancing, and tumbling, and other enterta in

ments similar to those which in the present dayare presented as attra ctions in the variety theatres


with mea t and drink and such bounty as the

housekeeper chose to Offer.

More than a century la ter, in the ninth year of

the reign Of Edward IV. with the intentionap

parently o f reforming the abuseswhich existed among

the body, a charterwa s granted to Wa lter Ha lladay!

and seven others, his own minstrels, named by him,

by which they were crea ted into a guild or fra ternity,such a s the body possessed in Olden time. They

were to be governed by a marsha l, appointed for life,

and other Officers, who were empowered to admit

members into the guild, and to regula te and govern,and to punish when necessary all such a s exercised

the profession Of minstrel within the kingdom.

(The minstrels Of Chester were excepted in this

charter.)

The establishment of this institution does not

seem to have improved either the position Of the

minstrels or the qua lity Of those who exercised the

profession. Their occupa tionwa s gone.

In the days o f Queen E lizabeth their credit had

sunk so low in public estima tion tha t,in the thirty

ninth year Of her reign, a sta tute wa s issued aga inst

vagrants, and minstrels and gleemen were included

among the rogues, vagabonds, and sturdy beggars,and were subjected to like punishments. This

DECAY OF MINSTRELSY 73

e dict a ffected all fencers, bearwards, common

p layers Of interludes (with the exception Of such

players a s belonged to grea t persona ges, and were

a uthorised to play under the hand and sea l of their

pa trons) , a s well a s allm instrelswandering abroa d,

jugglers, tinkers, and pedlars. Thi s Act gave the

dea th-blow to the profession of the gleemen or

m instrels, who had so long enjoyed the sunshine Of

popular favour .

The miserable sta te Of this section Of the

m usica l profession is described by Puttenham,in

his Arte Of English Poesie,’ printed in 1589 , when

he speaks Of sma ll and popular musickes sung by

these Conta bcmqui upon benches and barrels’ heads,

where they ha ve none other audience then boys or

countrey fellowes tha t pa ss them in the streete, or

e lse by blind ha rpers, or such like ta verneminstrels,

tha t give a fit Of mirth for a groa t, and their

ma tters being for the most part stories of Old time,

a s the ta le Of Sir Topa s, the repartes Of Bevis Of

Southampton , Guy of Warwicke, Adam Bell, and

Clymme Of the Clough, andsuch other Old romances

o r historica l] rimes, ma de purposely for recrea tion

o f the common people a t Christma ses diners and

bride a les, and in tavernes and alehouses, and such

o ther pla ces Of base resort .’


The minstrels and gleemen were dissolved and

dispersed by influences which were at the time

growing in power, and were destined to change the

whole habits Of the na tion, a s well a s to modify the

processes Of amusement andeduca tion. The printingpress hadbeen ca lled into requisition to supply in a

permanent form much tha t heretofore had been fur

nishedin an ephemera l andtemporarymanner. The

reign Of Queen Elizabeth saw the multiplication

of ba lla ds and romances, such a s were still the

delight Of the common people, in numbers and

cha ra cters sufficient to justify the belief tha t the

Old cra ft Of the minstrel had not been extinguished,

but simply diverted into a new channel . The

minstrels and gleemen wrought a lone, and were

known by a fresh title, tha t Of ba lladmonger, which

seemingly hadno reference to the ancient profession

of which they were then the representa tives.

The na tiona l delight in secular music admitted

Of little or no aba tement by the disgra ce and dis

persion Of the minstrels . Better knowledge andim

proved skill were a tta ined by musicians ; the art

Of composition wa s making extensive strides, and

writers, discovering the fa ct tha t the tuneful art was

capable Of being moulded into a series Of mathe

ma tical puzzles, were fa scina ted by the discovery

OLD ENGLISH CANONS 75

and beguiled by its exercise. The composers Of the

reign of Queen Elizabeth , and others far into the

seventeenth century, spent themost Of their time in

working out intrica te devices in counterpoint and

in writing canons in all sorts of shapes— in circles,in squa res, in diagona ls, in cross-rows, forwards,

ba ckwards, and upside down, as may be seen in

an autograph book by E lway Bevin , who died in

1640 , preserved in the library Of Buckingham

Pa la ce . Such exercises were ingenious and clever,

but it is doubtful whether they had any permanent

va lue a s regarded the art Of composition. They

proved the capabilities tha t music in combina tion.

possessed, without a doubt . They may have helped

towards exhibiting the plastic na ture Of ha rmony ,

and the possibili ty Of interweaving certa in effects

which were either forbidden entirely heretofore or

only a llowed under protest .

The gra ce Of expression and the charm of pure

melody seem to have been a secondary considera

tion with the composers Of these arithmetical

rebuses . Tha t such qua lifica tions were sometimes

uni ted with them may be shown by reference to

the canon Non nobis, Domine,’ written by William

Birde in the reign Of Queen Elizabeth . This, which

is in the present day one Of the best-known pieces


o f harmony Of tha t period, is in three parts, and is

composed Of one melody so trea ted tha t it forms

its own ha rmony. The first pa rt begins, the second

part imita tes the melody a fourth below, a t a

ha lf-bar’s . distance, and a fter a bar the third part

enters a t the octave, and the harmony is made

c omplete. It is usua lly repea ted three times, and

ends at a previously agreed point , otherwise it

forms a perpetua l canon . The condition of musical

art necessary to produce successfulexamples of this

form o f writing wa s only arrived at through longperiods of proba tion.

At first allmusic wa s in unison ; the earliest

employment o f harmony being traced to the ora

ganising Of the seventh or eighth centuries. This

consisted Of the introduction o f two notes in concord

by way Of fina le or ca dence. From out Of this

organising the pra ctice Of fa lso-bordone wa s evolved,

and descant or counterpoint wa s the crowning stone

Of the edifice. The labours and discoveries Of the

Old writers, Willem Dufay, and his scholars ; Jos

quin des Prés, Ja cob Clemens non Papa , Orlandus

La ssus) , andthe Ita lian andEnglish musicians their

followers, augmented the scientific knowledge Of the

a rt . The more enlightened views which had fol

lowed the periods Of reforma tion and convulsion

POPULAR MELODIES AND COUNTERPOINT 77

in the severa l European countries had caused the

barriers which restricted the rules Of musica l art to

be removed, and a fusion Of idea s to be a llowed to be

m ade . The forms Of melody , which had been ma de

popular by the gleemen, minstrels, and others, were

imita ted and extended, and musical skill found

wider fields for opera tion .

Tha t there had always'

been a hankering desire

a fter the popularmelodies among musicians may be

a ssumed from the fa ct tha t many Of themovements

in the ma sses for the service Of the Church were

counterpoints upon favourite popula r melodies,

melodies appa rently so well known, and a ssocia ted

with genera l idea s , tha t more than one composer

takes the same theme upon which to exhibit his

ingenuity . The word motett ,’

which is the same a s

motive, wa s a t first applied to such pieces a s were

founded upon themes SO selected ; a fterwards it

became a tta ched to a piece Of sa cred music, not

necessarily a portion Of the ritua l, but because

it conta ined the musica l exposition Of a text or

sentence Of Scripture. The origina l musica l notes,

idea s, or, a s Shakespea re would say, the conceits,

were doubtless those sung by the poets, the trou

badours , the minstrels, or the gleemen.

It is therefore not difficult to understand tha t


the apparently incongruous efforts of musicians and

performers should have something to do in bringing

into being a form Of such simple beauty a s the

glee, in addition to the more mighty expansions,

the ora torio , the Opera in its many forms, the

symphony, and other voca l and instrumental

trea sures which we now enjoy.

In more than one instance it is known that

changes o f the utmost importance have been effected

by unexpected means, and have been due to causes

which were out Of the ca lcula tions even Of those

who were wise enough in some degree to foresee the

future. How fewimagined that the singing Of a

few hymns between the pauses Of a continued

discourse would suggest the ora torio, or anticipate

the magnificent forms into which it would expand !

The most sanguine enthusia st would have hesitated

to declare tha t the remova l o f the frets from the

finger-boa rd Of the violin would be the first step to

a way which would culmina te in the production Of

the symphony and other extended orchestra l works.

Enough ha s been shown for the present Of the

musica l forces at work before the glee, as a piece Of

music, hadits being. It will now perhapsnot be un

interesting to tra ce the growth of the word, and to

show its significa tion a t the present time.

80 ENGLISH GLEES AND PART—SONGS

glees and Shore ’ s Willie brewed a peck O’ maut

is ca lled a comic glee. Now it is a remarkable thingtha t no qua lifica tion Of the term wa s ever ap

plied

to the madriga l . Its term is a lways used a lone.

It is true tha t many pieces are termed madriga ls

which would be properly described -by other names

in use, such a s canzona , villanella , and so forth ;

but those works tha t are termed madriga ls have

Only the qua lifying titles which refer to their me

chanical construction a sMadriga li di stromcntt, and

so forth, but they a re never marked by indica tions

Of chara cter such a s are often appended to the ‘ glee.

’

As the glee is not a lways Of the na ture which

may be duly described by the dictionary explana

tion, we must look elsewhere for its meaning.

The early English gleemen were not singers Of

glees. They probably derived their name from the

fa ct tha t they were united in a brotherhood and

formed into companies, by which means they were

enabled to diversify their performances, and render

many Of them more surprising through the a ssist

ance Of their confedera tes. Thomson in his Ety

mons Of English Words,’

in his explana tion Of the

word and its deriva tives, gives the Old German

word lick, or league, combina t ion, or a ssocia tion, as

a compara tive meaning. The use of the word glee

THE GLEEMEN AND THEIR WORK 81

a nd gleeman by the Oldwriters would seem to bear

out the a ssumption tha t the words had a commonly

understood significa tion.

None of them speak Of a gleeman, the term is

a lways a pplied in the plura l . When it is necessary

to speak Of a Single individua l, he is referred to

a s a minstrel or a s one of the gleemen. It is not

unlikely tha t the Anglo-Saxon word gligg,’ which

is frequently interpreted music,’

wa s origina lly

applied to the kind Of music made by the gleemen

or brotherhood. It a fterwards a tta ined another

m eaning, a lso from its association with the a cts Of

the same body . A portion Of their business wa s

m imicry and exa ggera tion Of gesture, thence the

word gleek which is employed by Shakespeare a s

meaning to mock .

’ There were many of the body

who never took part in the musica l performances,

butwhose businesswa sposture-making andtumbling.

Still they were ca lled gleemen,

’

and therefore we

may not unrea sona bly a ssume tha t there wa s

another and well-understood meaning Of the word

in the days when the band or brotherhood were

moving on the full tide of popular fa vour. The Old

manuscripts, which are a dorned with drawings,

genera lly depict the gleemen a s exhibiting their

a ccomplishments in companies.


CHAPTER V.

DEFINITION AND DESCRIPTION (continued) .

The early English transla tion of the First Book o f Moses, TheStory of Genesis, ’ 1250—Robert Manning’s translation of the150th Psalm , 1305— Chaucer ; the Promptorium Parvulorum—The gleemen, minstrels , jocula tors— The troubadours, &c.

THERE can be no doubt tha t the word glee wa s never

applied to musica l compositions until the beginning

Of the eighteenth century, or, a t the earliest, at the

latter part Of the seventeenth . The Older poets used

the word to mean harmony, or the combination of

sounds. It is employed both a s a verb and as a

noun .

There is an ancient rhyming version Of the first

Book of Moses ca lled The Story Of Genesis,’ written

in English about the year 1250 , a few years later

than the da te Of the manuscript which contains

Sumer is icumen in,

’

the earliest example Of poly

phonic composition extant . The Story Of Genesis,’

edited by Dr. Morris, ha s been included in the pub

lications of the Early English Text Society. The

POETICAL REFERENCES 83

v ersion Of the twenty-first verse Of the fourth chapter

in the authorised version is andhis brother’sname

wa s Juba l, he wa s the fa ther Of all such a s handle

the harp and organ .

’

The paraphra se runs thus

Jobs] is bro ‘O‘

er sung and glcw ,

Wit Of music well he knew.

If this were paraphra sed aga in, we should say

tha t it signified tha t Juba l wa s able to sing and

make combina tions of harmony, because the second

part Of the verse in forms us tha t Juba l possessed

wit Of music —tha t is to say, tha t he wa s well

a cquainted with the science Of the art in which he

wa s a ccomplished a s an executant . In a manu

script Of the year 1200 , which is preserved in the

British Museum in the Harleian collection, there

is a love song which Wa rton conjectures to be one

Of the Oldest extant . It wa s probably one Of the

songs Of the trouba dours, and the author decla res

in his manner tha t he will love his lady while he

endures

A wayle whyt a s whalles bon a grein in golds that godlyshon a tortle tha t min herte is on in tounes trewe Hire

gla dship nes never gon iwhil y may glewe.

Here the poet uses the word a s much to signify

his singing a s to a ssert his constancy. His sensi

bility to the charming qua lities Of the subject Of

G 2


his verse will ever continue while he can hold

together.

Robert Manning, more commonly ca lled Robert

de Brunne, from the pla ce Of his birth, a village in

Lincolnshire, in his transla tion Of Bishop Grosse

teste’s Manuel de Pschs,’ which he called Hand

lyngs Synne,’ makes reference to music andmusical

performances

The vertu of the harps, thurghs skylle and ryght,

Wyl destroys the fendes myght,And to the croys, by gods skylle

Ys the harpelykenedweyls.Therefor, gods men, ye shullers,Whan ye any glsmenhere ,To wurschep God a t yours powersAs Davyd scyth yn the sauters

Yn harps , in thabour, and symphan gls

Wurschepe God ; yn trounpes and sautre ,

In cordys, an organes, and bellys ryngyng ;Yn all these wurshepe ye bevens Kyng.

The words ‘

yn harps , in thabour, and symphan

gls signify the music made by those instruments

in combina tion.

In another pla ceRobert de Brunne, in describing

the corona tion Of King Arthur, speaks OfJogelours wer there incusTha t were qusitise f or the drouz;Minstrels many with divers glew.

Here the word glew may mean several things

connected with the profession Of the minstrel. It

FURTHER REFERENCES 85

may mean divers pieces Of music or instruments,or it may signify the union Of forces in order to

produce a grand effect . In any ca se it is an

interesting example Of the employment Of a word

connected with music a s Signifying harmony or

combina tion Of some kind or other .

Geoffrey Chaucer, who wa s born in 1328 and

died in 1400 ,’

ha s many references to music in his

poems. In his Troilus and Cressida ’

he says

For though the bes t harpeur upon lyve,Wold upon the best sounyd joly harpsTha t evere wa s , wi th allhis fingers fyveTouche evere o strenge , or evere o werble harpsWhere his naylis poynted nevsre so sharpsHe sholde maken every wights to dulleTo here his gls , all o f his strokis fulle.

These severa l quota tions show tha t music was

meant by the word glee, and tha t some Of the

writers infer tha t combined forces were to be

employed in making it. It is pretty well under

stood tha t the gleemen worked in companies, and

tha t part of their occupa tion wa s jesting and

mimicry. There is the word gleek in Shake

speare, which all commenta tors interpret to scoff,’

or‘ to mock .

’

In Doucs’

s‘ Illustra tions Of Shake

speare he remarks tha t in some Of the notes on

thi s word it has been supposed to be connected

86 ENGLISH GLEES AND PART—SONGS

with the ca rd game Of gleek, but it wa s not

recollected that the Saxon language applied the

word 13113 (gligg) ludibriam, and, doubtless, a corre

sponding verb. This ‘ glee ’

signifies mirth and

j ocula rity, and gleeman, or gligman, a minstrel or

jocula tor. Gleek wa s therefore used to express a

stronger sort Of joke, a scofling. It does not appear

tha t the phra se ‘to give the gleek

’

wa s ever intro

duced into the game which wa s borrowed from

the French but a pa ssage in Romeo and Juliet ’

further illustra tes thismeaning. Peter, speaking to

themusicianswho came to Juliet ’s funera l , says, ‘NO

money, on my fa ith, but the gleek I will give you

the minstrel,’ by which he meant tha t he would

play some ridiculous jest upon him .

The ‘ Promptorium Parvulorum ,

’

a La tin and

English Dictionary written about the year 1440,

may a lso be referred to on this subject. It is

a most va luable work Of reference for students

Of mediaeva l English , a s it interprets certain

English words Of variable spelling and changeable

meaning, by La tin words whose orthography and

significa tion has rema ined una ltered. The word

glee is therein translated a rmont’

a, minstrelsy.

As in those days the significa tion Of the word

harmony had been settled and understood, at all


may be tra ced to a connection with the gleemen or

minstrels Of Old.

A further support Of the a ssumption tha t the

name may have been derived from the fellowship or

guild is found in the fa ct tha t the Old Anglo-Saxon

gleemen were ca lled jocula tors or jongleures by

the Normans. This word a lludes to the ‘ jong ’

or

band in which the minstrels were enrolled, the

body to which they belonged. All the arts in

which the minstrels or gleemen excelled were per

formed by the joculators. They included in their

companies tregetours, gestours, and others. The

name Of tregetour wa s chiefly, if not entirely, ap

pmpriated to those members Of the band who, by

sleight Of hand, or with the assistance Of ma chinery

of various kinds, deceived the eyes Of the spectators,

and produced such i llusions as were usua lly supposed to be the effect Of enchantment, for which

rea son they were frequently ranked with magicians,

sorcerers, witches, and uncanny folk.

’

The feats

they performed, a ccording to the descriptions given

O f them, abundantly prove tha t they were no son

temptible pra ctitioners in the arts Of deception.

Thus it wa s tha t the jongleur, jougleur, or yoke

fellow became a juggler, a term synonymous with

deceiver or trickster. In like manner the gestour

THE KING’S MINSTRELS ETCn 89

— who was originally tha t member Of the band who

told the gests or a cts of heroes, or related popular

stories— became the jester from the fact tha t manyOf his stories were Of a humorous character, orwere

illustra ted by incidents Of a laughable na ture in the

course Of the narra tive. The term ‘

gestour’

wa s

a lways applied to those of the gleemen who rela ted

droll stories, and from a pa rticular a cquired a general

a pplica tion.

The performance of the jongler was called his

minstrelsy. The king’s minstrels were a lso ca lled

jocula tors, andthe Ofli ce Of king’s juggler wa s ma in

ta ined in England up to the reign of Henry VIII .

It is well known tha t minstrels have formed part

Of the royal household from time immemoria l,and from certa in allusions made in contemporary

records there is rea son to believe that among these

were many musicians whose labours and studies

have been Of no mean benefit in a dvancing the

cause Of art and the knowledge Of its practice.

The pa tronage and support offered by the sove

reigns and rulers of various Sta tes encouraged those

of the musicians who were not a tta ched to any

particular clerica l establishment to prosecute the

cultiva tion Of the science o f sweet sounds, and so to

a certa in extent benefited the art, by extending to its


professors the Opportunity Of enjoying tha t ease and

relief from the immedia te cares a ssocia ted with the

process Of earning the da ily bread .

On the other hand, this sort of pa tronage was a

hindrance to progress and discovery, by ea sing the

necessity Of making a ltera tions in things that suf

ficed for present needs.

It is a rema rkable fa ct tha t the knowledge Of

musica l instruments wa s restricted to a very few

types, chiefly Of a primitive chara cter. The shapes

and forms Of the instruments known and used up

to the fifteenth century were repea ted a lmost with

out varia tion for more than five hundred years.

The conserva tive spirit which the children had

inherited from their parentswa s transmitted with

out change. Things tha t were capable o f improve

ment were passed over una ltered, a s year rolled by

year, and music wa s anything but a progressive

science .

One rea son for the want Of enterprise was

perhaps to be found in the encouragement given to

the gleemen and their recognised position a s makers

Of music and enterta inments. We rea d occasion

a lly Of one who though not a minstrel,could ‘ play

upon the rote or other instrument ; but in the

majority Of instances the power Of performing upon


music Of the island, namely, the sa lt-box, the tongs.

and bones.

’ Shakespeare in ‘ Midsummer Night ’s

Dream ’ makes bully Bottom say, I have a reason

able good car in music, let me have the tongs and

bones.

’

Hentzner, who wrote a t the end of the

sixteenth century, says : The English excel in

dancing and music, for they a re a ctive and lively ;

they are va stly fond Of noises tha t fill the ear, such

a s the firing Of cannon, bea ting Of drums, and the

ringing Of bells, so tha t it is common for a number

Of them tha t have got a glass in their heads to get

up into some belfry, and ring the bells for hours

together for the sake Of exercise.

’ It must be

remembered tha t these descriptions were written

a fter the reviva l Of learning, andwhen the minstrels

had fa llen into disrepute.

In the earlier centuries, the ma le children Of

the nobles and others Of high degree were instructed

in all sorts Of out-Of-door Sports and pa stimes, and

sometimes were taught to play upon the harp or

other musica l instrument . Fema le educa tion seems

to have been restricted to needlework. Musical

a ccomplishmentswere not a lways considered neces

sary for la dies. It is not certa in tha t they were

taught to read, such a ccomplishments were left to

clarkes — tha t is to say, to men Of education.

THE TROUBADOURS 9 3

Their a cqua intance with litera ture wa s restricted

t o the knowledge Of a few poems or ba lla ds, which

they learned by heart to sing .

The a dvent Of the trouba dours , and the new

life they impa rted to music and poetry,had the

e ffect Of arousing the higher cla sses to an interest

in the charms Of poetry and polished forms Of

e xpression . The sentiment Of honourwa s so strong

in the hearts Of the early English ra ce, tha t men

have suffered themselves to be sold in Open market

a s slaves, to redeem debts Of honour contra cted by

indulgence in the pa ssion Of gambling.

The trouba dours did everything for the honour

and glory Of their work . They scorned to take

rewards for the exercise Of their art , and this spirit

helped to recommend them to the na tions who

c arried a dmira tion for honour to excess. In this

respect they were a distinct cla ss from the jongleurs,

who did not scruple to exa ct pay for their work.

The chara cter Of the songs and Of the music per

formed by ea ch cla ss wa s a lmost the sams a t the

beginning, for the sta te Of society both high and

low wa s equa lly rude, a nd the songswhich delighted

the pea sant were equa lly a cceptable to the noble.

By degrees a superior refinement and sensibility

m anifested themselves in the ta stes and manners


of courts, and this superiority found poetica l ex

pression in a more artistic kind Of verse than had

hitherto preva iled. Kings, nobles, and princes who

pra ctised verse-making for their pleasure or out

of ga llantry were always called troubadours, while

inferior knights, court a ttendants, and even citizens

and serfs who took money for the exercise Of the

art were ca lled troubadours, minstrels, or jongleurs

indiscriminately.

’

The true minstrel wa s a t first the minister or

servant Of the troubadour, who carried the harp or

other instrument Of the master— for it was con

sideredundignified for the post to be his own porter.

Who and wha t the jongleurs were ha s a lready been

expla ined. It not unfrequently happened tha t the

troubadour had severa l Of these minstrels in his

service. The troubadour poetry (art dc troba/r) was

lyrical , while the popular minstrelsy wa s Of the

epic ballad sort. It exercised a considerable in

fluence on the a dvancement Of litera ture andculture

genera lly, yet those who pra ctised it never formed

themselves into a guild, or into specia l schools, but

preserved a certa in free individua lism, which gives

a fine picturesqueness to the outlines Of their

history . At all the courts, grea t and small, in

Southern France, Northern Spa in, and Ita ly, they


a nd deciding who were the victors. But a lthough

the trouba dours a s a rule strictly confined them

s elves to themes Of ga llantry, yet sometimes their

muse, especia lly in its sa tiric moods, ventured

into higher regions, and glanced a t the genera l con

ditions Of society, or the graver evils Of the times

a s the wars between France and England in

Southern France, the persecution Of the Albigenses,the degenera cy Of the clergy, the diminishing zeal

f or the crusades, and so forth . Sometimes their

muse dipped her pinions in a lowlier a tmosphere,

a nd condescended to depict the life Of the pea santry,their thoughts, a spira tions, and customs, and sang

their a dventures with shepherds and Shepherdesses,

a nd other ma tters rela ting to rura l life.

These songs were ca lled p a storetes, va qneyms,

motes, canzon'l,villa ncc

'

cos or villan ellas . The variety

O f terms is owing to the diflerences Of nationalities

a mong the inventors.

The extent Of territory overwhich the troubadour

p oetry wa s cultiva ted included Provence, Toulouse,POictou, Dauphiné, and all parts Of France south

of the Loire, a s well a s Ca ta lonia , Va lencia , and

Arragon in Spa in, and part of upper Ita ly . The

p eriod Of time it existed wa s about 200 years (1090

and there were three periods in its history.

THIBAUT OF NAVARRE 97

The first is the period Of its rise, and the develop

ment out of the popula r poetry Of the gleemen or

jongleurs into forms Of grea ter artistic purity

(1090 The second was its golden age, and

included the period when the trouba dours were

a t the highest estima tion (1140 Then the

period Of its decline, which took pla ce forty years

la ter.

The first Of these periods is marked by a con

scious Striving a fter something finer and more

poetic than the rude simplicity Of popular verse ;

the second by the loftiest expression Of idea l

chiva lry and ga llantry, and the most perfect

development Of artistic form the third by an ever

increa sing dida ctic tendency , and a degenera cy in

poetic art . Thus the poetry Of the troubadours

rose, and ruled, and fell with tha t courtly chiva lry

whi ch wa s a t once its inspira tion and its soul .’

The music which wa s performed by the trou

badours wa s Simple and pla in , but by no means

deficient in melody a nd gra ss . The songs Of

Thibaut, king Of Na varre, one Of the princes

who wa s designa ted by the honourable title Of

ma ster ’

among the troubadours, which have been

preserved, prove these fa cts incontestably . He

belonged to the golden age Of the gay science,’

H


and saw its culmina tion . Before his dea th , in 1254,

the process Of decayhad set in , but without showinga s yet any outward and visible signs tha t the days

of its vigour and active life had been passed. The

pra ises which Dante bestows upon him in his

Inferno were not undeserved.

The trouba dours were not only the inventors and

improvers Of metrica l romances, songs, ba llads, and

rhymes to SO grea t a number, and o f such a kind,

as to ra ise an emula tion in most countries Of Europe

to imitate them , but the best posts in Ita ly, namelyDante and Petrarca , owe much Of their excellence

to their imita tions of the Provenca l poetry . An

enthusia stic writer on the subject thus speaks

In Provence, on the flowery Shores Of the

Durance, in the land where Grecian culture, tended

by the Romans, had never wholly been destroyed,

where the arts Of pea ce had long flourished, and

yet more richly a fter the migra tions Of the nations,

and in emulation Of the Spanish Arabs ; under the

brilliant heaven Of southern France, where nature,womanly beauty, manly courage, and courtly man

ners lent their highest charms to life, the luxuriant

flower of lyric song sprang forth among the trou

badours. It is true tha t the music and poetry Of

the troubadours were a na tura l outgrowth Of that


sponding with tha t Of religious gra ss . The end Of

their profession wa s the service o f religion, honour,and woman ,

in deed and in song . One Of their

mottoes wa s ! Love and religion protect all the

virtues ; another ran ,

! My soul to God, my life

for my king, my heart for my lady , my honour

for myself.”

The troubadour most esteemed wa s he who

could invent, compose, and a ccompany his own

songs. If he wa s unable to play he had his

minstrel ; if he could not sing, his cantador or

musa ’r . The merit Of the troubadours in furthering

the progress Of music a s an a rt wa s, tha t they

libera ted melody from the fetters Of ca lculation,gave it the stamp Of individua lity , and bore it on

the wings Of fancy into the doma in Of sentiment.

They had the further merit Of introducing new and

peculiar rhythmic changes Of time,which, apparently

irregular, were rea lly forcible, symmetrica l, and

origina l . It is a lso more than probable that the

trouba dours received new idea s in regard to melody

from the Ea st, a s they found among the Arabs not

only a dif ferent system o f tones, but many fanciful

voca l ornaments then unknown in Europe, and

which they introduced in their own songs on their

return from the Crusades. But, a s harmony was

ADAM ‘DE LA HALE AND OTHERS 10 1

in tha t day undeveloped , the glowingvine Of melody

received little support from it, and therefore Often

appears weak. The rules Of composition were then

highly complicated and ill classified yet they were

well understood by the best educa ted trouba dours,

and though their earlier days were stifl'

, closely

resembling the Gregorian chant in form and style,

in some Of the la ter ones we find gra ceful melodies

tha t leave little to be desired, and tha t possessmore

rea l variety and individuality Of chara cter than do

the words a tta ched to

The most celebra ted musicians among the trou

badours besides Thiba ut , king of Navarre, were

Adam de la Ha le, Cha tela in de Coucy, and

Gaucelm Fa idit. Many Of their songs ha ve been

preserved, and though the harmonisa tion is crude

and harsh , and even awkward a ccording tO'

Our

modern v iews,more than one show the higher in

fluences a t work towards the a tta inment Of a more

perfect pra ctice Of harmony, such a s delights modern

ears, and sa tisfies modern demands Of scientific con

trivance . Consecutive fifths and fourths it will be

remembered were among the licences permitted and

even enjoined in the harmony Of the period at

which Adam de la Ha le and his tuneful brethren

lived and worked, therefore the appearance Of these

[ 02 ENGLISH GLEES AND PART-SONGS

progressions among the ha rmonies employed is a

ma tter for no surprise to those who know the

history o f such things. At the same time it must

be noted tha t the music o f Adam de la Ha le, who

lived in the la tter ha lf o f the thirteenth century,

cannot be compared in point o f invention and con

trivance with the famous canon Sumer is icumen

in,

’ which belongs to the same period, though

perhaps in the feeling for melody shown in the

recognised examples of work from his hand there

is an equa l amount Of intelligence and regularity

o f expression displayed .

The charm Of a gra ceful melody having ga ined

a recognition, the Opportunities for the extension

and expansion Of the principles upon which it might

be constructed were now a dmitted, and melodies

were constructed upon plans which a llowed the

notes to be spread over a more extended compass

than tha t which had hitherto restricted the ambitus

Of a song. Many Of the melodies only required

four or five notes Of compa ss, long a fter the time

when it wa s Shown, as in Sumer is icumen in,

’

tha t the melody might be extended to the range Of

an octave . Tha t more liberty wa s a llowed to the

instrumenta list may be a ssumed from the fa ct that

a tune to which Mr. Chappell (‘ Popular Music Of

lO-l: ENGLISH GLEES AND PART-SONGS

tha t the shape adopted wa s a direct copy Of the

Moorish instrument ca lled a Kemangeh, which

is in use in the Ea st to the present day. It is

sometimes furnished with two , sometimes with

three, strings . The Rebeck, a s a name for the

English form Of the Arabian instrument the Rebab,existed up to the time Of Milton . The word fithcle

wa s only in use among the gleemen or the minstrels

who were admitted to be Of a lower degree of refine

ment . The name arOse from the a ction employed

in performance, the bow being drawn up and down.

The fithele wa s a lso ca lled ‘a jig,

’

and hence the

name Of certa in dances so ca lled . The German

word Geige has a Similar significa tion.

The cruit , crwth, or crowd wa s another instru

ment Of the fiddle kind , with a finger-board which

could only be rea ched by passing the hands through

hollows in the framework . The fingers could only

press the strings within a limited range, and there

wa s an unstoppable string which sounded a per

petual drone a s in the ba gpipe and the burdy-gurdy.

The burdy-gurdy wa s in fa ct a cnoth in which the

a ction Of the bow wa s superseded by a wheel charged

with powdered rosin . The strings were pressed by

keys, and not by immedia te conta ct with the fingers.

The sounds of ea ch instrument were probably

similar.

WIND AND STRINGED INSTRUMENTS 105

The poor Ita lian or Swiss boy who performs

upon the instrument in our streets is, therefore,one Of the direct artistic descendants Of the Old

j ongleurs or minstrels.

The similarity Of the sounds Of the two instru

ments led the Old writers to spea k Of them indis

crim ina tely , and the likeness which exists in the

names may have helped modern students to con

fuse one with the other, and come to no sa tisfa c

tory conclusion .

The word crwth or cruit came from a Gaelic root

which in English mouths became corrupted to crowd.

It wa s played with a bow, and the performer wa s

ca lled a crowder.

’

The hurdyigurdy wa s played by

a handle setting a wheel in motion . This wheel

wa s called the rota ,’

and from this name, written

va riously a ccording to the country or dia lect Of the

writer, the word rota became crota , crotta , chrotta ,

crowd, and so on .

There were few wind instruments in use in early

times other than flutes, or recorders, pipes for use

with tabours, and ba gpipes. This la st instrument

represented the whole family Of reed instruments,

from which a fterwa rds came the sha lms, the wa its,

and the more modern Oboe and clarinet .

There were trumpets and clarions and drums.


Military music wa s chiefly performed upon the la st

named, rhythmica l bea ts serving to ma rk the time

f or marching, a form still in use for some parts of

regimenta l service.

The trumpets and cla rions were only used on

S ta te occa sions, and in the time Of ba ttle . The

instruments Of pea ce were the pipe and tabour, both

being played by one performer. The tabour was a

kind Of double-hea ded tambourine, which was struck

with a Short stick held in the right hand . The left

hand wa s engaged in governing the ventages of

the pipe. The melodies produced from this primitive

instrument were na tura lly very limited, but they

were not more restricted than the majority of the

m elodies in Common use both for secular purposes

a nd in connection with the music of the pla in song

Of the Church .

Primitive and simple a s wa s the music Of the

time, there is yet to be tra ced a steady, if occasion

a lly interrupted, progress towards further perfec

t ion . How music fa red in the reviva l Of learning

during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries is yet

to be told, before we arrive at a complete elucida

t ion Of the historica l developments Of glees and

p art-songs.


tion Of their sfiorts to promote the cause Of science

and art .

With the printing press a s a lever they were to

move the whole world . Simplicity wa s to be the

fulcrum upon which the lever wa s to rest before

their grea t design could be a ccomplished. The

ambiguities which had hitherto clothed all musica l

language and thoughts were cleared away . The

need for extending knowledge prompted the Old

masters in music to discard much tha t wa s useless

a lthough it wa s held to be reverend by tradition.

Utilitv demanded the sa crifice Of the conventional .

The dicta tes Of the schoolmen were to be disregarded

in favour Of the promptings Of common sense.

These principles being recognised and a cted upon,

the advances made in the science and a rt Of music

were a s rapid a s they had hitherto been slow .

In the course Of one hundred and fifty years

music a tta ined a degree o f perfection which is

a stonishing when it is remembered that it had been

a lmost sta tionary during nearly fourteen centuries.

The majority Of the musica l compositions which

have descended to posterity from the early ages

show tha t the absurd and unna tura l rules by which

men thought fit to tie up their imagina tions were

effective enough in limiting their excursions into

ANCIENT RULES OF HARMONY 109

the fa ir regions of art . All the pieces Of music

produced under such conditions bore so strong

a family likeness to ea ch other tha t it is diffi

cult to repress impa tience a t the frequent repeti

t ion of the same idea s, scarcely changed in their

sequences.

The compla int Of many modern composers, tha t

it is impossible to light upon an entirely novel

phra se Of melody, is an idle one. The extension Of

resource should bring extension of trea tment. The

o ld writers might have preferred such a compla int

i f it had occurred to them. Seemingly they were

content to labour a s they had been taught, and

they transmitted their limited experiences with

s carcely any a dditions. The gra dua l recognition Of

the uselessness Of the principles upon which their

musica l tea ching had been founded inspired one or

two men Of genius to venture into forbidden regions.

Their ways of transgression became in time paved

a nd smooth, and the beginning Of pa ths into

hitherto unknown realms Of a dventure and dis

s ovet y.

Methods which were a ccepted a s theoretica lly

perfect were proved to be pra ctically dista steful.

Harmony of perfect fourths and fifths, with occa

sional diversions Of a dded octaves, were delightful


and consistent, while the theories ostensibly derived

from Pythagora s held sway. But whenthe harmony Of thirds and sixths was a dmitted to be more

plea sing to the ea r Of the musician a s well as to

tha t Of the unleam ed listener, though at first it

wa s counted a s flat heresy,’ it soon became recog

nised as orthodox truth. This fa ct established, the

Old orthodoxy wa s scouted a s heterodox, and con

secutive fifths and octaves in polyphonic harmonywere to be a s strenuously avoided a s they had

hitherto been courted. A lingering respect for the

Old traditions wa s occa siona lly exhibited in the

Omission Of the third in the fina l chord. When

the third wa s added it wa s spoken of contemptu

onely a s the tierce de Picardie,’

and probably

derived tha t name from the pra ctices Of some of

the troubadours or their a ttendant minstrels, who

may have sprung from tha t part Of France at the

time of the deca dence of the gay science.

’

These thirds and sixths ha ve ever been dis

plea sing to musica l ma thema ticians because they

cannot be sa tisfa ctorily a ccounted for by simple

harmonic theories. For the same reason, probably,there have been writers who set their fa ces aga inst

the use of the minor mode a s a tona lity,because

there does not happen to be any series o f minor


In ea ch , however, there may be discovered the germ

O f progress, more or less developed . This germ

a tta ins grea ter expansion in the works by Josquin

des Pres, Clemens non Papa , Orlandus La ssus, and

our countryman, William Birde. In the piece‘ Douleur me ba t,

’

bythe first of this la st group, the

c onnection between the style’

Of sa cred and secular

music is so slight tha t words Of either import might

be adapted to the notes without any grea t violence

to the feeling or sentiment which the sounds are

likely to awaken.

Whether thiswa s felt by the writers is a question

which has exercised theminds o f students Of history.

The answer to the question is only to be found

a fter examina tion o f the words themselves, and the

rela tive positions they occupied in the region Of art.

The purely ecclesia stica l music, founded upon the

Gregorian song, did not a dmit o f sufficient varietyto plea se the enterprising among musicians . They

hada cquired new a ccomplishments which they were

a nxious to exhibit in an unmistakable manner.

If they selected only the Gregorian tones, their

work might become a va luable a ddition to the

repertory Of the Church , but it might not be

plea sing or attra ctive to the multitude. The desire

to be thought well o f by one ’ s fellows without doubt

a nima ted the brea sts Of the good folk who lived in

THE PRINTING PRESS 113

the far-away centuries a s it does now . It therefore

popularitywa s to be won, it must be wooed by ways

which were likely to find a cceptance. This was

proba bly the rea son why composers took the melo

dies Of songs a ssocia ted with familiar words a s the

ba sis for the exercise Of their contrapunta l skill . In

this pra ctice we no t only perceive a concession to

the popular love for music, but a lso a desire to be

free from the trammels which hindered the flights

of genius .

Before the printing press held out its powerful

a rms to support the enterprising in their new

courses, men’

s minds had been in many ways pre

pared for the artistic and socia l revolutions which

took pla ce a t tha t period when learning wa s revived.

The dawn ing Of science revea led empiricism in all

its feeble life and gaudy rags, and made it shrink

into its darksome holes with terror a t the new-born

rays, only to emerge a t fitful interva ls, when the

clouds Of ignorance were pa ssing over the fa ce Of

the sun Of enlightenment and true knowledge.

The first Of the arts which felt the comfort of

the genia l beams Of the warm and resplendent sun

Of science wa s music .

The Church , which had hitherto kept a live the

germs Of art and litera ture, wa s unable by its very


constitution to do more than to prevent them from

perishing. The capabilities Of expansion, extension,and development by reproduction were a dmitted,but no a ction was taken to put the ma tter to a test.

SO long a smen were content to exercise their minds

in a planned direction,and to rest sa tisfied without

inquiring for themselves, everything rema ined with

out change. Under the feuda l rule men ’

s bodies

were bound. Through the tea chings Of their

church their minds were encha ined . The discovery

Of printing brought liberty Of thought and action.

The sense Of freedom wa s sweetened by independ

ence. With freedom came enterprise. Out of enter

prise proceeded wea lth. In the possession Of wealth

independence was nourished.

The wea lthiest people in the world in the four

teenth century were the Netherlanders. Their riches

were derived from pea ceful pursuits andcommercial

ventures . TO their honour, they employed a portion

of their wea lth in the pa tronage and encouragement

Of art . It is out of the present business to do more

than make a passing reference to the glorious cata

logue Of pa inters whose genius wa s promoted by the

fostering care Of the kindly merchants in the Low

Countries. The names Of Van Eyck, Quenten

Ma tsys, and the severa l pupils o f the schools they


Johannes Ockenheim or Ockeghem , b . about 1415, d.

about 1518. The charm Of expression which is con

veyed through his music is not the lea st of the

points which distinguish his work. The prepara

tion which had been ma de by the di scoveries Of

Ockenheim, Ma chault, and others Of his predeces

sors served a s a starting-point to Josquin des Prés,and the addi tions to art which he furnished cannot

be lightly regarded by those who desire thoroughly

to tra ce the course Of progress . Des Prés (Jodi

cuS Pra tensis) wa s not only a musician Of great

genius, considerably in advance Of his time, but he

wa s a lso a very learned man, and full Of that prin

siple which is best represented by the French word

espri t. This is distinguishable in his music, and it

gives a chara cter to the stories told Of him. The

da inty trea tment Of the madriga l, ‘ Petite Camusetts,’

enables us to understand more clearly how he ful

filled the roya l command to furnish a piece Of music

in which the King Louis XII. could take part. The

king’s abilities in music were very limited. SO

Des Pres wrote a part in a trio for his pa tron, the

king’s part being limited to one note. The elabo

ra te counterpoint in the other two parts concealed

the barrenness Of the c or regis and the king’

s accom

plishments, and by a dding his own voice he helped

ORLANDUS LASSUS 117

to keep the king stea dy. His Highness being

plea sed with the fulfilment Of the commission in so

Sa tisfa ctory a manner promised to give Des Pres

promotion in the Church, for he was”

in holy orders.

The promise wa s forgotten, and Des Pres wrote a

motett to the words Of a portion Of the 119th Psalm,

Memot estO verbi tui,’ which in the Anglican

version is transla ted 0 think upon thy servant

a s concerning thy word, wherein thou ha st caused

me to put my trust . ’ However, the king did not

redeem his promise. His successor, Francis I., who

posed a s a pa tron Of the arts and sciences, made

Des Prés Canon Of St . Quentin , and this gave rise

to another motett from the same psa lm,

‘ Bonita

tem fecisti,’ Lord, thou ha st dea lt graciously with

thy servant .’ His successor, Clemens non Papa , a lso

strove to exhibit a little humour occa siona lly in

his compositions, but wi th scarcely the same mea

sure of success. He appears to have limi ted his

expression Of fun to the choice Of words for his

secular compositions, which mi ght ha ve been ac

ceptable to his contemporaries, but the present gene

ra tion enterta in different views with regard to the

chara cter of words whi ch should be a ssociated with

Sweet sounds . The genuine, hea lthy, and harmless

drollery Of Josquin des Pres may be traced in the


writings Of Orlandus La ssus, and the madriga l

or chanson ‘ Ma tona mia ’

is a fa ir sample Of in

nocuous fun.

This ma driga l is remarkable inmore senses than

one The qua int charm of the music Speaks for

itself. The principles involved in the work deserve

a word Of recognition. It is one Of the earliest

pieces in which a refra in is introduced, and it is

the very first which conta ins a further a ttempt

to a tta in a fixed form . It may be expla ined that

nearly every piece o f music Of a cla ssica l chara cter

is ca st in a pa rticular manner a ccording to the

rules Of wha t is ca lled form . The chief of these

forms is derived from the Old dancemea sures, inas

much a s rhythm must be the guiding principle Of

music for terpsichorean purposes. When by degrees

the a ctua l needs Of the dance did not influence

composers in the arrangement Of music ca lled by

the names o f certa in dances, and pieces entitled

sarabands, minuets, gavottes, etc ., were disconnected

from and unfitted for the purposes Of sa ltatory

exercise, the expansion Of the form led to the

abandonment o f the particular for a genera l title.

Thus, in instrumenta l music, a number Of

movements whose rhythms were borrowed from

certa in dances Of diff erent chara cters in mea sure,


towards fixing and ga ining recognition for a ccepted

forms. When all requirements a re sa tisfied, there

appears to be a rest, in which men a re content

to work upon one model without any important

changes. Then some slight devia tions and new

forms, and so the progress o f music is continued.

Before the time of Orlandus La ssus there are

few indica tions Of the recognised principles Of

rhythm . The idea s were expressed in a continuous

form , and the majority Of composers had no definite

design in their work. They strove to a tta in efiects

by means Of phra ses Of imita tion such a s appear in

allworks o f a canonic form , but it took some time

to induce them to adopt the idea tha t it was

possible to get effects from the division and expres

sion Of their thoughts in short , regula r, rhythmica l

phra ses. When the effect wa s exhibited it was

produced ad nauseam. The continuity Of trea tment

wa s arrested, and everything wa s divisible into

equa l sections, the lines Of which were so marked

a s to form a distinct blemish in the design. The

advantages which the union Of rhythm,Of melody,

and harmony presented were lost in the desire to be

forma l . The departures from regulation pa tterns

were a ccounted eccentricities a lmost more remark

able than musicians Of the present day consider the

Observance Of forma l rules .

EARLY EXAMPLES OF MUSICAL HUMOUR 12 1

The Church music Of the time Of La ssus wa s

written in continuous harmony, and such a trea t ‘

ment is better suited to its requirements than

square cut , harsh , and definite rhythm . The

secular music , Of which the song and the dance

were the most popula r examples, were ca st in such

rhythmica l moulds a s were best suited for their

purposes .

Ma tona mi a is one Of the earliest combina tions

Of polyphonic ha rmony andregularly recurring pulse

mea sures .

It is , moreover, a primitive example Of humor

ous music . It is a droll sort Of serena de in which

the singers are supposed to be influenced by the

chills arising from the night dews , and to be

una ble to restra in themselves from sneezing, an

efiect expressed in the origina l words ca zz e, ca z z a r,

which have been rendered in English tissue and

issue.

This humorous trea tment is a reflex Of ‘

one side

of the,chara cter Of the composer, which is every

where recognisable in his music . He wa s known

to be an earnest and industrious worker, and a

thoroughly conscientious man . He left more than

different works, and his motto : As long a s

theAlmighty keepsme in hea lth I do not dare to be,

idle,’is the key to his industry and to his conscien


tiousness . Hisma driga l, Ma tona m ia ,’ contains one

more point which is worthy Of being particularly

remembered— namely, the addition o f a soda . It

ha s been a sserted tha t this sort Of appendix to a

musica l composition did not make its appearance

until nearly two centuries la ter, when it wa s fur

h ished a s a wind-up to those ma thema tica l musica l

exercises to which a llusion ha s been made- tha t is

to say. the canons and such like devices, in which

musica l notes were employed without a lways a tta in

ing an agreeable musica l result .

Roland de La ttre, a s his name rightly runs,

settled in Munich , and helped to found the great

German School which produced Haydn, Mozart,

Beethoven,Mendelssohn,

Schubert, Schumann,

Wa gner, and a crowd Of grea t men with great

minds . Roland de La ttre, Orlandus La ssus, or

Orlando di La sso , a s he is variously ca lled, was

the centra l figure in a group Of musica l missionaries

who all started from the Netherlands at several

times within the course o f a century. One section

Of this band entered upon their labours in Venice

and Upper Ita ly, among whom were Adrien

Willa ert, Cyprian di Rore, or Van Roor, Hans von

Boss, famous a s an organ builder a s well a s a musi

c ian, Ja chet Berchem, and others. A second section,


a rose from his invention Of the double chorus in

antiphona l form , one choir answering another and

then uniting . If Willa ert did not absolutely invent

the madriga l he certa inly gave it a rtistic form his

own ma driga ls give evidence Of this style Of treat

ment . He died on December 7 , 1562 , leaving as

his successor Cypriano di Rore, or Van Roor, whom

the Ita lians ca lled IlDivino .

’

The madriga l , once recognised a s a form of

composition, wa s imitated and developed by other

Flemish or Ita lian composers. The favour with

which it wa s received induced certa in English

ama teurs who were engaged in mercantile pursuits

to collect them, and as the printing press Of Fossa

brone in Venice furnished copies in the language

understood by allmusicians, the compositions soon

ga ined welcome wherever they were sent. The set

o f Ita lian madriga ls adapted to English words by

Nicola s Yonge, and published in 1588, Opened a

new field for English musicians.

In France and in Spa in , a s well a s in Italy,

composers seem to have caught an epidemic of

madriga l writing. The Flemish musicians had

either exhausted their powers in this direction in

their own country, or else the subject did not com

mend itself to their genius . Certa in it is tha t

DUTCH AND ENGLISH MUSICIANS 125

in the Netherlands only a few representa tive

musicia ns, like Sweelin ck and Cornelius Schuyt,

a ppear to have excelled in this particular branch

Of art. It is a curious fa ct tha t wi th the dawn

Of the ma driga l came the setting Of the sun Of

Netherlandish musica l art . The mission Of the

Old apostles Of sweet sounds was fulfilled, and

the development Of . the a rt wa s to be carried on

in other pla ces to which it had been imported. In

England the good seed Of a rtistic culture fell upon

good soil, and the English madriga ls produced by

men like William Birde, Thoma s Morley (a pupil of

Birds) , John Dowland, Thoma s Weelkes, John Bull,

JohnWilbye, Michael Cavendish, Thoma s Ford, and

many more, were in no whit inferior to the illus

trions pa tterns set by the ma sters Of the famous

Venetian School.

The prepara tion Of the soil into which the seed

had fa llen had been made through a long course Of

genera tions, from the time Of John Dunstable, who

gave life and vigour to the science of counterpoint .

His la bours were duly appreciated by the Flemish

w riters. In the pra ctica l use Of the science they

oversha dowed all others. Most European coun

tries had produced worthy disciples Oi the art .

E ngland had Robert Fayrfax, John Dygon, John


Shepherd, John Redford, John Marbeck, John

Taverner, Robert Parsons, Christopher Tye, Robert

White, Na thaniel Gyles, and severa l more, all of

whom had done good, honest, and laudable service

in the cause Of art , but their Flemish neighbours

possessed the grea ter Share Of genius, and enjoyed

the confidence Of the wea lthier section Of their

countrymen.


like Ba con,Uda ll, Colet , Gresham,

Myddelton, and

o thers, were never congrega ted in such brilliant

a rray, and the list o f the names Of the'musicians

o f the period adds a still grea ter lustre and honour

to one Of the brightest periods Of the artistic history

o f England .

The earliest publica tion Of ma driga ls in England

wa s tha t ca lled Musica Transa lpina: Madrigales

transla ted Of four, fine, and Sixs parts, chosen out of

diuers excellent Authours, with the first and second

pa rt Of La Verginella made by Ma ister Byrd, upon

two Stanz ’e Of Ariosto, and brought to Speak

English with the rest . Published by N . Yonge In

f avour Of such a s take plea sure in the Musick Of

voices. London,

There were fifty-seven pieces in this collection

by different composers Noe Fa igneant , Ferabosco ,

De Wert , Feretti, Felis, Pa lestrina , Di Lasso, Con

versi, Ma renzio, Dona to , Del Mell , Lelio Bertamy,

a nd others .

Following this wa s another collection made by

Thoma s Wa tson under the title Of Ita lian Madri

ga llsEnglished, not to the sense Of the originalldittie

but a fter the a ff ection Of the Noate.

’ John Wilbye,

Thoma s Weelkes, John Bennet, John Farmer, and

o thers, published collections of ma driga ls o f their

COLLECTIONS OF MADRIGALS 129

own composition . Thoma sMorley printed collections

of ba llets, canzonets, and madriga ls a t the end Of

the sixteenth century, and in 1601 he issued The

Triumphes Of Oriana , to 5 and 6 voyces, composed

by divers severa l authors .

’

There a re twenty-seven pieces in this collection

a ll in pra ise Of Oriana , the fanciful name by which

Q ueen E lizabeth was distinguished by certa in poets

o f the time. The names Of the composers whose

w orks are preserved in this collection represent the

highest ranks Of English musica l a rt at the time.

There is only one Ita lian writer in the list—namely ,

Giovanni Croce ; all the rest are na tive musicians,

including E llis Gibbons, the brother Of the famous

Orlando, and John Milton, the fa ther Of the im

morta l author Of Paradise Lost . ’

John Dowland, another madriga l writer, was a

lutenist Of the reign Of E lizabeth, and one of the

most popular musicians Of his time ; he is mentioned

in one o f the sonnets a scribed to Shakespeare .

The introduction Of the madriga l helped consider

ably to promote the cultivation Of socia l music, a t

home and abroad .

One composer, Luca Marenzio, published nine

collections Of madriga ls in Venice a lone ; his Single

c ompositions are sa id to have exceeded a thousand

x


in number. In England la rge collections were

published, and they were sung by everybody who

could sing. Music wa s part Of the education Of all,

and incapa city to take a part in concerted pieces

wa s considered a s the most unpardonable and

surprising ignorance . Morley, in his Pla ins and

Ea sie Introduction to PracticallMusicks, set down

in the form Of a dia logue,’

1597 , makes one o f his

speakers (Philomathes) refer to the genera l custom

of singing : Supper being ended, and musicks

bookes (a ccording to the customs) being brought

to table, the mistresss o f the house presented me

with a part, earnestly requesting me to sing ; but

when , a fter many excuses, I protested unfa inedly

tha t I could not , every one began to wonder. Yea ,

some whispered to others, demanding how I was

brought up : so tha t upon Shame Of mine ignor

ance, I goe now to seeks out mine Old friend

Ma ster Gnorimus, to make myselfs his scholler.

’

In the lower ranks Of society the practice Of Singing

music in consort ’ wa s Observed .

The madriga l wa s a luxury in which few Of the

poorer sort could indulge, but nearly every house

had a copy Of the Bible and Of The Whole Books

Of Psalmes collected into English mseter by Thos.

Sternhold, John Hopkins, and others. Conferred


Singing was by on means confined to London.

Carew,in his Survey Of Cornwa ll,

’

1602 , says

Pa stimes to delight the mind, the Cornishmen

have quary mira cles (mira cle plays) , and three

men ’

s songs cunn ingly contrived for the ditty, and

pleasantly for the note.

’

It is rea sonable to a ssume tha t the a ttra ction of

such sort Of music forwhich England had ever been

famous should draw men together for its practice,

and out Of these promiscuous a ssocia tions regular

clubs or societies would be formed for the cultiva

tion and performance Of part-singing . From the

time Of Henry III . , to whose reign belongs the early

piece Of music Sumer is icumen in,

’ to the days

of Queen Elizabeth, the round, ca tch, or canon

wa s a favourite form Of musica l diversion. The

names Of many Of the pieces Of this character have

been mentioned by many posts, and the music Of

some a s Old a s the fifteenth century ha s been pre

served . It may be mentioned in passing that the

Madriga l Society (which was founded in 1741 , and

still exists) had for its first supporters several

weavers and other tradesmen who were skilful in

singing catches. There is no reason to doubt that

a ssocia tions were formed for the cultiva tion Of the

a rt even in the days Of Queen Elizabeth . On the

TROUBLOUS TIMES FOR MUSICIANS 133

contrary, we may infer tha t the great impetus given

to musica l art wa s furnished by those who took

delight in the singing Of ca tches, madriga ls, ba llets

and fa las,’

and the severa l composers of the time

vied with ea ch other in the endeavour to promote

the progress Of music by experimenta l devices

prompted by their genius and knowledge, which

tended to increa se the resources to be ava ilable in

the future.

The immedia te future to the composers Of tha t

period was, however, to be Shrouded in a darkness

the more dense by comparison with the brilliant

light Of the days in which they lived and laboured.

The reign of James I. saw the inaugura tion

o f a new era in art, which, however, did not

a tta in its full development until a fter the troublous

times Of the Commonwea lth. The domestic and

politica l events Of tha t time were not favourable

either to the cultiva tion or the progress Of art.

The musicians found no favour with society,

their art wa s neglected, and they themselves were

forced to earn a scanty and intermittent subsist

ence by playing secretly in taverns and other pla ces

Of public resort, and they very frequently were

rewarded with the proverbialpay Of fiddlers—that is

to say, more kicks than ha lf-pence.


The new era to which a llusion ha s been made

wa s initia ted by the gradua l decadence Of themadri

gal, and the substitution of instrumenta l music in

consort.’ For this purpose chests Of viols were

ma de, consisting Of four or Six instruments,to be

enclosed in a box when done with .

The earliest intima tion Of this change Of fashion

is indica ted by the publica tion by Morley, in 1599,Of ‘ The first books Of Consorte Lessons, made

by divers exquisite authors,’

for Six instruments

to play together, and the ‘ Collection Of Pavans,

Ga lliards,Alma ines, andother short a ires, both grave

and light, in five parts, by Anthony Holborns.

’

Morley ’s publica tion consisted Of favourite subjects

a rranged for the treble note, the pandora , the

cittern, and the flute and the treble and ba ss viols

Holborne’

s wa s for viols, for violins, or for wind

instruments.The chara cter Of the music wa s a lmost identical

with the parts in a madrigal, and it is a ssumed that

the former Singers took up the instrument which

best represented the chara cter or compa ss Of their

own voices, and so they played the parts they

formerly had sung.

La ter publica tions Of madriga ls or part-music

specify on their title-pages the fa ct tha t they were


favourite, wore a particular mourning for him.

Fuller says tha t he wa s respected and beloved of

all such persons who cast any looks towards virtue

and honour,’

and he appears to have been well

worthy Of their regard . The sta te Of music a t the

time Of the Restora tion Of Charles II. was most

lamentable. Nearly allthe organs Of the cathedrals

had been broken to pieces, and the pipes sold for pots

Of ale . The service books were destroyed so effectu

a lly tha t no complete set Of the parts Of Barnard ’s

Ca thedra l music, printed in large numbers in 1641 ,

is known to exist, and the few examples Of Church

music which were preserved represent but a small

amount Of the quantity which wa s formerly in use.

In many ca ses the names only Of the composers and"

contempora ry records Of their abilities have been

transmitted to posterity, and we are compelled to

a ccept the judgment Of our forefathers on the

subject without the power o f verifying their state

ments, or Of forming an Opinion Of our own by the

study o f their compositions .

The Older writers like Christopher Gibbons,

William Childe, and others, who survived the blow

dea lt to allmusica l a rt, were not Of the highest order

Of genius. But the youngermusicians who grew up

under the friendly shelter Of the new sta ts of things

LULLI, HUMFREY , PURCELL 137

were fortuna tely men Of the highest capa cities and

powers, and English musica l a rt seemed to be in a

position through their efforts to ra ise its head a s

high as it had ever been in previous genera tions.

Pelham Humfrey and his pupil Henry Purcell

were musicians whom the world ca lls worthy even

in the present day, when it is the custom to sneer

a t the music Of the pa st, and to hold in somethinglike contempt those whose enthusia stic labours

prepa red the way for the present position to which

music ha s a tta ined.

In Ita ly and in France music had been better

trea ted. The process of development in the first

named country had gone on so sa tisfa ctorily tha t

the ora torio and the opera had become recognised

and esta blished forms Of enterta inment . From.

Ita ly the Opera wa s imported into France, through

Jean Baptiste Lulli, who had a settled and honoured

pla ce in the Court Of the king of France.

Cha rles II . , who had been kindly welcomed by

the French king, had a cquired a ta ste for the

peculiar form Of music a s it existed in the capita l,

and upon his restora tion to his own throne he sent

young Pelham Humfrey, who had exhibited con

siderable ability a t an early age, to study under

Lulli , with a view to the establishment Of music on


a new footing in England. When Humfrey returned

an absolute monsieur,’

a s Pepys ca lls him, he

formed a band Of four-and-twenty fiddlers all on a

row in imita tion Of the petits violons du Roi ’ in

Paris . From this time da tes the establishment Of

a musica l school , both voca l and instrumenta l, which

from tha t day to the present ha s been continued

w ith more or less varia tions Of favour and good

results.

The secular voca l compositions Of Humfrey

a nd his pupil Henry Purcell include many beautiful

things, but it is chiefly with one form only tha t we

can now dea l a s bearing upon the subject Of the

historica l development Of glees and pa rt-songs.

This form is comprised in the multitude Of ca tches

they composed, or by their example inspired.

Ca tch clubs were established for the cultiva tion

Of the new pieces, and nearly every composer Of the

t ime produced one ormore compositions Of this sort.

The printing press helped to dissemina te these pro

ductions throughout the length and breadth Of the

land . Copies o f these things which have survived

the Wreck Of mighty time and the destroying hand

o f the conscientious a re only to be found on the

priva te shelves Of the curious. The words in the

majority o f ca ses are either Openly wanting in


up the work of tra iningHenry Purcell a fter the death

of Humfrey the world owes a debt of gra titude ;

Michael Wise, a fine musician with an ill-regulated

temper ; Ma tthew Lock, another composer of an

ira scible disposition ; and kindly John Playford,

whose earnest labours in the promotion andpromul

gation of music ought not to be lightly passed over.

Ea ch of these men did good and honest work

such a s we a t this distance o f time can fa irly

estima te by comparison .

They all wrote canons and rounds in obedience

to the continuous love for this form o f composition

existing in the minds of their countrymen. But

none of them wa s content with the mere exercise

of tha t the device a fforded, without using the endea

vour to obta in independence o f treatment . The

first tenta tive efforts to furnish wha t were ca lled

the fuga l duets were ma de by John Hilton, who

wa s one of the contributors to the Triumphes of

Oriana .

’

How this idea became expanded may be

seen in Blow ’

s duets and in those bv Micha el Wise.

There are harmonies in Blow ’

s music which ca lled

upon his devoted hea d the pompous wra th o f Dr.

Burney, who criticised them near a century a fter

they had been written. His crudities,’

as he ca lls

them, are now the common property of every little

EARLY BOOKS OF GLEES 141

musician who writes in the present day. If the

existence of these horrors ’

ha s a tendency to

shorten the life of the purist who objects to them , it

is fortunate tha t dear Dr. Burney did not live in the

p resent days, for the constant and common use of

these crudities would have been a never-ending

source of irrita tion to him .

The works of Weelkes, Gibbons, Dowland, Pur

cell, Blow, and others , represent the severa l stages

o f prepara tion out of which the glee emana ted

in the course of time . Some o f the music of

Dowland is part-song-like in style. The madriga l,

The Silver Swan ,

’ of Gibbons is usually regarded

a s the prototype o f the glee. The freedom of the

parts and their independent rela tion to ea ch other

wa s furthered by the compositions of Purcell and

Blow , and while they were both a live the name of

gleewa s applied to a collection of music in parts by

Playford. Among which wa s a composition, Turn ,

Amaryllis,’ by a musician, Thoma sBrewer, of whose

life and labours very little is known. Turn,

Amaryllis wa s first published in the Musica l

Companion in two books, the first book conta ining

Ca tches and Bounds, for three voyces, the second

book conta ining Dia logues, Glees, Ayres, and Songs

f or two, three, and four voyces.

’ This wa s one of


the earliest publica tions in which glees are named

a s a distinct cla ss of composition . The work was

issued in 1673 . The first mention o f the word

glee ’

a s a musica l composition wa s in Playford’

s

‘ Ayres and Dia logues,’ published in 1659 . The

collection ca lled Ca tch tha t ca tch can, or the

Musica l Companion ,

’

1667 , a lso ha s the word on

the title-page of the second book, but it wa s not

until nearly one hundred years la ter tha t the glee

a tta ined the form and importance which enabled

it to take a specia l rank a s a production of scien

tific voca l construction and artistic va lue .


Englishman ; a rchitecture wa s heavy, ta steless, and!

a ggressively ma ssive, useful without question, but

c erta inly not ornamenta l . When men fed upon

their own minds, and never cared to replenish the

exhausted sources by communion with others, the

result wa s repetition, inanition, and lack of spirit,

o rigina lity, warmth , and gra ce. The line o f beauty

wa s tra ced with the square and plumb rule, and

a rt had been compelled to yield to artificiality.

Music, a lone o f all the arts,ma inta ined a steady

progress, but even its free and pure course was

hindered by licentious a ssocia tions.

It is scarcely possible to take up a collection

‘ o f songs or pieces not ostensibly sa cred, printed in

the first ha lf of the eighteenth century, and not

b e struck with sorrow in finding so many beautiful

musica l thoughts sullied by connection with words

whose cleverness does not even recommend them.

The best o f the poets o f the period were not

free from occa siona l grossness of expression, and

the worst ma de it the grea ter part, if not the

whole, o f their literary stock in tra de .

The term grubby,’

a smeaning dirty and soiled,

ha s been sa id to be derived from the chara cter of

the work supplied by the authors dwelling near the

m etropolitan Parna ssus, otherwise Grub Street.

ROUNDS, CANONS , CATCHES 145

The ca tches of the time were distinctly ‘ grubby,’

the old spirit of harmless drollery which distin

guished the first ca tches having been sa crificed for

humour of a ba leful and contamina ting chara cter.

The fa scina tion of singing rounds and ca tches

ha s been remarked by the older poets . There a re

rounds in poetry and rounds in music . The poeti

cal round or roundelay consisted of thirteen verses,

eight in one rhyme and five in another. The rule

o f this form of composition wa s tha t the first verse

should have a complete sense and yet join agreeably

with the closing verse, though in itself independent .

Some writers speak of the roundel or roundelay a s

a sort of ba lla d— tha t is to say, a s a song to a ecom

pany a dance, or to dancing in a circle. In voca l

music the round is a canon in the unison, the per

formers beginning the melody at regular rhyth

mica l periods and returning from the end to the

beginning, round and round until they have com

pleted the specified number o f repetitions .

The ca tch is a humorous voca l composition of

three or more parts in harmony, in which the

melodies are so contrived by the composer tha t the

sense of the words is changed from the origina l

significa tion by the manner in which the singers

appear to ca tch a t ea ch other’

s words.


Christopher Simpson, in his ‘ Compendium or

Introduction to PracticallMusick,’

1656, gives rules

for the Contrivance of Canons,’

and adds, I must

not omit another sort of canon, in more request

and common use, though of less dignity, than all

these which we have mentioned, and tha t is a

ca tch or round ; some ca ll it a ca tch in unison,

or a canon consisting o f periods. The contrivance

thereof is not intrica te, for if you compose any

short stave in three parts, setting them all within

the ordinary compa ss o f the voice, and then place

one part a t the end o f another, in what order

you please, so tha t they may aptly make one con

tinued tone, you have finished a ca tch.

’ By this

we may infer tha t the round wa s origina lly called a

catch without reference to the sense of catchingupon or cross-reading o f the words.

The canon , so ca lled because it is constructed

a ccording to rule, differs from the round in not

being rhythmica l . There are canons in all forms

and commencing at all interva ls. They may be

finite or infinite. The finite canons are provided

with a coda ; by way o f conclusion the infinite

canons are arranged so tha t the close takes place at

a certa in point in the progress of the melody. One

o f the earliest collections of ca tches, ‘ Pammelia ,


existence many doubtful and obscure passages in

Shakespeare, and other writers o f the period, have

been made clear and lucid. Their existence ismost

va luable in dea ling with the present subject, as

they help to show the processes of growth of the

musical forms which culmina ted in the glee. The

gradua l introduction of the term may be seen in

the severa l editions of Collections o f Bounds and

Catches which appeared subsequently . Former re

ference has been made to the origina l appearance of

the word in connection with a musica l composition.

Before recurring to this, a few words are due to the

publications which preceded them , in order to com

plete the cha in of historica l a ssocia tion .

The next collection o f ca tches did not appear

until nearly forty years a fter Melisma ta ,’and then

in a form which wa s indica tive o f the changes

which were a t work in the development of musical

art.

The two most important j’

and a lso now most

rare books were prin ted for John Playford, in part

nership with John Bacon . The first is ca lled a‘Musica l Banquet ; set forth in three Choice Varie

ties o i Musick . The first part presents you with

Excellent New Lessons for the Lira Viol, set to

severa l] New Tunings. The second a Collection of

COLLECTIONS OF CATCHES 149

New and Choyce Allmans, Corants, and Sarabands

for one Treble and Ba sse Viol], composed by Mr.

William Lawes, and other excellent Authors. The

third part conta ins New and Choyce Ca tches or

Bounds for three or foure voyces. To which is

added some new Rules and Directions for such a s

lea rns to sing, or to play on the Viol .’ This wa s

issued in 1651 .

A year la ter the second important book ma de

its appearance. This wa s Ca tch tha t Ca tch can,

or a Choice Collection of Ca tches, Rounds, and

Canons for 3 or 4 voyces.

’ Collected and published

by John Hilton, Ba ch . in Musick .

The first-named collection conta ins only twelve

rounds and ca tches, commencing with the cele

bra ted Non nobis Domine ’

the second conta ins a

hundred rounds and ca tches, besides a large number

of Sa cred hymns and canons.

’ It is dedica ted by

Hilton to his much-honoured friend, Mr. Robert

Coleman, a true lover of musick.

’

His humorous prefa ce To all lovers of musick’

will be rea d with interest by students of music and

litera ture. It may not be out of pla ce here to

expla in tha t the pra ctice of punning, which was

carried to so grea t an excess in the reign of James I.,

had not entirely disappeared, either from conversa


tion or litera ture. A collection of musica l pieces

intended to promote socia l harmony might well be

prefaced by a jocular introduction, according to the

opinions of the period and o f the compiler of the

book . Thus he speaks‘ To ALL LOVERS OF Musi cx.

I hold it needless to boa st the approba tions that

have been formerly given by grea t persons both to

testify and augment the life and honour of this

libera l science, the earthly sola ce of man ’

s soul ;

and in p articular, to delights of this na ture, such

a s you sha ll find in this sma ll volume, which I dare

style musica l , and in themselves sweet and barmo

nious, and full o f harmless recrea tion, and to all

tha t love and understand musick, the true sense

and va lue o f them will so appear, of which I boa st

not further than you sha ll plea se to judge.

‘

As for the Rounds, they have, and may shift

for themselves ; so might the Ca tches too , in these

timeswhen Ca tches andCa tchers were never so much

in request ; all kinds of Ca tches are abroad ; Ca tch

tha t Ca tch may, Ca tch tha t Ca tch can, Ca tch upon

Ca tch, Thine Ca tch it, a nd mine Ca tch it. And these

Ca tches a lso which I have now published by impor

tunity of friends, to be free from allmen ’

s ca tching,

only my wishes are, tha t they who are true Catchers


that this interesting fa ct could be referred to the

much earlier da te.

The book of 1667 is dedicated by Playford To

his endeared friends of the la te Musick-Society and

meeting in the Old Jury, London .

’ These friends

were— Charles Pidgeon, Esq. Mr. Thoma s Tempest,Gent . Mr.Herbert Pelham, Gent . Mr. John Pelling,Citizen ; Mr. Benjamin Wa llington , Citizen ; Mr.

George Piggot, Gent. Mr. Francis Piggot, Citizen ;

andMr. John Rogers, Gent.

In this volume are 143 ca tches, 3 dia logues for

two voices, 11 glees for two and three voices, 58

ayres, ba llads, and songs for three and four voices,

and 8 Ita lian and La tin songs—217 compositions

in all. At the end of the table of contents there

is the following statement : This book had been

much sooner abroad, hadnot the late sad calamities

retarded both printer and publisher. The first is

wha t has been printed before, with addition of some

few new Rounds and Ca tches. The second part

consists most of choice pieces of Musick of 2, 3,

and 4 voices ; two books may serve four men, each

choosing his part best suiting his voice. And to

these songs, which are all for verse and chorus,

there the ba ssus part is continued, if the Song be

sung to any instrument. This book, a s it is now

MUSICAL CLUBS AND MEETINGS 153

finished , may be termed Multum in Pa rvo andmy

endeavour ha th been to have it exa ctly and truly

printed.

’

Musica l clubs , similar to tha t to which this

book is dedicated, were first formed soon a fter the

Restora tion o f Charles II . in 1660 . Samuel Pepys

tells us , under da te July 21 , 1660 , of a dinner

he a ttended ‘where they had three voices to sing

Ca tches .

’

There were priva te meetings a t the houses o f

the wea lthy a s well as public clubs, a s we learn

from the comedies and histories of the time. In a

play ca lled The Citiz en turned Gentleman,

’ by

Edward Ravenscroft, 1672, the citizen is told tha t

if he wishes to appear like a person of consequence

it is necessary for him ‘ to have a music-club once

a week a t his house.

’

The Hon . Roger North, in his Memoirs o f

Musick,’

speaks of a music meeting in a lane

behind Paul ’ s, where there wa s a chamber organ

tha t one Phillips played upon, and some shop

keepers and foremen came weekly to sing in

concert, and to hear and enjoy ale and toba cco ;

and a fter some time the audience grew strong,

and one Ben Wa llington got the reputa tion o f a

notable ba ss voice, who a lso set up for a composer,


a nd had some songs in print, but of a very low

excellence ; and their music wa s chiefly out Of

Playford’

s Ca tch Book. This showed an inclina

tion of the citizens to follow musick . And the same

w a s confirmed by many little enterta inments the

ma sters volunta rily made for their scolla rs, for

being knowns, they were alwa is crowded .

’

Pepys tells us tha t this Wa llington , who was

o ne of the endeared friends ’ to whom Playford

dedica ted his book , wa s a working goldsmith, ‘ that

goes without gloves to his hands did sing with

him a most excellent base.

’

The house where the music meeting wa s held is

now ca lled The Goose and Gridiron the original

sign is forgotten, but a s the chara cter of the music

meeting wa s important a s an element of a ttraction

t o the establishment, the landlord hung out the

emblems of music and poetry a s a mark for

s trangers to know These emblems were the

Swan and the Lyre. The common people, who

interpreted the meaning o f these emblems a fter

their own fa shion, ca lled the signs The Goose and

Gridiron,

’

the name by which the house is known

t o this day.

The jovia l chara cter of the composers and

s ingers of the ca tches of the time of Charles

f orms the subject of many anecdotes, and more


John Jenkins, who tells the story, wa s a musi

oian o f considerable genius, whose compositions,‘ Fancies ,

’

a s he ca lled them ,for stringed instru

ments la id the founda tion for the development of

orchestra] compositions. He travelled all over the

continent of Europe, even a s far a s Hungary, and

his works were widely known and extensively

admired. In the present day his genius is repre

sented by one work, which seems to be immortal.

It is the round A boat, a boa t , ha ste to the ferry,’

which every one knows who has ever a ttempted to

sing music in parts.

He wa s born a t Ma idstone, in Kent, in the year

1592. His sonata s, which were professedly in the

Ita lian veine,’ were the first of the kind produced by

an Englishman. He died in the year 1678, at the

grea t age of eighty-six years. Antony Wood calls

him a little man with a grea t soul . ’ He was

buried in Kimberley Churchyard, in Norfolk, and the

inscription on his tombstone, which ha s perished,is preserved in Blomfield’s History of Norfolk.

’

Under thi s stone rare Jenkyns lyeThe Ma ster of the Musick a rt ,

Whom from the earth, the God on highCall

’d up to Him to beare his part.

Aged 86 October 27In Anno 78, he went to Hea ven

JOHN AND HENRY PLAYFORD 157

The earliest ca tches of the grea t Henry Purcell

were printed in a new edi tion of Ca tch that Ca tch

c an in 1685. The prefa ce to the fourth edition of

this book, issued in 1701 , a fter Purcell’

s death, is

particularly interesting a s bearing upon the subject

o f the founda tion and forma tion of societies for the

pra ctice o f voca l music, a s it sta tes tha t the collee

tion wa s published chiefly for the encouragement

o f the musica l societies which will be speedily set

up in all the chief cities and towns of England. ’

The publisher, Henry Playford, who had suc

ceeded his fa ther Honest John,’ thus speaks of

himself and his works in the third person : ‘

He

has preva iled with his a cqua intance and others in

thi s city, to enter into severa l clubs, weekly, a t

t averns, of convenient distance from ea ch other,having in ea ch house a particular ma ster of music

belonging to the society established in it, who mayinstruct those (if desired) who sha ll be unskilled in

bearing a pa rt in the severa l Ca tches conta ined in

this book, a s well a s others, and shall perfect those

who have a lready had some insight in things of

this na ture, tha t they shall be capable of enter

ta ining the societies they belong to a broa d. In

o rder to this he ha s provided several articles, to

be drawn, pa inted, and put in handsome frames,


to be put up in ea ch respective room the societies

sha ll meet in , and be observed a s so many standing

rules, which ea ch respective society is to go by ;

and he questions not, but the severa l Cities, Towns,Corpora tions etc . in the kingdoms of Grea t Britain

and Ireland, a s well a s foreign Plantations, will

follow the example o f the well-wishers t o Vocal and

Instruments] Music in the famous city, by estar

blishing such weekly meetings a s may render his

undertaking a s genera lly received a s it is useful.

And if any body or bodies of gentlemen are willing

to enter into or compose such societies, they maysend to him , where they may be furnished with the

books and articles. Thus much he thought it was

necessary to previse, and giving the reader a light

into the knowledge of his design ; but he shall leave

his book without any further vindica tion than the

grea t names of the persons who obliged the world

with the words, and those who (if anything can

add to such finished pieces) have given a mitre

to ’

em by their musica l composures, a s Dr. Blow

and the la te famous Mr . Henry Purcell, whose

Ca tches have deservedly ga ined an universa l ap

plause.

’

Tha t Purcell loved societymay be ga thered from

his many works intended for so cia l performances,


The genius of Purcell embra ced with equal feli

city every species of composition . In his sacred

music, his fugue, imita tion , and counterpoint be

displayed all the science of the grea test o f his pre

decessors, together with a power o f expression to

which they were for the most part strangers. The

v igour of his conception , the depth of his feeling,exhibited not only the warmth of his heart but

the ample resources of his grea t mind. He formed

his style upon the best patterns furnished by the

Ita lian School , and soon exceeded his prototypes

by the strength, power, and origina lity of his mode

o f treatment . The cha rms of instrumental colouring

exercised a peculiar fa scina tion for him , which the

want of variety in the resources of the organ as

known in his day seemed to deny him. The beauty

a nd appositeness o f his trea tment o f the limited

means a fforded by the Orchestra ] instruments

proved him to be so far in a dvance of his time that

he mi ght with propriety have been named as the

father o f drama tic expression. His harmonies, new

and strange, together with his extra ordinary and

beautiful melodies, imported new life and fire into

musica l composition which produced a grandeur

and force of effect till then unknown in England.

His genius saw the Opportunity of which the treat

PURCELL’S COMPOSITIONS 16 l

ment of the orchestra as a means of intensifying

eff ect wa s capable. His wa s the mind out of which

a school of music might have been formed, which ,

if its precepts hadbeen followed, would have secured

the adm ission of English musicians into the highest

ranks of art . He excelled in everything he under

took. The capa city for taking infinite pa ins, which

is sa id to constitute the chief a ttribute of genius,

may be seen in allhis works. His chamber music,

like his compositions for the Church and for the

thea tre, a re perfectly origina l and individua l . The

cha ra cteristic style of a particular age, which usua lly

distinguished the productions of men of inferior

powers, does not appear so marked in his works a s

in those of his contemporaries and immedia te

successors, so tha t such of his music a s is given

to-day may be contra sted , without injury to him ,

with any works, alldue a llowance being made. He

had some of the faults of his age, but his genius

sanctified them . His mannerisms are few, and his

forethought in trea tment made his music far in

a dvance of the days in which he lived. The neglect

of the study of his music in the present day is not

creditable to musicians. He wa s the Shakespeare

of the voca l art , and, like tha t mighty ma ster, he

knew how to express with power and fidelity the

u


various emotions which find their responses in all

hearts. The happy union o f ‘ voice and verse '

which marks nearly all his voca l pieces wa s the

result of delibera te intention and design. For this,

if for no more powerful reason, his works should

form an integra l part of the course of study to be

pursued by all who wish to utilise with effect the

means at their disposa l . The dea d and gone authors

of ancient Greece and Rome form the most va lued

portion of an introduction to the humanities in

literature. The study of the works of Henry Purcell

would be found to be among the most profitable

prepara tions for a complete and lasting foundation

that a young musician could enter upon. It is

hoped that the ‘

day is not far distant when this fact

will be recognised, andtha t the living and life-giving

force of his music will be resorted to a s a means

whereby a complete and va lua ble item of educa tion

may be atta ined.


The services of the number of men o f genius

tha t this country has produced ought to be kept

before the eyes andminds of young students, tha t

they may be encoura ged to persevere in the course

which has been pursued before them by others,

who, like Henry Purcell , have obeyed the instincts

of genius unsupported and a lmost unrecognised.

Their discoveries become the common property

o f allwho work in the like ma terial , but the grati

tude which should be pa id to those who have contri

buted to the wea lth enjoyed in common is frequently

withheld . It is too often the ca se with men o f

genius tha t they a sk for bread in their lifetime,

and do not a lways get a stone a t their dea th. Had

Purcell served his country in a way which could only

be traversed through blood and misery to his fellow

crea tures, his reward would have been different.

If there was a‘ legion of honour for art, artists

would hold a high position in the estimation of

their countrymen. Their names would be revered,

their kindred perhaps ennobled, wea lth and power

would be theirs to a sk for and to command . But

those who , by the exercise of the gifts which the

Almighty Giver of good bestows but rarely, confer a

la sting benefit upon their fellow-crea tures, they

have the gratifiéation of knowing tha t the good

DRYDEN AND PURCELL 165

they have done brings its own plea sure, and this isthe only recognition they a re likely to obta in .

To form a true estima te of the genius of Purcell

it is necessary to remember ‘ tha t he neither travelled out of his own country nor lived to a con

siderable age ; neither hea rd the fine performers

a broa d nor witnessed their a rriva l and exertions in

England . It is not so proper to limit our idea of

his genius by the things he a ctua lly a chieved , va st

a s they were, a s to extend it beyond them— to

carry it to tha t eleva tion which he would inevitably

have a tta ined under the a dvantages of a wider field

o f experience and a longer life. He had to struggle

aga inst most formidable impediments, and though

it is impossible to regret tha t he did not eff ect

more, mankin d will a lways be a stonished tha t he

a chieved so much .

’

Dryden, who wa s one of the warmest a dmirers

of Purcell , wrote the ode,‘ Alexander’ s Feast,

’

for

him to set to music . Why this wa s not done can

not now be a scerta ined. It is sta ted tha t the poet ’s

soul wa s vexed a t the non-compliance of the musi

cian, and tha t their friendship wa s interrupted by

the ma tter. This could scarcely be true. Even if

it wa s, it appea rs to have made no difference in

glorious John ’

s estima te of his brother-genius,


since he lavished upon him the warmest eulogies of

his muse while living, and on his prema ture dea th

penned the epitaph which conta ins the famous and

oft-quoted lines

Now live secure and linger out your days,The gods are pleased alone with Purcell's layes,Nor know to mend their choice.

Ye brethren o f the lyre and tuneful vo iceLament his lot , but a t your own rejoice.

Sometim es a hero in an age appears,But scarce a Purcell in a thousand years.

The ‘ brethren of the lyre and tuneful voice ’

whom Purcell left behind included his second

ma ster, John Blow, among others.

John Blow wa s born a t North Collingham,

Nottinghamshire, in 1648. He wa s one of the first

of the children o f the Chapel Roya l under Captain

Cooke, the ma ster of the children a t the period of

the Restora tion of Charles II. in 1660. In ancient

times it had been the privilege o f the rulers of the

music a tta ched to the Chapels Roya l and St. Paul’s

Ca thedra l to impress choristers— tha t is to say, to

take them away from the choirs in which they had

been tra ined to serve the King’s Majesty inLondon,

or to help to replenish the choir o f St . Paul's. It

is not known whether the ancient system was

resorted to in refurnishing the Chapel Roya l with


Anglicus,’ bears testimony to the marvellous origi

nality o f his musica l mind . He wa s a dramatic

musician of the highest order, and it is a matter

for regret tha t he did not follow the bent of his

mind , to the a dvantage of the cause of music . His

Church music, which comprised no less than four

teen services and over one hundred anthems , only

a few of which have appeared in print, is rarely

heard now, a s being unsuitable to the present style

of Church music . Blow strove to give full expres

sion to hi s conception o f the meaning and imten

tion of the words, and the amiability of his chara c

ter, together with his fervent piety and religious

devotion ,is fully expressed in his music . This is

not the sort of thing tha t seems to be required

in the present day, when Church music takes the

form of a series o f organ solos with a ccidenta l

voca l a ccompaniment . The words set to music are

not a lways reflected or empha sized by the musica l

sounds, but a re ma inly a dmitted, a s it were, on

sufferance, because the needs of the service require

their use.

It is urged tha t the music of the early part o f

the eighteenth century furnished for the purpose of

Divine worship wa s o f such a na ture a s required the

exercise o f cultiva ted powers in the singers for its

MUSIC IN THE CHURCH SERVICE 169

proper exposition, and tha t the congrega tion wa s

thereby led away from the primary purpose of music

in the Church. The hea rers were wont to forget tha t

they were taking part in an act of devotion, and

gave their minds over to the persona l enjoyment Of

sweet sounds, without rega rding the intention and

object of the execution of the music. This objection

holds good in the present day, though founded upon

a different basis . The a ccompanist, who wa s, and

ought to be, subordina te to the singer, is now para

mount, and the principles which moved the old

writers a re scarcely needed in modern composition .

They ha ve erred in the details which they furnished,

but the theory upon which they worked— namely,

tha t music should intensify the expression of the

words— is surely correct, and might be a cted upon

with more a dvantage to the cause of art .

Blow wrote many ca tches and a number of

songs, duets, and dia logues. The contrasted move

ments, pa rt of the endea vour to fit the sound to the

sense, not only showed ea rnestness of thought and

purpose, but a lso helped the development of chara c

ter of expression and trea tment, which wa s further

to be pursued until tha t stage of art was rea ched

which should produce one of the most beautiful and

effective forms of voca l composition—namely, the


glee. The union o f melody with effective harmony

was one of the moving principles which guided the

composers in their prosecution of the search a fter

perfection . TO these dua l qua lities may be a dded

a third, tha t o f drama tic empha sis. It has been

pointed out tha t Blow more or less successfully

infused this element o f drama tic empha sis into all

his composit ions, sa cred and secular. What he

did, a ccording to the dicta tes o f his genius, not

wholly influenced by any thought o f stage effect,John Eccles, his contemporary, sought to obta in by

preconceived intention .

Eccles wa s born about the year 1670 , and was

a member of a distinguished family of musicians.

He wa s the son o f Solomon Eccles, one of the most

famous of early English violin players, and the

composer of severa l pieces for his instrument,

printed in Playford’

s Division Violin,

’

1693.

Young John ga ined, in 1700 , the second o f four

prizes offered for the best setting of Congreve’s

ma sque, The Judgment o f Pa ris.

’ John Weldon

ga ined the first, and Daniel Purcell, the brother of

Henry, and Godfrey Finger the others. John

E ccles published a collection o f about a hundred

of his songs in 1710 , and his voca l pieces were at

one time extensively popular. His brother Henry


remembered tha t in times pa st endeavours were

made by instrumenta l writers to expand the re

sources o f their a rt, by modifying the shapes into

which their thoughts were moulded, and by constant

improvements in design . These a t length a tta ined

perfection in the Sona ta s of Haydn, Mozart, and

Beethoven. John Ba rrett seems to have been, a s

far a s can be tra ced, one of the first who applied to

voca l the discoveries made in instrumenta l music.

For this rea son he deserves a pla ce in the record of

those who contributed to the historica l development

o f the glee.

For a similar rea son the name of Dr. William

Croft ought to be mentioned in connection with the

subject . It is true tha t the quantity of secular

music he wrote wa s very little compared with tha t of

his contemporaries and predecessors. The charms

o f the stage and the fa scina tions of miscellaneous

society spread their nets for him in va in . He pre

f erred to limit the grea ter mea sure o f his work to the

service of the Church in which he had been brought

up, and under whose fostering care he had imbibed

the prin ciples Of religion and music . He wa s one of

the few artists of the time who were not wholly influ

enced by the artificiality which encompa ssed every

expression of a poetica l na ture, and he wa s a s true

DR. WILLIAM CROFT 173

to his art a s he could be under the pressure o f

surrounding distra ctions.

The people of tha t age were uncerta in in their

loya lty, indifferent in their a llegiance to the institu

tions of the Church, and suspicious of each other.

It wa s therefore no happy time for musica l art,which requires for its free exercise the establish

ment of a perfect confidence between the giver and

the receiver. Of those who laboured for art ’ s sake,a nd in the fa ce of a ctua l discoura gement from the

Church to which he was a tta ched, Croft’

s name

will a lways stand forwa rd a s an example. He wa s

born a t Nether or Lower Ea tington, in Wa rwick

shire, a villa ge a bout five miles from the birthpla ce

of Shakespeare, and only otherwise famous in

history a s the pla ce where George Fox, the quaker,ma de his first essay at preaching. As a boy and

a s a young man he signed his name Crofts. In

tha t form it appears in the parish books of St .

Anne’s, Soho, where he wa s organist for a period,

a fter he left the Chapel Roya l a s a boy. This

pla ce, to whi ch he had been recommended by his

ma ster, Dr. Blow, he kept until the year 1711 .

For the service of the Church he wrote the well

known hymn tune St . Anne’

s, and named it a fter

the church at which he did duty a s organist . He


was appointed in 1700 to the pla ce of a gentleman

extraordinary a t the Chapel Roya l , with the rever

sion,conjointly with Jeremiah Clark, to the full

p la ce . On the dea th of Clark in 1707 , Croft enjoyed

the position a lone . The following year, in 1708, he

entered upon his duties a s organist o f Westminster

Abbey, in succession to his ma ster, John Blow . On

July 9 he a ccumula ted the degrees of Ba chelor and

Doctor in Music a t Oxford, and his exercise was

a fterwards published with two odes in English and

La tin , written for the Pea ce of Utrecht, under the

title of Musions Appara tus Academicus.

’

In the year 1724 he published , by subscription,

a collection of thirty anthems and a buria l service

in score, in two volumes, under the title of Musica

Sa cra .

’ This is noteworthy a s having been the

first issue o f music printed from punched plates, as

it wa s thefirst publication of a number o f anthems

in score, nothing of the kind ha ving been pre

viously a ttempted except a service of Purcell ’s,

which was so badly done tha t the faults and omis

s ions were so gross a s not to be amended but by

some skilful hand.

’

The ‘ buria l service ’

was a

completion of one begun, but not finished, by Henry

Purcell .

His anthems , God is gone up and ‘We will


nor the music of his services and anthems Show him

to have been a musician of very grea t origina lity

or power.

Of the other writers of ca tches andglees, a s they

appear in Playford’

s book, it will be sufficient to

mention their names for the purpose o f completing

the list.

Ma tthew Locke, born in 1620 and died 1677,

wa s better known a s an instrumenta l composer and

a s a writer for the stage . It may be mentioned

here tha t the music sometimes introduced into the

Ma cbeth (the words of which music are partly

taken from Middleton ’

s play of TheWitch which

is sa id to be by Ma tthew Locke, has been cla imed

for Purcell and even for Richard Leveridge. Per

haps the Spiritua lists and those who dea l with oc

cult questions will settle the ma tter one day to their

own,if not to any one else ’s, sa tisfa ction . Locke

wrote severa l ca tches, few of which have reta ined

any hold upon the popular fancy .

Henry Ha ll, born in 1655 and died in 1707 , was

organist a t Exeter and a fterwards a t Hereford, in

the Cloisters of the Vicars Close of which la st-named

pla ce he lies a t rest . He wa s an excellent musician,

andwrotemany pieceswhich deserve to be preserved .

James Hawkins, born about the year 1652, was

LAMPE, CAREY ,AND TUDWAY 177

a ppointed organist of Ely Ca thedra l in 1682, and

took his degree a s Ba chelor of Music in 1719 .

He a ssisted Dr. Tudway in the compila tion and

collection of the MSS . of Church compositions now

preserved in the British Museum ; he died in 1729 .

An other learned and industrious musician, also

a writer of ca tches, wa s John Frederick Lampe.

He wa s a German by birth , a nd the pla ce of hi s

na tivitywa s Helmsta dt, in Saxony. The da te 1703.

He settled in England in the year 1726 , and soon

ma de himself known by his a dmirable settings of

themusic in the Opera ‘Amelia andCarey ’s Dragon

of Wantley Besides his pieces for the stage he

wrote a large number of songs, andby the excellence

of his interpreta tion of the words through music

ma de himself a model even for English composers.

He married the celebra ted singer Isabella Young,

and established himself in Edinburgh, where he

became highly esteemed and respected both as a

man and a s an artist . He wa s seized with morta l

sickness in 1751 , and died a t the age of forty-eight.

Dr. Tudway, who died in 1730 a t an a dvanced

age, ha s left a better name for industry than

for a ccura cy or origina lity. In the la tter part of

his life he wa s commi ssioned by Robert Harley, the

Ea rl of Oxford, to make a collection of Church music,

N


chiefly Ita lian,which he scored in seven thick

volumes, now in the British Museum . He wa s as

sisted in this work by Henry Ha ll . William Turner,

the fellow-pupil o f Blow, a lso rea ched a grea t age he

wa s eighty-eight when he died in 1740 , a few days

a fter his wife, to whom he had been married nearly

seventy yea rs.

Michael Wise, killed in a midnight scuffle with

the wa tch in Sa lisbury in 1687 John Reading,

organist o f Winchester, who died in 1692, and who

was the fa ther of the John Reading who composed

the music to the hymn Adeste fideles John

Lenton,of the Chapel Roya l, who died in 1719 ;

Dr. Julius Caesar, a lia s Smegergil; John Church, of

Windsor, who died in 1741 Richard Brown, organist

o f Christ Church , St . Lawrence Jewry, and Ber

mondsey Henry Carey ; andDr. Maurice Greene,

were all among the most famous writers o f catches,

glees, and part-music before the middle of the

eighteenth century and the establishment of the

glee in its highest form o f development .

Henry Carey, who wa s born in 1685, wa s a

man of estimable cha ra cter. Dr. Burney pays him

the highest compliment when he says tha t he had

the power to excite mirth without being licentious.

Considering the peculiarity of the age, the va lue of


study of voca l music . His own compositions for

two , three, four, and five voices prove him to be a

master in the art of writing expressive and effective

music . His labours form the ultima te stage of the

artistic journey from the old world of music to the

new,the la st link in the peculiar cha in of melody

and harmony which had been founded and forged

by successive hands for a period extending over five

hundred years,— from the epoch when the ancient

carol, Sumer is icumen in,

’

wa s produced, to his

dea th, in 1755 . Dr. Maurice Greene, whose ‘ small

stature and deformed body were glorified by the

gra ce and courtesy of his manners, and the ami

ability o f his persona l chara cter, added little to art,

but he certa inly ma inta ined its best traditions to

the highest extent of his ability.

THE ARTISTIC INTERREGNUM 181

CHAPTER X.

THE SECOND HALF OF THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY.

The influence o f Handel’s music aflecting many of the formso f composition, the glee being one o f the exceptions—Theunsa tisf actory condition of musicalliterature.

THE short period of artistic interregnum between

the dea th of Dr. Greene and the founda tion of the

Ca tch Club, in November 1761 , did not witness

inactivity in music. The -form and pressure of

the times had turned men ’s thoughts into an en

tirely new channel . The mighty genius o i George

Frederick Handel had overshadowed all his con

temporaries, and had, moreover, effected a per

fect revolution in musica l art. The Obscure town

of Halle, in Saxony, wa s henceforth to be famous a s

the pla ce of his birth in 1685 . Handel ’s musica l

educa tion was carried on with the reluctant con~

sent of his aged fa ther, who had destined him , his

youngest son, for the profession of a lawyer, and

the world owes much to the self-will of the child

who opposed his fa ther’

s wishes.


Music wa s in his blood. His elder brother,who held the appointment of chief va let to the

Duke of Weissenfels, wa s a lso a lover of music, and

Handel ’s mother worshipped it. The Duke, who

in those days was , an independent sovereign duke,

reigning in his own territory and exercising his

own will, which allhis dependants regarded a s law,

prevailed upon the unwilling pa rent to forego his

origina l design, and to a llow the bent of the in

clination of his son to be followed and properly

tra ined.

His mother had a lready secretly contrived to

a llow her child to cultiva te music by providing him

with a spinet, which had been conveyed into a

distant garret, and upon this the boy, only six

years of age, wa s wont to pra ctise a fter all but he

had retired to rest. He had inherited from his

father tha t indomitable perseverance which made

him grea t above his neighbours, and firmness of

chara cter wa s a family peculiarity. The obstina cy

of the fa ther did not permit him to perceive the

genius of his child, but the a llegiance he owed

to the Duke broke down his stubbornness, and

made the world the richer by the exercise of

peculiar abilities which m ight have been lost but

for the a ccidenta l visit to the Court a t Weissenfels.


which they are ca lled— namely , Ora torio— reca lls

to every musica l mind the name o f Handel. His

influence over the minds Of the grea ter part of his

contemporaries, who preferred to express one form

o f their musica l ta lents through the medium of

the ora torio , wa s so grea t tha t it is impossible to

concea l the fa ct, even were it desirable to do so ,

tha t their powers of expressing themselves in an ori~

ginalmanner seem to have been perfectly paralysed,

and the chief points of difference which their works

present is to be found in the subject selected

ra ther than in the mode of trea tment . Handel, in

his ora torios, not only concentrated the f a shion of

expression peculiar to the age in which he lived,

but he furnished , by his own style of utterance, the

models o f speech from which most other writers

seemed to be a fra id to devia te .

Musica l students who have pa id any a ttention

to , or who have ma de any examina tion o f, the

compositions of other musicians of the days of

Handel, know tha t there is a style common to

all. The shape o f the sentences, the succession

of the harmonies, the melodic ca dences, and the

method of employing orchestra l instruments for

the a ccompaniments, all bear a strong family

likeness the one to the other, wha tever may be the

HANDEL’S OBLIGATIONS 185

name of the composer who cla ims to have employed

them .

Many of these devices were the unchanged

inheritances a cquired from former genera tions of

musicians who had carried on the process Of

development to a point which their successors

were unable to continue . So they Copied ea ch

other and themselves until the whole process of

composition wa s little more than a mere mechan

ica l exercise of musica l permuta tion. Ingenuitysupplied the pla ce of invention, and men resorted

to any expediency to save themselves the trouble of

further research . The works of the representa tives

of the a dvancement of voca l and instrumenta l art ,

Purcell on the one Side and Corelli on the other,

had given an impetus to this form of imita tive

industry of which musicians o f all na tions, for

nearly a century a fter their respective dea ths, did

not fa il to take a dvantage. Even Handel appears

to have ma de a careful and profitable study of the

labours o f these two men of genius, a s his own

works bear ample testimony . He a lso borrowed,

or conveyed,’

a s Shakespeare ha s it, from many

other composers whole movements without a cknow

ledgment , and inserted them in his oratorios a s

his own .


A critica l examina tion o f the famous Dettingen

Te Deum , which is still one o f the most popular

w orks a ssocia ted with the name of Handel, dis

c loses to the a stonished inquirer the fa ct tha t there

is scarcely a single movement in the whole work to

which Handel can legitima tely lay cla im a s his

own . His Isra el in Egypt is likewise a p a sticcio

o f other men’

s labours, and in his ora torios, Saul,’

‘ Solomon ‘Juda s ‘ Susannah,’

Samson,andthe immorta l Messiah,

’

maybe found

distinct tra ces o f his undeclared indebtedness to

many composers, chiefly of the Ita lian and the then

rising German schools. Stra della , Carissimi, Urio,

Ga spa rKer], Purcell, Corelli,Ba ch , andhis own rival,

Bononcini, were all from time to time la id under

forced contribution by the giant composer. This

pra ctice of quota tion’

in no way a ffected either

the origina lity of his genius and his musica l power,

or lessened the force and extent o f this influence.

Whether he made these extra cts in obedience

to the promptings of tha t idleness which is one of

the leading chara cteristics of the human mind, or

whether he found tha t the spirit o f the music be

s elected exa ctly suited his requirements better than

any he thought he wa s capable of producing, or

whether he took them a s a protest aga inst the


weaken the belief in Handel ’s rapidity and increase

our a dmira tion for his ingenuity. In this respect

it may be seen tha t he who so largely influenced

all others by the might of his genius wa s himself

not free from the preva iling peculiarities which

marked all a rt productions of his time. If inven

tion is not continuous a s well a s progressive, there

must be periods of relaxa tion and ces'

sa tion from

work. It is quite possible to exhaust all the per

muta tions which certa in combina tions Of fa ctors

are capable of producing in course o f time. It is

only when new elements a re introduced tha t new

effects are likely to be origina ted ; for the reason

tha t men were content with working up only tha t

which wa s rea dy to hand without a dding more to

replenish the supply, tha t the changes became in

time exhausted, and nothing but repetition could

ensue .

The insularity of musicians of the la st century

is illustra ted by many signs : the absence of

trustworthy litera ture in music, and the la ck o f

knowledge of wha t wa s being done by the bodies of

musicians working in foreign pa rts.

The name o f the grea t Johann Sebastian Ba ch

was scarcely known to the English musicians of

the early part o f the century, andeven a fter certa in

JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH 189

members of his family'

had ma dethemselves known

through their persona l ta lents and actua l residence

in London , there was little or no interest excited

in his wonderful productions. The two writers of

Hi stories of Music in the la ter part of the century

dismiss the grea t Leipzig cantor in a few lines.

The time had not arrived when his extra ordinary

o riginality could be recognised . In one respect his

music might have received a ttention from his

English contemporaries. If his powers of inven

t ion could make no impression, the marvellous

ingenuity of his contrivances might, it would be

supposed, make a cla im to the respect of those who

were nothing if not ingenious themselves. But the

fa ct seems to force itself upon the mind, tha t they

were a ll un conscious of the specia l qua lity of their

own work, and were therefore not in a position

to understand the Chara cteristics of the works of

others.

There wa s a scepticism in religion, and a want

o f hearty belief in the presence of good and honest

purpose in art. The earnestness of purpose neces

sary to the development of all things artistic does

not seem to have existed in the majority of the

musicians at home and abroa d . Imagina tion sup

plied the pla ce oi research, and polished diction in


the so-ca lled historica l descriptions wa s a ccepted in

the place of fa cts.

The fa culty o f discrimina tion of the value of the

monuments of the pa st in the rela tion to present

effects, the critica l power which could direct the

study of musica l hi story in the right way, does not

seem to ha ve a cquired strength sufficient to have

any beneficia l result. Books on music were over

loaded with useless descriptions o f exploded practices

which had no bearing uponmodern art. There was

little tha t wa s pra ctica l, less tha t wa s useful, and

nothing tha t wa s scientific . The treatises were

nomina lly dida ctic, but a ctua lly the reverse.

Writers selected subjects upon which nothing

was known until they pretended to tea ch it, and so

they ma inta ined an unchallenged position a s in

structors, and secured a pla ce for their works on

the shelves of the curious. There they remained

undisturbed until they were required for the pur

poses of quota tion by those who kept up the farce

of pretending to a ccept the authority of the state

ments made, because they were too idle or too

ignorant to make independent inquiry.

Many of these books command high prices even

in the present day, because o f the tra ditions asso

cia ted with them . The purcha sers rarely read


and Toledo rapier, and La dy Macbeth went through

the sleep-walking scene with her night-ra il distended

by cane and wha lebone ca ges until she a tta ined

more than the circumference of jolly Ja ck Falstaff .

The chief works on musica l litera ture, apart

from pra ctica l trea tises and in struction books, were

the Rev . Arthur Redford’s Temple Musick, or an

Essay concerning themethod of singing the Psalms

of David in the Temple before the Babylonish

Captivity ; wherein the Music of our Cathedrals

is vindica ted,’ published in 1706, and the same

author’s Grea t Abuse o f Musick, conta ining an

account o f the use and design of musick among the

Ancient Jews, Greeks, Romans and others, with

their concern for, and care to prevent the abuse

thereof ; and a lso an a ccount of the immora lity and

profanenesswhich is occa sioned by the corruption of

tha t most noble science in the present age,’ published

in 1711, and were considered grea t authorities.

An idea ofMr. Bedford’

s trustworthinessmay be

formed from one of his sta tements. In referring to

the old Christma s caro l, A Virgin unspotted,’

he

takes occa sion to inform the reader tha t the word

Carol comes from Ca rolus,‘ because such were in

use in K. Charles I.’

s reign .

’ It is rea sonable to

a ssume tha t his antiquarian learning on the larger

MUSICAL LITERATURE 19 3

subjects he trea ts of is not likely to be very reliable

if he shows no more profundity of research in his

essay on the music of the Ancient Jews and others

than he ha s exhibited a s regards the carol .

Another learned gentleman , Richard Browne,

writes a book ca lled Medicina Musica ,’

which he

ca lls, A MechanicalEssay on the effects of singing,

music and dancing on human bodies In

this he urges the use of music a s a cure for certa in

di sea ses . This work, which wa s gravely rea d and

a ccepted a s o f some sort of authority on the subject,

stands a s a curious piece of evidence of the condition

of musica l thought of the period . Musica l aesthetics

are represented in a gushing but unpra ctica l trea tise,‘ Observa tions on the Florid Song ; or Sentiments

on the Ancient and Modern Singers,’ written in

Italian,in 1723, by Pier Francesco Tosi, and trans

la ted into English by Mr. Ga lliard in 1742 .

This work is quoted over and over aga in by

writers on music , a s though it were the most

convincing, pra ctica l, exhaustive, and sa tisfactorytrea tise of the kind tha t the world had ever seen

or wa s likely to see.

Sir John Hawkins, in referring to it in his

History of the Science and Pra ctice of Music,’

published in 1776 , thus speaks : The trea tise of

o


Tosi is a ltogether pra ctica l, and conta ins a grea t

number of particulars respecting the management

o f the voice, and themethod of singing with graceand elegance. Mr. Ga lliard, in the year 1742, pub

lished a transla tion into English of this book , with

notes thereon ; but by a dhering too closely to the

origina l, and adopting those rhapsodica l expressions

of the author, which, though they suit well enough

with the Ita lian language, disgust anEnglish reader,he ha s ra ther degraded than recommended the art,

which it is the design of the book to tea ch .

’

It must be remembered tha t Hawkins wrote

a fter a better feeling for the Objects and intentions

of music, and a proper sense of its dignified mission,had been revived. The popularity of the book at

the time it wa s produced indica tes the decadence

into which musica l tastehad fa llen. The tea ching,’

so called, is obscure when its precepts a re disinte

grated from the ma teria l in which it is involved.

If the good folk of former times rea lly understood

its utterances, and ga ined a clear idea of its purpose,it is quite possible to believe tha t the meaning of

words ha s tota lly changed during the la st century

and a ha lf.

It is scarcely worth while to continue this retro

spective review of the musica l litera ture o f the early


CHAPTER XI .

THOMAS AUGUSTINE ARNE AND HIS LABOURS .

The indefinite character o f the pieces o f music called glees aboutthe year 1760—The formation of the Ca tch Club and the

encouragement o f glee-writingfl The institution o f prizesThe first prize-winner, George Berg— Holmes ’ ca tches, so

called, really glees—Dr.Arne’s glees in many instances iden

tical in form with the catch.

THE experimenta l changes which were to eff ect a

movement in the right direction , and which were

destined to restore musica l art to its pla ce among

progressive sciences, wa s a ccomplished in England

by the son o f an upholsterer, who , like his great

contemporary, Handel , wa s intended by his fa ther

to worship in the courts o f Themis ra ther than in

those of Apollo .

This wa s Thomas Augustine Arne, whose name

will never be forgotten so long a s there is an English

throa t capable o f singing, and willing to sing, the

a ir o f Rule Britannia ’ and other of his exquisite

melodies .

He wa s born in King Street, Covent Ga rden, on

THOMAS AUGUSTINE ARNE 197

May 28, 1710 . In due time he was sent to Eton

College, and in his sixteenth year wa s apprenticed

to the law,

’

a profession inconsistent with his genius

and inclina tion. As a ma tter of course he neglected

his studies, and having priva tely procured a violin

and a spinet, he spent the grea ter part of his time

in a garret, indulging the na tura l inclina tion of

his mind. Without the help of a ma ster he soon

a cquired such fa cility of execution a s to be qua lified

to join a priva te society formed for the cultivation

o f quartet playing . The fascina tions of Corelli and

other writers of concerted music made him oblivious

of his duties a s a student of the law, and an ardent

lover of the art he had a cquired by secret practice.

His fa ther had never received the lea st intima tion

o f his strong propensity to music, and being a cci

dentally invited to a concert in which the young

lawyer bore a part, he wa s exceedingly surprised to

see him sea ted among the performers in full glory .

The son being ca lled upon for an explana tion,

candidly revealed the whole progress of his new

a cquisition, and gave such sa tisfa ctory rea sons for

his conduct tha t his'

fa ther a t la st consented to his

relinquishing the study of the law for tha t of music ,

even though it involved the loss of all the money

he had pa id for his apprentice fees.


The youth, emancipa ted from a pursuit so irk

some to his feelings, applied himself with diligence

to the study of the violin, choosing a s his ma ster

the famous Micha el Christian Festing, one of the

founders o f the Royal Society of Musicians.

He soon riva lled the eminent abilities of his

ma ster, and believed he had a tta ined the highest

point of his ambition when he wa s engaged a s leader

o f the band a t the Thea tre Roya l in Drury Lane.

In this Situa tion he rema ined for severa l years,distinguishing himself by the excellence o f his

performance, and content with the fame he a cquired

a s a violinist, without a thought of ever becomingeminent a s a composer.

His first essay at composition wa smade in 1733,when he produced the opera of Rosamond.

’ This

was not very successful, though many o f the a irs

plea sed by their gra ce and melody . In 1740 he

composed the music for the ma sque o f ‘ Alfred,’

written in conjunction by James Thomson and

Ma llet for his Roya l Highness Frederick Prince

of Wa les . This was performed on August lst in the

ga rdens o f Cliefden,near Ma idenhead, in comme

mora tion o f the a ccession ofGeorge I., andin honour

of the birthday of the Princess o f Brunswick, the

Prince and Princess ofWa les with their whole court


andMarylebone Gardens, the severa l thea tres and

musica l clubs.

He composed a few ora torios, the chief of which

were The Sa crifice, or the Dea th of Abel,’ ‘Beauty

andVirtue,’

and Judith.

’ This la st-named work is

pla ced in the hands of the singers by Hogarth inhis

carica ture of The Orchestra .

’ This etching is one

of his best, andwa s ori ginally given a s a subscrip

tion-ticket to the pla te of The Modern Midnight

Conversa tion .

’ Dr. Arne a lso wrote severa l pieces

for the organ , and a set of concertos for the harpei

chord.

His Shakespearean songs, such a s Blow, blow,

thou winter wind,’ Under the greenwood tree,

’

When da isies pied,’ Where the bee sucks,

’

and

others are a s famous a s the words to which they

a re set . L ike the works of his grea t contempo

rary, Handel, his music is inseparably a ssociated

with the words, and so happily do they fit the

sentiments of the verses, tha t all other musicians

who have endea voured to unite their thoughts with

those of the grea t na tional poet in the choice of

words a lrea dy set by Arne only pla ce themselves

a t a disadvantage, arising from unfa vourable com

parison.

Arne wa s the first na tive musician who placed

ARNE’

S ORIGINALITY 20 1

our cla im to musica l excellence on a level with tha t

of the Ita lians themselves, then the approved good

ma sters of the melodic art, by a dopting and improv

ing their style of composition , excluding from it

wha t ha s justly been deemed an excess of refinement ,

andpreserving only its rea l andpermanent beauties.

To this it may be a dded tha t his own cla im to

o rigina lity is indisputable. He wa s keenly a live

to the grandeur of the musica l mind of Handel,

but his own independence of thought ena bled him

to trust to his own resources and to take nothing

from the man whom all his contemporaries were

willing to imita te . His style, though occa siona lly

marked with the chara cter of the age in which he

l ived, is individua l and distinct a s a whole . In the

present time , when all the evidence a ff orded by the

la bours of the pa st is clea rly la id before the eyes,

it is a subject for sincere congra tula tion to the

a dmirers of na tive a rt to find one man who had

sufli cient force of chara cter and self-reliance to

pursue his own course, una ided by the assistance

which all others sought for with eagerness.

The influence of Handel ismore strongly marked

in many of the sa cred compositions of Greene,

Boyce, and others of the so-ca lled English school of

music, than it is in their secular productions. Arne


wrote no sacred music sufficiently ava ilable for use

in the service of the Church . No composition of

his ha s ever been included in the répertoires of

those choirs and pla ces where they sing,’

so that

the statements made by superficia l writers, to the

effect tha t his a nthems form part o f the stock music

in our ca thedra ls, is more creditable to their good

intentions than it is consistent with vera city . When

it is further a ffirmed tha t he a dopted the manner

o f Handel in these works, the informa tion so given

is derived from anything but fa cts.

It is, perhaps, one o f the saddest reflections tha t

can occur to the mind, tha t there a lways will be

a representa tive of ungenerosity to genius. Every

age produces a series o f crea tures in whom envy,

ha tred, and ma lice exist, and who make it their

business to qua lify their estima te of worthy efforts

with the cheap flavour of deprecia tion .

Arne found detra ctors in his own day chiefly

among those o f his own profession who were jea lous

o f his powers, or who were unable to distinguish

the diff erence between the mora l chara cter o f a

man and the expressions o f his genius.

Tha t exempla ry cleric, Charles Churchill, who

wa s gra tified by being admitted by his contempo

raries to a pla ce among the poets of his age, a


but when he went out of hisway to outra ge religion

he branded himself with a stigma which the beauty

of his melodies might concea l but never remove.

He had originally been instructed in the fa ith

and principles of theRomish Church these he had

for many years wholly neglected, a s inconsistent

with a life of ease and ga llantry, in which he

indulged to the full extent o f his purse and con

stitution . In his la st days, when the ravages of

consumption brought his mind to a proper sense o f

his condition , the dormant seeds of ea rly maxims

and prejudices revived in his bosom too strong to

be checked or ignored, or misconstrued by sound

rea son .

The complica ted tra in o f doubts, hopes, and

fears opera ted so strongly upon his feelings tha t

he sent for a priest, by whom he wa s soon awed

into a state o f submissive repentance. He died on

March 5 , 1778, and wa s buried in the churchya rd

of St . Paul ’s, Covent Garden, the‘ Duke o f Bed

ford ’ s barn ,

’

a s it wa s ca lled.

The pilgrim who desires to pay a pa ssing

homa ge to the a shes o f one of the grea test melo

dists the world ha s ever seen , and a musician second

in rank and esteem to Henry Purcell , will seek in

va in in the churchyard for the precise spot where

MICHAEL ARNE 205

his body rests, or for any monument to his me

mory either there or elsewhere. Notwithstanding

the number and excellence of his compositions, Dr.

Arne left little or no property behind him, a circum

stance which will not appear extra ordinary to those

who consider his rea l chara cter and mode o f life.

He wa s na tura lly fond of vicious pleasure, to which

he sa crificed every other considera tion ; and had so

weak an idea of his own interests in the disposa l

of his property tha t he usua lly a cceded to the first

offers, however inadequa te to wha t might have been

obta ined, and would doubtless have been insisted

upon by any other person . The only possession

which devolved to his heirs wa s tha t inborn taste

for music which wa s hereditary in the family . His

sister, Susanna Maria Cibber, wa s celebrated a s a

voca l performer and a s an a ctress ; and his son,

Michael Arne, though in ferior to his fa ther in pro

ductive genius, wa s superior to him in executive

skill . His performance of Scarla tti ’s lessons or

sona ta s for the harpsichord when he was only

ten years of age brought those compositions into

genera l use, which till then had been deemed

extravagant, and fraught with insurmountable dif

ficulties in the execution . At the age o f eleven

he wa s a composer ; one of his songs produced at


tha t period, ca lled The new Highland laddie,’

was written in the Scotch style, which his fa ther is

a ssumed to have invented, or a t all events to have

introduced into voca l music .

This melody wa s adapted by Sheridan to the

words Ah sure a pa ir ’

in his Duenna ,’

and was

first printed in a collection of songs published at

L iverpool , under the title of‘ The Muses’ Delight

,

’

in 1756 .

Through the labours of Dr. Arne a more dis

tinct chara cter wa s given to the forms o f melody,

and out o f his peculiar methods o f employment of

sounds a rose the distinctive chara cter now recog

nised a s English . Henry Purcell tells us that

he wa s not a shamed to own his unskilfulness in

the Ita lian language, but tha t is the unhappiness

o f his education , which cannot justly be counted

his fault ; however, he thinks he may warrantably

a ffirm tha t he is not mistaken in the power of the

Ita lian notes or elegancy of their compositions.

’

This may in a mea sure a ccount for the fa ct that

many of his thoughtswere ca st in an Ita lian mould

of his own choosing, andhismode o f expression wa s ,

moreover, tinged with French colouring, the eflect

o f his early studies with Pelham Humfrey. Arne

wa s more origina l . He wa s enabled by his own


composers, tha t they sought to a tta in , without

sa crifice to their own powers of origina lity, the

freedom and spontaneity exhibited in his voca l

compositions. Before the establishment of the

Ca tch Club , an institution formed for the practice

of existing examples of harmony of voices,’

the

glee and the ca tch were convertible terms.

There wa s still an uncerta in applica tion of the

word glee to allpieces of voca l harmonic combina

tions, an unrecognised reference to the ancient

meaning of the term . The ca tches of Thomas

Holmes, which were among!

the favourite pieces

performed a t the early meetings of the society to

which a llusion ha s been ma de, were more in the

style of the glee, as there is no ca tching’ of the

words in the severa l parts. Some of Dr. Arne’s

glees, such a s Which is the properest day to drink,’

a re distinctly in ca tch form .

This uncerta inty of appella tion wa s remedied

a s soon a s the society wa s established on a sa fe

ba sis.

The society , a t first instituted for the perform

ance of part-singing, soon turned its a ttention to

the encouragement of new productions for their

use and benefit .

The origina l promoters of the Ca tch Club were

THE CATCH CLUB 209

the E arls of Eglinton, Sandwich and March ,

Genera ls Rich and Barrington, the Hon . J. Ward,Hugo Meynell and Richard Phelps , Esqrs. Their

first meeting took pla ce in November 1761 , and in

the May of the next year an outline of the plan of

the objects and purposes of the society wa s drawn

up, the name of the Noblemen and Gentlemen’

s

Ca tch Club was given to the institution, and its

a vowed object wa s declared to be the encouragement

of the composition aw rformap cesfi canons,

ea tm e s. he secretary wa s Thoma s

Wa rren, who a fterwards a ssumed the additiona l

name of Horne. He wa s the editor and compiler

of the famous collection which bears his name.

In the pages of this work a re preserved some of

the most exquisite gems of vocal composition ever

written ,together with productions of so question

a ble, or ra ther unquestionable a chara cter, tha t it

is a pity tha t the fire which consumed the grea ter

portion Of the stock of copies did not consume the

whole.

The Ca tch Club soon became very fa shionable,

and most of the noble ama teurs of. the day became

members of it ; even royalty Honoured it with its

pa tronage, for the Prince o f Wales (a fterwards Kin

George IV.) wa s e ec e In 1784, uke of

P


Cumberland in the same year, the Duke of York

in 1787 , the Duke of Gloucester in 1788, the Duke

of Clarence (King William IV.) in 1789 , the Duke of

Cambridge in 1807, and theDuke of Sussex in 1813.

Among the professiona l members we find the

names of John Beard (Handel’

s famous -tenor

singer) , Jona than Ba ttishill, Dr. Arne, Joseph

Ba ildon , Dr. Hayes, Thoma s Norris (o f Magda len

and St . John’

s Colleges in Oxford) , Signor Tenducci,Monsieur Leoni (the ma ster of Braham ) , Luffmann

Atterbury , Stephen Paxton, SignoriRauz z ini, Piozzi

(who ma rriedMrs . Thra le) ,Pa cchierotti, and Samuel

Webbe, among the origina l list . La ter came

Charles Knyvett , Richa rd John Samuel Stevens,

Samuel Harrison , John Hindle, Joseph Corfe,

Richard Parsons, J . B . Sa le, Dr. Callcott , J . Danbji,

Thoma s Grea torex, James Ba rtleman , and Robert

Cooke . These were followed by William Nield,

William Knyvett, Thoma sWelsh , Thoma s Vaughan,

Richard Bellamy, JamesE lliott, WilliamHawes (who

produced Weber’ s ‘ Der Freischiitz’

in England) ,

Charles Evans, Charles Taylor, Richard Clark,

Charles Duruset (a ctor and voca list) , John Terra il

(an a lto singer who weighed twenty-two stone) ,

William Horsley, Thoma s Cooke, Henry Phillips,

Henry Goulden, Frederick William Hornc‘

a stle,


came to England, it is supposed, on the invita tion of

Dr. Pepusch , whose pupil he wa s. He wa s brought

into notice soon a fter he ga ined the prize given

by the Ca tch Club . He obta ined two other prizes

in subsequent years. He published some books of

songs which were performed a t Marylebone Gardens,

and for tha t pla ce he composed a canta ta or ode

ca lled The Invita tion,

’

one of the pieces out o f

which wa s printed in the Musica l Maga zine ’

of

1767 . There are thirty-one of his glees and ca tches

included in Wa rren’

s collection. He a lso wrote

many pieces for the organ , piano, flute, horn, and

other instruments . He wa s organist of the church

o f St . Mary-a t-Hill in London,near to Billingsga te,

in 1771 , a post which it is supposed he reta ined

to his death , which occurred about the year 1780 .

The interest excited in the glee, a s a compara

tively new form o f composition , wa s sufficiently

extensive to justify composers not only in producing

them, but a lso in publishing them in separa te col

lections. Some of the best of these works, and those

which the public welcomed with the grea test marks

o f favour, were reprinted in genera l collections,

such a s tha t made by Wa rren , and la ter by others.

We sha ll have occa sion to speak more particu

larly o f the glee in time to come, and, a s we have

WILLIAM JACKSON, OF EXETER 2 13

now arrived a t the period when the production

of the ca tch culmina ted, decayed , and disappeared ,we may cla im indulgence for speaking of it once

more for the la st time .

Mr. Grea torex, who once possessed the manu

script volumes compiled by Warren , a collection of

thirty-two volumes conta ining compositions,of which all but 600 ha ve been printed, appended a

note to the index he made of the whole, and among

other rema rks, a fter speaking o f the music, he says :

As a record o f the manners of the age the collee

tion is a lso of interest, presenting poetry of the

very grossest description a llied to music submitted

for prize competition, and seeking to obta in a pla ce

in the répertoires of the glee and ca tch clubs of

those days, whose members included many of the

most a ccomplished men of the time .

’

William Ja ckson , o f Exeter, well known once

for his charming songs, ba llads, and canzonets, but

less known to the present genera tion than he de

serves to be, wa s a learned and uncompromising

critic . In one of his Thirty Letters on Genera l

Subjects he speaks thus of the ca tch

This old species o f composition, wherever

invented, wa s brought to its perfection by Purcell .

Rea ] music wa s yet in its childhood but the reign


of Charles II . carried every sort of vulgar debauchery

to its height, the proper cam for the birth of such

pieces a s, when quartered, have ever three parts

Obscenity and one part music .

It is true tha t some pieces are ca lled ca tches

which have nothing to offend, and others tha t mayjustly pretend to plea se, but they want wha t is

absolutely necessary for a ca tch— the break and

cross purpose. It may a lso be sa id tha t the result

o f the break is not a lways indecency. I confess

there are ca tches upon other subjects— drunkenness

is a favourite one— which , though good, a re not so

very good a s the other, and there may possibly be

found one or two upon other topics which might

be hea rd without disgust, but these are not suffi

cient to contradict a genera l rule.

‘ AS the catch in a manner owed its existence

to a drunken club o f which some musicians were

members, upon their dying it languished for years,

and wa s sca rcely known except among choirmen,

who now and then kept up the Spirit o f their fore

fa thers . AS the age grew more polished a better

style o f music appeared . Corelli gave a new turn

to instrumenta l music , andwa s successfully followed

by Geminiani andHandel, the la st excellent in voca l

a s well a s in instrumenta l music .


few ca tch words ava ilable were few, and were soon

exhausted . Even for the construction of those ‘ that

ha ve nothing to oflend the English language,

copious a s it is, and ma lleable enough for the

purposes of the ordinary punster, does not possess

sufi cient pliability for the combina tion of cross

words and ca tches ’

in a variety enough to be

charming . There are scarcely more than a dozen

ca tches whose humour does not ra ise the blush of

shame, but can extort a genuine, wholesome, and

hearty laugh .

The chief o f these are represented by Ba ildon’s‘ Mister Speaker,

’ Webbe’

s‘ Would you know my

Celia ’

s cha rms,’

Dr. Callcott’

s‘ Ah !how Sophia ’

and Have you Sir John Hawkins’ s hist ’ry and

the ca tch by William Ba tes, Sir, you are a comica l

fellow ,

’

which ga ined a prize in 1770 over many

others of less ha rmless humour .

It is strange tha t nothing is definitely known of

the composerBa tes beyond the fa ct tha t he composed

music for severa l drama tic pieces, The JovialCrew'

in 1760 , the opera Pharna ces in 1765 , and, con

j ointly with Dr . Arne, in 1770 , brought out the

La dies’ Frolick,’

an a ltera tion o f ‘The Jovial Crew,

’

the musica l prelude ca lled The Thea trica l Candi

da tes ’

in 1775 , severa l songs sung a t Marylebone

BATES AND ANN CATTLEY 217

Gardens in 1768, and a number of glees, ca tches,and canons, of which eleven are included in

Wa rren’

s collection .

It wa s supposed tha t he wa s a performer a t one

o f the London thea tres . It is known tha t he wa s the

music ma ster of the eccentric voca list and famous

beauty of her time, Ann Ca ttley. The particulars

of his life have been pa ssed over in purposed Silence

by his contemporaries, and it is only by means of

ca sua l references to him , and the record furnished

by his compositions, tha t his existence can be

verified . There were no ca tches o f importance pro

duced a fter the fina l deca de Of the la st century . If,

in a ccordance with the letter o f the laws o f the

clubs which encouraged these productions , they were

stillwritten, it is possibly creditable to the Societies

to find tha t they were not published . It is more

than likely tha t the growing cha rms which the glee

had a ssumed a ttra cted a grea ter amount of a tten

tion than heretofore, because the cha ra cter o f the

works of the time exhibit a wonderful a dvance in

a rt, a s well a s a tendency to develop new forms.

In some of the so-ca lled ma driga ls by John

Dowland in the reign of Queen E lizabeth a fore

ta ste of the part-song may be tra ced . The time for

the full a cceptance Of this form had not yet come,


and composers did not seem willing or able to

reconcile themselves to the reproduction of the

cha ra cter thus suggested . In the constant com

petition a fter novelty which arose when the glee

occupied the a ttention o f composers , we find occa

sional a ttempts a t a modifica tion of old uses which

in time wa s to become a new pa ttern . The com

posers whose works supply this informa tion were

Regina ld Spofforth, Richard John Samuel Stevens,

andWilliam andMicha el Rock .

The production of ‘ Let the sparkling wine ’ by

the la st-named wa s the first piece in rudimentary

part-song style which wa s honoured by a prize.

There had been other works in which a departure

from the true glee form had been made, but they

were unrewa rded. The end o f the century wa s

near before the experts were able or willing to

a ckn owledge the change, by a dmitting it to a

reward . William Rock had obta ined a prize for

his glee ‘ Alone through unfrequented wilds ’

in

1788 this wa s more gleelike in style, but still it

wa s not in the strict orthodox form with contra sted

movements. His work wa s held to indica te a period

o f decadence.

Wha t wa s done by the grea ter ma sters of the

art o f glee-writing in the la tter half o f the eight

eenth century ha s yet to be told .


cessors a s the model of perfection to which the glee

had been tending through a long course of years .

Apart from the pa ttern andexample which he left

a s a musician for the admira tion and imita tion o f

posterity, the history of his life furnishes an ad

mirable lesson o f perseverance and o f the pursuit

o f knowledge under difficulties.

He wa s born a t Minorca , in the year 1740 , o f

respectable parents . His fa ther died while he was

yet an infant, andhis mother, in stra itened circum

stances,returned to London. Unable to give her

child more than the mere rudiments of education,

young Samuel Webbe Spent his childhood without

the a dvantages he might have had if his father had

not been cut off prema turely . At the age of eleven

he wa s apprenticed to a cabinet maker, a business

he pursued with a ssiduity for some time, though

the mechanica l drudgery to which he wa s subjected

was ha teful to his soul . His grief wa s augmented,

and his troubles increa sed , by the dea th o f his

mother in the first yea r of his apprenticeship . He

comforted himself during this period o f bondage

and sorrow by reading, and the study o f such

literary works a s he wa s able to procure either from

the lending library or the twopenny box of a ba ck

street bookseller. His first venture into the region

WEBBE’S SELF-EDUCATION 221

of litera ture was in company with Euclid, and the

problems had only so much charm for him a smight

be expected, when he entered upon the study with

out any pa rticular aptitude for ma thema tics, and

only the conscientious desire to add to his store o f

knowledge such things a s might be useful to him in

his business. His mind wa smore imagina tive thanma thema tica l, and he found, to his delight, tha t he

ma de more solid progress with the study of La tin

than he did with Euclid, and so the exa ct sciences

were a bandoned by him at once and for ever. With

the like rapidi ty tha t he had a cquired a knowledge

o f the La tin tongue, he learnt French , then Ita lian ,

then Spanish, and finally Greek and Hebrew. It

is sa id tha t he wa s a ble to write fluently and

gramma tically in all these languages, and he kept

up his rea ding to the day of his dea th .

It is a lso sta ted tha t he discovered his ta ste for

music a ccidenta lly in the course of his business. He

wa s ca lled upon to make some repa irs to the ca se

of a harpsichord, the owner of which, a fter ha ving

given instructions a s to the na ture of the work be

required to have done, played a parting flourish on

the instrument in the presence of the apprentice

boy. As the work wa s given over to him to do, he

could not resist trying his hands upon the key


boa rd, and, finding tha t he fa iled to a ccomplish

tha t which seemed so ea sy to the owner, he was

stricken with grief and disappointment . During

the time the work wa s in his charge he never

fa iled to take every opportunity o f playing,

’

as

he ca lled it , and to his grea t delight he found him

self in the course o f a few weeks in the possession

o f new power, the na ture of which he da red not

divulge for fear of the wra th o f his ma ster. He

had taken a dvantage of the absence of his fellow

workmen to pra ctise a ssiduously and pa infully,

evolving his music a lmost out o f his inner con

sciousness.

The owner returned in due time to look a fter

his instrument , and, coming with a friend a t the

hour when the workmen had retired for their mid

day mea l , to his a stonishment he found the boyhard a t work pra ctising, and trying to imita te the

flourishes he had produced when he took a tem

porary farewell o f his instrument . Without dis

turbing him ,they continued to listen , and when he

tried over a tune, evidently his own composition,

which wa s full of Sweet and expressive melody,they

discovered themselves . The boy wa s a stonished

and confused , but he was rea ssured by the kindli

ness o f his unexpected audience, and one of them,


a fine tone of colour, with the whole perfectly

in keeping with the poetica l idea , and in many

instances enhancing the charm the words maypossess. In nearly every ca se Webbe so clearly

and simply indica ted hi s own impressions of the

poetry o f his glees, tha t it is not difficult to rea lise

the sta te of mind he laboured under during the

composition of certa in of his works.

The varied'

manner in which he set the words

o f the text o f theMa ss for the service of theRoman

Ca tholic Church would a lone give sufficient evidence

of the care and considera tion with which he ap

proachedhis musica l labo‘

urs. This evident anxiety

to lose no point o f the meaning of the words maya ccount for the tota l diflerence of setting o f words

in allhis Masses, his chief contributions to sacred

music .

The gentle, una ssuming chara cter of the man,

and his worthy endeavours to employ his art to the

best purpose, are also apparent in hi s glees.

It is a curious pha se in hi s chara cter tha t, side

by side with a firm belief in hi s art and a full

confidence in his own powers, he should sometimes

have carried his unpretentiousness to the verge o f

mock modesty, a nd should have a dopted a‘ Chat

tertonian device to obta in pra ise for work which

CHATTERTONIAN DEVICES 225

would not have been withheld had full acknowledgment been ma de.

It is known now tha t he wrote the poetry for

severa l of his glees, but he never cla imed the

a uthorship. In one instance a t lea st he gave the

credit to some unknown and unnamed writer. He,

doubtless , inwardly comforted himself with the

sola ce a rising from the eulogies his work provoked.

It would ha ve been inconsistent with the declared

uprightness, and dama ging to the amiability of his

disposition ,if it were believed for one moment tha t

he had any intention willingly to deceive others to

his own profit . It is much more rea sonable to

a ssume tha t , by way of joke, he yielded to the

tempta tion of a dding his quota to the remarka ble

discoveries which all seem bent upon making about

the period . Hora ce Wa lpole found his Ca stle of

Otranto ’

in an ancient ruin ; Thomas Cha tterton

discovered the poems of the priest Rowley in a

neglected muniment-chest in the belfry or pa rvise

of St . Mary Redclifi'

e Church, built and endowed

by William Canynge the merchant, of Bristol ;

William Henry Ireland brought forth some hitherto

unknown plays by William Shakespea re, and in his

own handwriting too ; and ancient ba llads and

legenda ry ta les were hammered out, not to say

Q


forged, by numberless writers, whose only cla im to

distinction could be ma de under cover of some

unknown and untra ceable authority. All these

wonderful discoveries were designed to a stonish the

world . Samuel Webbe, who found the beautiful

words of the magnificent glee ‘When Winds breathe

soft ’ on a piece of paper wrapped round some

trifling article procured a t a Chandler ’s shop ,’

had

probably no thought beyond deceiving himself. He

set the words'

to music , and so produced one of the

most remarkable instances of his own genius and

one of the finest glees in existence.

One of the worthiest na tive musicians o f the

present day has a sserted tha t the best o f the

English Glees are only ‘ musica l mosa ics,’

and he

ha s singled this work out for his specia l animad

version. He quotes it a s an example to prove his

sta tement that continuity o f trea tment wa s not only

outside the power, but wa s a lso outside the thought,

of the English musicians of the la st century .

This is unfortuna tely an ill-a dvised sta tement,

which must have been ma de in an unhappy mood.

The whole glee is constructed upon one con

tinuous idea , and is no more a piece of ‘ musica l

mosa ic than the sta tue o f the Apollo Belvedere can

be sa id to be the true effigy of Da rwin ’

s progenitor

o f the human ra ce .

228 ENGLISH GLEES AND PART SONGS

other, is a most striking instance of the continuity

of the idea entered upon in the opening phrase,

and developed to the grea test possible extent in a

work o f its chara cter. It therefore offers a com

plete refuta tion of the mi stake ma de by the learned

musician a lluded to. There are other pieces by

Webbe in which continui ty o f thought and treat

ment, and a sufficiency of development consistent

with the design of the form of composition called by

the name of glee, may be found .

Take, for example, tha t ca lled Discord , dire

sister of the slaughtering power.

’ It is one whole

thought variously trea ted , in which further devel

opment would imperil the spirit . The attentive

hearer is struck with the breadth of the first chords

of introduction : the gravity, solemnity, and awful

na ture of the harmonies which tell how Discord,

sma ll a t her birth and rising every hour, while

scarce the skies her horrid hea d can bound, she

sta lks on earth and shakes the world around.

’

The treatment is a s dignified and absorbing as it

is possible to effect by means of four-part harmony.

The charm o f contra st which the influence of

‘ lovely pea ce in angel form is supposed to exer

cise is most striking, and the glee is yet another

instance of continuity o f idea and due development.

THE NUMBER OF WEBBE’S GLEES 229

Further, the descriptive glee, Swiftly from the

mounta in ’

s brow,

’

is as perfect in its way as a

landscape by Claude or Leader .

It is a remarkably graphic portraya l of the

break o f day, and seems to fill the heart with a

sunlight of joy . His setting o f the fine words by

Congreve, Thy voice, 0 harmony,’

is equa lly vivid

in its rea lisa tion of the spirit of the poem, and there

a re not a few more out of the 300 glees he wrote,

and the 200 he published, which might be a dvanced

to prove tha t Wehbe a t lea st cannot with rea son be

charged with la ck of power a s a composer, and a s

being incapable of developing an idea , or a s one

of the English musicians whose only qua lifica tion

for considera tion rests in the fa ct tha t his works

a re musica l mosa ics.

’

Out of the multitude of glees he wrote there are

one or two which a re of lesser va lue than others.

Among the wea kest the popular Glorious Apollo

must be reckoned. It owes a grea t mea sure Of the

favour with which it ha s a lways been received to

its simplicity . It is scarcely worthy to be ca lled a

glee, except in the sense of the ancient a ccepta tion

of the term ,ina smuch a s it is for voices in combina

tion . It is a ctua lly only a harmonised a ir of the

most primitive chara cter. In its form it belongs


to the Rondo . ’ The rondo form wa s grea tly in

favour with composers of instrumenta l music , but

Webbe wa s one o f the first who employed it for

voca l music . The construction of the rondo maybe briefly described . It consists o f a leading melody

o f a sta ted number o f bars— four, eight, sixteen , or

more— oi a chara cter sufficiently ma rked and recog

nisable , this either a t once or a fter a short intro

duction . In Glorious Apollo ’ it begins a t once, is

repeated, and then is followed by a new phra se with

a modula tion into the key of the dominant, which

excites a longing in the mind for the reappearance

of the origina l theme . This being heard , the re

quirements o f form a re sa tisfied, and in the pre

sent ca se a short added coda completes the com

position .

If it is remembered tha t at the time this glee,’

or part-song, a s it would more properly be ca lled,

wa s written the use of the Sona ta form wa s not

genera l , the compa ctness o f the construction o f this

glee must have commended it with no little force

to the minds o f musica l ama teurs . It wa s written

for one o f the severa l glee clubs which a t tha t time

were springing into existence. The particular club

for whose use it wa s intended not having sa tisfied

themselves a s to the fitness of the various taverns


The na ture of the ma teria l to be dea lt with did not,

however , permit of much variety o f trea tment , and

the use o f forma lism in verse involves a certain

degree of risk which few writers care to encounter.

In music grea ter la titude of liberty is not only per

mitted, but the skilful employment of leading ideas

produces some of the most beautiful eff ects in

music .

In the Rondo form only one theme is required

in wha t is ca lled Sona ta form, two lea ding idea s are

necessary .

There are other forms more or less complica ted

and more or less na tura l . Among the complica ted

forms may be named the canon , which ha s been

a lrea dy expla ined, and the fugue, which is an

expansion of the principles o f canon combined with

other eflects, the description of which need not

occupy time at the present . As, however, the glee

writers occa siona lly introduced fuga l pa ssages in

their contributions to art o f the glee kind, it may

be a s well to give a short and concise description

of the construction Of a fugue o f the simplest

sort .

The first subject which may be proposed by anyvoice may be a s short a s two ba rs, or o f a s much

length a s the invention o f the composer ca res to

CONSTRUCTION OF A FUGUE 233

employ, the difficulties of trea tment increa sing with

the extension of the subject . This is answered a t

the interva l of a fifth above or a fourth below ,

a ccording a s the subject is proposed by an upper

or a lower pa rt .

At the proper time the first subject is delivered

by a third voice and answered by a fourth voice ,all four voices making agreeable and sometimes

piquant harmony, the movement of the pa rts pro

ducing a combina tion of melodic and polyphonic

harmony , a ssocia ted with certa in rhythmica l effects

which a re looked for a fter they have been once

a sserted . Although the construction o f the fugue

is perfectly a rtificia l, there are certa in rules o f

trea tment which must be respected in order to

a void doing violence to the na tura l feelings which

a re excited and called into a ction upon the pro

position of this pa rticular form of composition .

This form is ca pable of the grea test extension ,

but extended fugues a re best confined to instru

menta l performance a long voca l fugue is remark

a bly uninteresting, and the best writers only em

ploy the device in the most sparing manner for

voices . The same may be sa id of the sona ta form .

It finds its best exposition in instrumenta l music,

and, a lthough it ha s been successflflly employed by


many writers of voca l pieces, it is genera lly found

to be most workable when it is proposed in its

rudimenta ry forms. The rondo form for voca l

music is the more common , and some very curious

instances o f the manner in which it is employed

with charming eff ect will be found by those who

care to enter upon the examina tion for themselves.

When Wehbe began to write his glees, the

sona ta form wa s only just finding its way into

a cceptance . It wa s not until his la ter years that

he even introduced it into his glees, the old song

form derived from the rondo securing the greatest

hold upon his a ff ections a s a composer . In his

glees there is a large amount o f drama tic empha sis,

and, if in one or two instances he ha s forborne to

infuse into his work any grea t strength o f colour

ing, it can never be sa id tha t he gave to the world

things tha t were a t any time marked by ugliness or

deformity . In his glees, his trios, his songs, and

his sa cred music there is a lways a clear stream of

beautiful melody and effective harmony without

undue stra ining a fter effect . It wa s understood

tha t composition wa s litera lly a labour to him, yet

it is difficult to tra ce any indica tions o f the trouble

his work is sa id to have cost him . All is gra ceful,melodious, and spontaneous. The amiability and


CHAPTER XIII.

THE SECOND HALF OF THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY

continued.

The eflect o f Webbe ’s genius upon his contemporaries—Luffmann

Atterbury, Dr. Alcock, Joah Bates, Richard Bellamy, JohnDanby, Lord Mornington, Dr. Co oke , John Hindle , MatthewPeterKing,RichardWa inwright , StephenPa xton,W .Paxton,

and other of the lesser glee composers.

WHEN Samuel Wehbe died , on May 25, 1816 , the

glee had rea ched its highest point o f development.

To the a tta inment of this eminence his own labours

had largely contributed . While he wa s yet a live

he seemed to be able to control and influence the

chara cter of the glee, and to restra in it from over

stepping the borders of tha t cla ssica lity which he

himself had helped to formula te. He wa s the

centra l sun round which the minor planets of the

musica l world, his contemporaries, revolved in

regula ted order. When the light of his sun wa s

removed the development of the glee proceeded

MINOR GLEE WRITERS 237

apparently in the na tural direction indica ted by the

discoveries and pra ctices of musicians guided by

outside fa shions and proclivities . But the develop

ment could no longer be continued. The crisis

had been rea ched, and progress in the same direc

tion, swerving neither to the right nor to the left ,

wa s downward, not upward. So it was tha t all the

glee-writers a fter Wehbe, with one or two rare ex

ceptions, only repea ted his forms and imita ted—

hi s

trea tment, coloured a ccording to their own fancy

and power. There wa s no a ttempt v to extend the

range of ava ilable art~

by the introduction of fresh

elements of form .

The disting uishing qua lities which mark the

productions of other writers of glees were indivi

dua l . The impressions crea ted in their minds by

the prepara tion of their studies were reproduced

with ca re and all possible variety, and gave origin

a lity to their methods of trea tment even though

they brought no new thought which might be‘

a ccepted a s a point of departure.

There are numberless plea sant compositions

by such writers a s Atterbury, Alcock, the two

Ba tes’

s , Joah andWilliam (who were not rela tives) ,

Bellamy , Cooke, Danby, Hindle, King, Lord

Mornington , the two Pa xtons, Stephen andWilliam ,

"


who were brothers, Wa inwright , and others, which

were received with favour in their own time, and

are not undeservedly cla ssed among the favourite

pieces with glee-singers of the present day.

Many of these writers were successful inwinning

priz es for their compositions, often aga inst such a

competitor as Samuel Webbe, some of whose glees,which are now reckoned among the classics in

their own style, not being held to be worthy of

the distinction a t the time that they were offered

in competition.

He ga ined a fa ir proportion of prizes, it is true,but some of his best glees were pa ssed over in

favour of more fortuna te candida tes. Of the twenty

seven prizes won by him between the years 1766 and

1792, nine only were given for glees , among which

were A generous friendship in 1768,‘ Discord ’

in 1772, Grea t Bacchus in 1778, and Swiftly

from the mounta in ’

s brow in 1788. Nine were for

canons, seven were for ca tches, and two were for

odes, as he called them . There seems to have been

a desire on the pa rt of the glee-writers to carry the

development of the glee into higher regions, a s is

indi cated by the production o f these odes, a title

originated by Webbe. The a ttempt was not suc

cessful, for it seems to have been abandoned very


fourteen he became a pupil o f John Stanley, the blind

organist ,who , though only sixteen,wa s organist o f two

churches in London— AllHallows, Brea d Street, and

St . Andrew ’

s, Holborn . John Alcock wa s appointed

organist o f St . Andrew ’

s, Plymouth , in 1738, and

a fter four yearswent to the church of St . Lawrence,Reading , which pla ce he quitted in 1749 for the

ca thedra l o f Lichfield. He took his degree as

Ba chelor o f Music a t Oxford on June 6 , 1755 , and

six years la ter proceeded to tha t of Doctor. He

resigned his appointment a s organist of the cathedral

in 1760 , reta ining only his pla ce a s lay vicar, which

he held to his dea th , a t the age ofninety-one, in 1806 .

While he wa s yet in his teens he composed a

number o f songs, which were sung a t various places

o f public resort , Ranelagh Gardens and elsewhere.

He published Six Suites of Lessons ’

for the

ha rpsichord and Twelve Songs a t Plymouth, Six

Concertos and a Collection o f Psa lms, Hymns and

Anthems ’

a t Reading. In 1753 he brought out A

Morning and Evening Service in E minor,’

which

wa s among the favourite pieces in the repertoire of

St . Paul ’ s Ca thedra l until about twenty years ago .

In 1771 he issued a volume conta ining twenty

six anthems, a buria l service, and some chants,with

a curious preface.

JCAH BATES 24 1

Under the title of Harmonia Festi he collected

severa l of his glees in 1790 . In 1802 he edited a

Collection of Psa lm Tunes by various authors

arranged for four voices, with the title of ‘ Harmony

of Sion .

’

He a lso wrote a novel ca lled The Life of

Miss Fanny Brown .

’

A chant or two, andhis glee, Ha il , ever pleasing

solitude ,’

which ga ined a prize a t the Ca tch Club in

1770 , are the only compositions of his which repre

sent in the present day the fruits of a long and

industrious life .

Joah Ba tes, born a t Ha lifa x, in Yorkshire, in

1740 , wa s an ama teur organist of considerable skill ,

Hewa s a pupil ofRobert Wa inwright , o f Manchester.

He wa s educa ted a t Eton and Cambridge, and at

the la tter pla ce became fellow and tutor of King’s

College . He helped to establish the Concert of

An cient Music in 1761 , and wa s appointed con

ductor, a position he held until the year 1793 . In

conjunction with Lord Fitzwilliam and SirWa tkins

WilliamWynn he projected the Commemora tion o f

Handel , which wa s held in Westminster Abbey in

1784 . Hemarried Sarah Harrop , a pupilof Sacchini,

who wa s his own pupil for the study of Handel.

He held severa l lucra tive appointments successivelyR


under Government, and died in June 179 9 . None

of his glees are now sung.

His namesake, William Ba tes, ha s been a lready

Spoken of a t a former time. Richard Bellamy

(1738—1813) Joseph Ba ildon (1727 the

winner of the first prize given for a ca tch , When is

it best Richard Wa inwright (1758 the com

poser o f Life’s a bumper ’

; Ma tthew Peter King

(1765 the a uthor of more than one hundred

glees, including When sha ll we threemeet aga in

and the ora torio Intercession,

’

which conta ins

the song Eve ’s Lamenta tion — allwere counted

worthy in their time, and allcontributed their quota

towards the representa tive music of their period.

King is especia lly worthy of notice. He is said

to have been the origina tor of tha t style o f pictur

esque writing which is exhibited in the glee above

mentioned. But it is more likely to have been

invented by Dr . Callcott . It is certa in tha t it was

carried to grea ter perfection by him . It may be

sa id of King tha t he wa s, perhaps, the only one

among the number of the lesser glee-writers of his

day who ma de the eflort to introduce a new form o f

trea tment. It is doubtful, however, whether this

new form wa s a dopted from delibera te design or a s

a ma tter o f convenience to himself. The la st sup


favourites of the present day with glee-singers . He

published A Collection of Two Songs, Glees, and

Two Ca tches ’

and A Collection o f Glees.

’ Nine of

his glees are printed inWarren’

s collection, and two

ma sses by him were included in Webbe’

s collec

tion .

He died in 1787, six years a fter his younger

brother William , who wa s born in 1737 . William

was a Violoncello-player, and composed several

pieces for his instrument . He ga ined prizes for

his glees and canons from the Ca tch Club . His

memory is kept green by his cha rming trio, Breathe

soft, ye winds .

’

The Ca tch Club , which helped to

encourage the art o f glee-writing by the distribution

o f its annua l prizes, wa s supported by many o f the

nobility and gentry of the period . If no a ccurate

informa tion concerning its supporters wa s ava il

able, it might rea sonably be a ssumed tha t among

themany members of the club there were not a few

who could take their part, to rouse the night owl

with a ca tch,’ to sing in a glee, or even to enter

the lists among the composers o f such pieces.

There is no necessity to specula te upon the matter,the records of the club determine this ma tter with

certa inty for us.

Dr. John, or Francis Hutchinson (1735—17

HUTCHINSON , LORD MORNINGTON,AND WESLEY 245

wa s a medica l pra ctitioner and a member of the

club, and ga ined severa l prizes. He published certa in

ofhis compositions under the pseudonym of Francis

Ireland .

’

His little glee, Lightly trea d,’

is univer

sa lly known . He is supposed to have been a com

pa triot Oi the famous Garrett Colley Wellesley , Earl

o f Morn ington, and fa ther of the grea t Duke of

Wellingt on . Lord Mornington , most musical of

lords, playing glees andmadriga ls upon the harpsi

chords,’

wa s an ama teur of music in the most a ccu

ra te and genera l a ccepta tion of the term . He wa s a

true lover o f music , and one who cultiva ted the prae

tice o f the art from the highest motives o f a dmira

tion for its beauties . He wa s born a t Dangan, in

Ireland, on July 19 , 1735 , of the ra ce which had

given to the world such men o f genius a s the

Wesleys and Ouseleys, all springing from the same

stock .

It is a remarka ble fa ct tha t the ta lent for music

in the members of the three famili es should be the

chara cteristic qua lity which marks their connection

with ea ch other. It is still more rema rkable tha t

ea ch family should have supplied in one a t least

of its members an instance of early precocity in

the art . The Story of young Charles Wesley, who

a t three years of age could play on the harpsichord


with a true ba ss every tune he hea rd which

struck his fancy, who wa s a composer a t eight

years old , and who played Corelli, Scarla tti, and

Handel a t twelve ; so tha t no person wa s able to

excel him in performing the compositions of these

ma sters,’

is well known to all readers of musica l

history . The existence of a composition printed

in the Harmonicon ’ by another member of the

family, Sir Frederick Arthur Gore Ouseley, which

was written by him in his seventh year, is an addi

tional link in this noteworthy cha in o f musica l

dia thesis, and the fa ct tha t Lord Mornington wa s

able to play the violin , the ha rpsichord , and the

organ a lmost by instin ct when he had scarcely

rea ched his fifth yea r, completes this conca tena tion

o f evidence of extra ordinary hereditary ta lent.

As a glee-writer Lord Mornington wa s most

successful . He ga ined a prize for ‘ Here in cool

grot ’

in 1779 , but many o f his other glees are far

superior in point o f merit a s compositions . He

published glees and madriga ls to the number of

thirty,and there are many anthems, services, and

chants by him sa id to be still in MS . Two o f his

chants a lone represent his compositions for the

Church , and a lthough it is a sserted tha t he wrote

a large number o f pieces for the harpsichord and


grea t ta ste and refinement, and may be mentioned

a s one of the first o f the musicians of his time who

resisted the tempta tion to a ssocia te his musical

thoughts with words o f questionable chara cter. He

ga ined ten prizes from the Ca tch Club between

the years 1781 and 1794 for eight glees and two

canons , but he appears to have declined to compete

for a prize for ca tches, a s the conditions for success

were repulsive to his mind . He wa s organist at

the chapel o f the Spanish Emba ssy, nearManchester

Square, and in tha t capa city he composed some

ma sses and motets for the service. He published

three books of glees, and a fourth wa s issued a fter

his dea th . He a lso gave to the world , in 1787 an

elementary work entitled La Guida a lla Musica

Voca le.

’

He died May 16 , 1798, during the per

formance o f a concert for his benefit, he having

been incapa cita ted for work by the loss of the use

of his limbs through rheuma tism contra cted by

sleeping in a damp bed.

He wa s buried in Old St . Pancras Cemetery,

where a tomb wa s ra ised to his memory by his

sorrowing friends .

His works Show him to have been worthy of the

honour o f being ranked second to Samuel Webbs

a s a writer of effective voca l music . He nearly

DR. BENJAMIN COOKE 24 9

equalled Webbe in refinement and fancy, and

exceeded all other of his contemporaries a s he

wa s in turn surpa ssed by the grea ter genius of his

predecessor and survivor.

In scientific knowledge he wa s not equa l to his

friend and fellow-laboiIrer Benjamin Cooke, though

his imagina tion and ta ste were grea ter.

Cooke, who wa s born in 1734, wa s the son of a

music publisher in New Street , Covent Garden .

He studied under Dr. Pepusch, and caught from him

tha t ta ste for antiquarian research and lea rned

contrivance which tinged his life, his chara cter,

and his labours. He a cted a s deputy for John

Robinson, the organist o f WestminsterAbbey, when

he wa s only fourteen years of age, and in 1752 he

succeeded his ma ster, Dr. Pepusch, a s conductor

a t the Aca demy of Ancient Music , being then in

his eighteenth year.

When Bernard Ga tes, one o f the la st representa

tives of the older fa shion in music , resignedhis office

a s master of the choristers in Westmin ster Abbey

in 1757 , Cooke wa s appointed, and on the death o f

Robinson in 1762 (July 1 ) he became organist of

the Abbey, holding tha t post in a ddition to the office

of lay vicar, to whi ch he had been instituted in

1758 .


He took his degree a s Doctor of Music a t Cam

bridge in 1775 , and seven years a fter wa s admitted

ad eundem gradem a t Oxford . In the same year

(1782) he a ccepted the office of organist o f the

church of St . Ma rtin ’

s-in-the-Fields .

He died September 14, 1793, and wa s buried in

the Cloisters o f Westminster Abbey . On his tomb

stone (a mura l tablet) is engraved a remarkably clever

canon of his own,three in one by double augmenta

tion . Ea ch part a fter the first is formed o f the same

melody, in notes o f double va lue, and the Whole forms

a striking monument of scientific genius. He was

a voluminous writer, and his compositions were for

the Church , the concert-room , the chamber, and

the stage. In the la tter cla ss stands his ode for

Dr. Delap ’ s tra gedy, The Captives.

’

In the former

there a re many anthems, services, chants, psa lm

and hymn tunes . He wrote a dditiona l accompani

ments to severa l works produced a t the Ancient

Concerts, and he a lso composed severa l odes or

cantatas . His glees are bright and clever, though

more than one are in the style which, had they

been written three-quarters o f a century la ter, would

have been ca lled pa rt-songs.

He obta ined seven prizes for five glees, a canon

and catch a t the Ca tch Club, and published a col


for the most part neglected and forgotten . In the

year 1814 he lost his mind, and in a paroxysm of

menta l disorder he drowned himself in the river

Thames .

SamuelWebbs , junior (1770—1843) the composer

o f a few elegant glees, may be mentioned here. He

was an organist in Liverpool and in London . His

name is best known by the collection o f glees, etc.,

he published under the title of Convito Armonico.’

He was the la st o f the constella tion of minor

stars tha t clustered round the sun of SamuelWebbe

and derived their warmth and lustre from his rays,

and who , without his grea ter light , would perhaps

never have been visible in their own time, andmaynever have left so much a s a name for the informa

tion and a dmira tion of posterity .

THE PROGRESS OF MUSICAL ART 253

CHAPTER XIV.

THE SE COND HALF OF THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY

continued.

The progress of musical art— The growth of instrumental and

vocal forms—John Staff ord Smith , his musical educa tion,

hi s pupils , his antiquarian ta stes—His odes and gleesCritical analysis of some o f his beautifulworks.

THE cultiva tion of music when the eighteenth

century had entered upon its eighth deca de had

a dvanced to a considerable extent. Voca l music no

longer absorbed the a ttention of ama teurs and pro

fessors, but shared the favour of both in con

juncture with the study and performance o f instru

menta l works to a grea ter extent than had been the

custom in times previously. The older musica l

instruments had been improved and modified, and

instruments of new construction had found their

way into popular favour . The pianoforte had been

invented and a dopted, and its powers pla ced in the

hands of musicians a medium through which still


further advances were to be made in composition.

Musica l execution wa s to be elevated out Of the

doma in of the mechanica l into the region of poetica l

expression .

The labours of those men of genius of many

different na tions, whi ch had been contributive to

the improvement of the ma terial and employment

of the art Of music, seemed now to have produced

fa ir blossoms with a reasonable prospect o f a rich

harvest.

The grea ter part o f the compositions formusical

instruments in combina tion were of the simplest

chara cter. For the chests of viols ’

the music

that was written wa s a lmost identica l with the parts

of themadriga ls and like pieces intended for voices.

The finger boards o f these‘ viols,

’ grea t and small,were provided with ‘ frets,

’

so tha t the performermight not experience any difficulty In making the

note required. These frets,’

while they made the)

performance upon the instruments with which they

were furnished particularly ea sy, served to restrict

musica l effects within the narrowest limits. The

interva ls were ca lcula ted to bea r rela tion to each

other only in the keys of the open strings. Excur

sions into remote keys were therefore not only

difficult but attended with unplea sant results. The


Music fOr’ flutes or wmd instruments with fingerholes wa s represented by

'

dots showing the number

of holes to be covered by the fingers. Music for

the lute, theorbo, cittern ,and other instruments of

the gui ta r type wa s written , like the music for the

viols, in tabla ture. English , French, German, and

Ita lian tabla ture were all dissimilar, and so a

further hindrance to the study of music written by

composers of these several na tionalities wa s placed

in the way of cosmopolitan study. The trouble of

transla ting this nota tion not only to the performers

of the severa l na tions among themselves, but with

regard to the works of others, isola ted music, and

confined its performance chiefly to those who had

ma stered the peculiarities o f their form o f tabla

ture.

It was evident, moreover, tha t it could not be

rea d with rapidity, for the majority of the pieces in

tabla ture which have been preserved are unprovided

with pa ssages of a rapid or elaborated chara cter.

Instruments with the keyboard such a s the

virgina ls, cla vichord, ha rpsichord, and spinet were

better made. Rapid pa ssa ges could be played with

either hand by those who were skilled enough to

perform them, the ma chinery of the instruments

answering readily enough to the touch . When the

WRITERS FOR INSTRUNEENTS 25 7

discovery of the convenience . of temperament wa sma de, and it was found possible so to a rrange the

tuning tha t hi therto neglected keys could be

employed without ca lling the wolf ’ to the door a s

it were, the whole a rea of music wa s enlarged , and

the art of modula tion wa s a dded to the means a t

the disposa l o f the enterprising composer.

The complica ted potentiality of instruments for

a long time regarded or trea ted a s simple wa s

recogni sed, and pra ctica l musicians added, one

a fter the other, their experiences to a common fund

by which allmight benefit .

The violin wa s the first of the instruments whose

capabili ties were extended . Some of the pieces

written by Ba ch, Ba ltha zar, Bannister, and others

showed the direction into which men might turn

their thoughts to help to the further develop

ment .

Side by side with elabora ted ma teria l ancient

usages were continued . Thus, for example, musica l

instruments whose chara cter and trea tment have

rema ined unchanged through ages were; and"

are,

employed in conjun ction with those upon which all

the experience of successive genera tions ha s been

expended .

The art of continuing the va rious tones o f these

8


instruments so a s to produce a perfect whole,ka leidoscopic in colour, wa s a study o f the most

intrica te kind . There were men of genius who

were enabled , in the pursuit o f means to carry out

their inventions, to Show how these efi'

ects might be

sa tisfa ctorily employed, andmade to add new items

in the production o f picturesque music .

With musica l colouring to intensify the impres

sions which the human voice wa s capable of express

ing, drama tic music became a possibility. The

ingenious tria ls made by severa l composers were

further pursued , and resulted in recognised methods

of trea tment , a t the common disposa l of all who

ca red to adopt them .

The va riety o f ma teria l thus a t command en

abled composers to invest their thoughts with a

charm hitherto una tta inable . The union o f melody,

harmony, rhythm , and in strumenta l colouring gave

rise to new forms, o f which the Symphony is the

highest pa ttern .

The universa l love for music prompted men

deficient in one capa city to indulge their ta stes in

other directions, and those who could not or who

did not Sing were ena bled to gra tify their pa ssion

for sweet sounds by the performance o f instrumental

music o f their own making . Wha t Lulli had


year 1750. If this is true, his name must be added

to the ca talogue of those who exhibited prec‘

ocious

ta lent, for there are severa l pieces of his composition

in Warren’

s Voca l Harmony,’ which was published

in 1765 . He died in 1836 , a t the age of eighty-six,if he wa s born in 1750 , but the chara cter of the

pieces in the publica tion a lluded to exhibits a greater

degree of ma turity than might be expected from a

boy of fourteen. It is therefore not unlikely that

he was older by a few years— perhaps three or four

than the sta ted da te would imply. It is not in

consistent with probability to a ssume tha t he mayhave rea ched , or even pa ssed, the age o f ninety at

the time of his dea th .

He had retired from a ctive duty for many years

before his decea se, and although quite within the

reach of those who might have cared to ga ther

particulars of his interesting ca reer, there seems

to have been an utter absence o f a desire to

make any record of the incidents of such a life as

The known fa cts of his life a re few ,but if he

had yielded to the tempta tion to trea t himself a s

an antiquity, and had given to the world a little

informa tion concerning the people with .whom he

Was associa ted , he would have supplied a gap still

SMITH’

S EARLY TRAINING 261

existing in our knowledge concerning the grea t

Englishmen of his age.

His earliest musica l educa tion wa s guided by

his fa ther, who sent him to London a s a chorister

of the Chapel Roya l under Doctor James Nares,

then ma ster of the children .

Young Smith had a beautiful treble voice, and

for him his ma ster Na res wrote many o f the pretty

anthems which he a fterwa rds published . Dr. Boyce

wa s a t the time a lso connected with the Chapel

Roya l, and a t the request of his fa ther, who had

known Boyce a s conductor of the festiva ls of the

three choirs, young Smith became his pupil for the

organ .

As Nares wa s appointed successor to Greene in

1756 , and Boyce took the pla ce of Travers in 1758,

there is some rea sonable support for the a ssertion

tha t young Smith wa s born in 1750 . On the other

hand , it is hardly likely tha t Boyce would have

a ccepted the boy a s a pupil a t the age of eight ,

un less he wa s possessed of precocious ta lent or had

been carefully and properly prepa red by his fa ther,

so a s to be equa l in a bility with boys of more

a dvanced yea rs .

However, the exa ct da te of his birth is a ma tter

of little consequence . We know tha t he existed


and tha t he produced a number of works o f rare

beauty, the emana tions of a mind of no common

order.

The grea test efforts of his genius were made in

the composition of his glees. He ga ined two prizes

in 1773 for a ca tch and a canon, and in the four

following yea rs he wa s a successful competitor for

the distinctions given by the Ca tch Club .

Unlike most prize glees, all his a re a dmirable,and a s they include such works a s Return

,blest

days ,’ Blest pa ir of syrens ,

’ While fools their

time , When to the muses ’ haunted hill,’

and the

like, any earnest pra ise o f them which may now be

offered can scarcely be sa id to be extravagant or

ill applied .

Thirty-nine of his compositions, in the form

of the glee, the canon , the ca tch , the ode, the

madriga l, and the motet, are conta ined inWarren’

s

famous collection .

He published five collections o f glees, including

many tha t had won for him an undying fame. He

a lso issued a collection o f songs and Twelve

Chants composed for the Use of the Choirs o f the

Church o f England .

’

After having for many years served a s deputy

a t the Chapel Roya l, he wa s appointed to a‘ full


litera ture . In 1779 he published ‘ A Collection of

English Songs, in Score, for Three andFour Voices,

composed about the year 1500 . Taken from MSS .

of the same Age .

’

In 1812 he produced his

Musica Antiqua ,’

in two volumes, by subscription.

In 1817 he resigned the mastership o f the

children o f the Chapel Roya l and retired into

priva te life . He died on September 20 , 1836 , leav

ing allhis property to his only surviving daughter.

She became insane in 1844, and the Commissioner

in Luna cy ordered tha t her property should be

rea lised and the proceeds applied to her benefit .

Through ignorance or carelessness,’

says Mr.

Husk in Grove ’ s Dictionary ,’

the contents o f her

house (which included her fa ther’

s va luable library,

remarkably rich in ancient English musica l manu

scripts) were entrusted for sa le to an auctioneer

who , however well qua lified he might have been to

ca ta logue the furniture, wa s utterly incompetent to

dea l with the library . It wa s sold April 24 , 1844,

such books a s were described a t all being ca ta logued

from the ba cks and heaped together in lots, ea ch

conta ining a dozen or more works : volumes

were thrown into lots described a s! Fifty books,

va rious,”

&c . The printed music wa s similarly

dea lt with ; the MSS . were not even described as

SMITH AND SIR JOHN HAWKINS 265

such , but were lumped in lots of twenties andfifties,and ca lled so many volumes of music .”

Many of the va luable manuscripts were irre

coverably lost , and the labours of John Stafiord

Smi th were thus ma de fruitless through indifference

and stupidity .

Smith helped Sir John Hawkins in the compila

tion of his History o f Music ,’ by lending him va lu

able books and MSS . , and by reducing some o f the

old music into modern nota tion . His desire o f col

leeting these monum ents of the pa st wa s prosecuted

to a grea t extent , but with the possession a lone

he seems to have been chiefly gra tified . If in the

course of his long ca reer he had been moved to give

a more complete a ccount of the trea sures in his

possession than can be gleaned out o f hi s contribu

tions to the History of Hawkins, it is not a t allnu

likely tha t many points in musica l history might

have been ma de clearer. It is useless now to regret

a ma tter which is a ltogether beyond remedy, but it

may not be unprofitable to record the regret a s an

encoura gement to those with antiquarian ta stes not

to neglect any opportun ity they may have o f help

ing to swell the stores o f knowledge for the benefit

of those to come . A little chink may let in much

light . ’


It ha s been sta ted tha t Smith not only helped

Hawkins, but a lso lent some o f his va luable posses

sions to Joseph Ritson, the crabbed but industrious

a ttorney, whose works are now the pride of the

collector . If this sta tement be true , it might be

wished tha t Smith had further a ssisted him with a

little of hi s technica l knowledge, so tha t the musical

portion of his works might have been more a ccu

ra te.

It is not , however, with Smith a s the antiquary

tha t we have to dea l, but with Smith a s the musi

cian, a s the glee-writer , and one who helped to

carry on tha t peculia rly delightful form o f vocal

composition to a further development , and to trans

mit a spark o f the fire of his genius for melody to

one o f the most remarkable o f his la ter pupils, Sir

John Goss .

Smith wa s particularly fond o f this boy, and

wa s wont to take him about during his da ily wa lks,

and to tell him stories of his own childhood and the

grea t men he had seen and spoken with . He had

seen and remembered Handel, and pointed out the

house where the grea t man brea thed his la st . He

told how tha t in his youth , a s a chapel boy , he had

borrowed a gun to shoot snipe a t the top o f that

very Brook Street in which Handel died ; how he


This wa s not the only instance in which he felt

himself bound to conform to a fa shion or pra ctice

which wa s opposed to his better feelings.

He wrote many ca tches to words of undesirable

meaning and purport . His first prize wa s ga ined

for a ca tch set to a j ingle utterly devoid of decency.

It is difficult to reconcile the conflicting idea s of

his chara cter, aroused by the existence o f these

things and o f his better works, in any other waythan upon the ground of expediency. It is better

to think tha t be bent the propriety of his mind

aga inst his will to conform to the habits of the time

ra ther than tha t he delibera tely entered upon the

work from any rea l love for its meretricious fa scin

a tions . The soul tha t could conceive and could

carry out so perfectly the poetica l thought in such

a work a s Return , blest days’ could not be wholly

bad. Posterity ha s done him the justice to forget

his artistic delinquencies, and to cherish only his

worthier efforts .

It is plea sant to agree with those who hold that

the chara cter o f a man is reflected in his produc

tions . In this ca se it is pa rticularly gra tifying, for

there a re few o f the glee-writers whose works breathe

a purer sentiment than those which have survived

from the hand andhea rt o f John Sta ff ord Smith .

REGINALD SPOFFORTH 269

CHAPTER XV.

THE SECOND HALF OF THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY

continued.

Reginald Spofiorth, the foreshadowing of the modern part-songin his glees— The cultiva tion of vocal music no longerrestricted to pro fessional singers—Dr. Callcott andhis threepart glees— The influence o f the poems o f Chatterton and

Ossian upon the glee-writers—Biohard John Samuel Stevensand his settings o f the words of Shakespea re, Ossian, and

others.

ANOTHER glee composer whose known amiability of

cha ra cter influenced his style of composition wa s

Regina ld Spoflorth. He wa s born a t Southwell in

the year 1770 , where his fa ther worked a s a currier.

His uncle Thoma s taught him music and adopted

him a s a son . From thi s kindly and rigid disciplinarian he a cquired habits of industry and fru

gality which a dvanced him in his profession and

pla ced him in circumstances of ea se and comfort.

He la boured so a ssiduously at the outset of his

career tha t he impa ired his hea lth and shortened


his life. His brother Samuel lived to be an old

man, and but for the‘ ha ste to rise up early and

so la te take rest , and ea t the bread of carefulness,’

Regina ld might a lso have enjoyed the privilege of

a long life , a s all the other members of his family

had done.

The pensive chara cter of much of his music

may be a ttributed to his constant struggles with

bodily pa in . The tenderness of hismode of expres

sion may be tra ced to his na tura l amiability of

disposition . He wa s one of the favourite pupils of

Dr. Cooke, of Westminster, and produced his first

glee for three voices, ‘Lightly o’

er the village green,’

under him in 1787 . In 1793 he obta ined two prizes

for glees a t the Ca tch Club, and these were so highly

thought of tha t their composer wa s everywhere

received with favour, and the appearance of a Set

of Six Glees in 1799 permanently established his

reputa tion. One of these wa s Ha il !smiling morn,

’

probably the most popular glee ever written. It

may be described a s a ha rmonised a ir, and a s such

is considered a s the point of departure towards the

new style which arose out of the glee. It is essen

tially a part-song,’ of the form which became

genera l sixty years la ter.

The distinction of form a cquired by the glee


wa s partly composed by Mr. Shield, and, a ccording.

to the thievish fa shion of the period, bywhich handswere la id upon everything convenient if not appro

pria te, the rest of the music wa s selected from the

works of Haydn,Dr. Aylward, Baumgarten, Boc

cherini , Pleyel , Gluck, Reeve , Arne, Ware, Lefller,

junior, and Spoflorth. One of the pieces selected

wa s taken from a book of canzonets which had beefi

published a year or so before , and there was only

one sma ll piece written for the occa sion . Spoflorth

had, however , plenty of opportunity for showing

his ability a s a writer for the stage during his

a ssocia tion with the thea tre, but his drama tic music

wa s not of a na ture strong enough to form a school ,

or the nucleus of a school , o f opera tic music. It

wa s chiefly written to serve some temporary occa

sion, and died so soon a s the thing which had been

the means o f its birth had served its purpose.

He is best represented by his glees , and these,

a bout seventy in number, are excellent . He died on

September 8, 1827 , aged fifty-seven . In the south

porch of Kensington parish church there was a

tablet to his memory , and on the colonnade near the

Bell Tower in Brompton Cemetery is another tablet ,

which ha s the following inscription : In Memory of

REGINALD SPOFFORTH , Professor o f Music , born at

SPOFFORTH’

S GLEES 273

Southwell , in Nottinghamshire, in 1770 . He died a t

Brompton , inMiddlesex, on September 8, 1827 , a ged

57 , and wa s biIried a t Kensington Parish Church .

He wa s the composer of numerous Musica l Works ,

including Ha il !smiling morn ,

” Hea lth to my

dear,”

Come , bounteousMay,”

and a s long a s Glees

a re in fa vour the name of Regina ld Spofforth will

rema in popular. This Tablet is erected to his

Memory by his Nephew,Thoma s Regina ld Chamley,

of Brompton .

Frugality pro ves an ea sy cha ir in old age.

By rea son of priority of birth, the name of John

Wa ll Callcott should have preceded tha t of Regina ld

Spofforth in this reference to the glee-writers o f

the la tter part o f the la st century , just a s the name

of Richard John Samuel Stevens should ha ve been

taken before either . But this a rrangement has been

made on purpose to offer a rea dy method by which

the artistic influence of these four representa tive men

might be remembered .

Of the many musicians who contributed to the

store of glees these were the most successful , and

if it cannot be a sserted tha t their eff orts were

beyond those of the grea test ma ster in this style,

Samuel Wehbe, it can be a ffirmed tha t in many

instances they were happy in a tta ining a position


through their works which pla ces them only a

few degrees below their more illustrious contempo

rary.

John Wa ll Callcott wa s born at Kensington on

November 20 , 1766 . His fa ther, a bricklayer and

builder, wa s not in a position to give his son an

extensive educa tion . He is sa id to have taken him

from school a t the age of twelve to help him

in his business. In the pursuit of this duty he

heard the organ a t Kensington Church, and made

himself a cqua inted with its mechanism . In his

leisure hours he began to construct an instrument

a t home which he never completed .

It wa s a peculiarity of his chara cter tha t he

should enter with eagerness upon any new pursuit

which a ttra cted his fancy , and abandon it before he

a tta ined his full design and intention.

He wa s one of those men of universa l ta lents

who are fa irly good in all, but who excel in no one

particular, who la ck doggedness of purpose and so

miss becoming grea t . When he began the study

o f the organ with Henry Whitney, the organist of

the pa rish church a t Kensington, his enthusiasm

wa s so keen and his industry so exemplary that

his master looked forward to the day when he

should be the most a ccomplished player in London.


is set to words from Gray ’ s Ode, O sovereign of the

willing soul ,’

and wa s printed inWarren’

s collection.

It wa s not successful , but the young composer was

more fortuna te in the following year for he

ga ined no less than three prizes for a canon, a catch,and a glee . Inspired by this sa tisfa ctory result

,

he set to music Warton ’

s Ode to Fancy ,’

and oh

ta ined the degree of Ba chelor o f Music a t Oxford,

and in 1787 he joined with Dr . Arnold and others

in founding The Glee Club,’ which existed for

nearly fifty years.

In the year 1785 he wa s a dmitted among the

honorary members o f the Ca tch Club , and sent in

nearly one hundred compositions a s candidates for

the prizes.

I wa s determined to prove,’

he would say in

reference to this circumstance, ‘ tha t if deficient in

genius I wa s not deficient in industry .

’

The members o f the club , a stonished a t such an

influx of compositions, very properly decreed that

in future the pieces presented for the prizes should

be limited to three o f ea ch description .

This regula tion oflendedCallcott , and for a time

quenched his ardour .

He wrote scarcely anything for nearly two

years, but probably finding no new occupa tion so

CALLCOTT AND HAYDN 277

well fitted to his di sposition a s composition , he wa s

persuaded to resum e hi s pen, and in compliance

with the new law presented only twelve pieces,among which were the ca tch, Have you Sir John

Hawkins’

s history the canon, 0 tha t thou

wouldst hide me,’

and the two glees, O thou,

where ’er thy bones,’

and Go,idle boy,

’

for each

of which he gained a meda l, four in all— a

circumstance unpara lleled in the hi story of the

club .

When he became acqua inted with Haydn, who

was on a visit to London,he wished to become his

pupil , and, like him , to produce symphonies. Haydn

appears to have been able to induce him to moderate

hi s efl‘usiveness , and to inspire him with a desire to

reduce all his compositions to the simplest style.

The interesting three-part glees, arising f rom his

a ssocia tion with Haydn , not only sa tisfied his own

mind and gra tified hi s conscientious desire to

profit by the a dvice of the grea t fa ther of the

symphony,’

a s Haydn wa s ca lled, but they a lso

ministered to the popular ta ste .

Music wa s cultiva ted in the home circle a t tha t

period with grea t a ssidui ty.

The popular love for music, never dead, but

hindered in its a ctivity by various political and


socia l disturbances, once more a sserted itself, and

an eager welcome was given to everything which

sa tisfied the requirements o f the age . Callcott’

s

three-part glees, which conta ined a ma ximum of salt

pa ssages with a minimum of united harmony , were

quite within the a tta inments of ordinary amateurs.

They were therefore received with the highest favour,

and gave rise to a sort o f litera ture on the subject.

This, with the a dditions derived from other countries,

has so interwoven itself into the knowledge and

a ff ections of the people tha t, for all the weaknesses

which many o f the examples display, is still looked

upon a s typica l , and of standard va lue.

The a ddition of a simple a ccompaniment com

pletes themea sureo f delightwhich their performance

genera lly produces— the young rejoicing because

these things plea se the old, and the old gratified

by the reminiscences of youthful joys the familiar

sounds crea te . Many o f Callcott’

s glees were

written to words by Ossian , Cha tterton, and the

a uthors of the apocrypha l Old ba lla ds printed in

Evane’s collection in 1784, the archa ic chara cter

of the sentiments therein expressed commending

themselves with peculiar force to the minds of all.

They seem to have possessed particular charms for

Callcott and his contemporary, Stevens. Several


o f which were illustra ted by extra cts from various

composers. This was not carried out to the end so

well a s it wa s begun. It ha s some redundancies,

some defects of arrangement, and a few obscurities ;

especia lly in the fourth pa rt, which trea ts of

Rhythm (Horsley) .

The Dictionary rea ched a s fa r a s the pro

spectus . If the promises therein made had been

fully carried out , the musica l world would have

been richer by the possession o f a most va luable

contribution .

He was a standing example o f the fa lla cy of the

proverb tha t Well begun is ha lf ended .

’

His com

p ositions a lso show tha t the chara cter Of a man is

not a lways reflected in his works . The greater

part o f his music is vigorous in idea , hea lthy in

tone , poetica lly conceived , and finished in the

highest artistic ta ste . It is best, therefore, to think

o f him with the respect and a dmira tion his labours

inspire, and to wish tha t he had been permitted

to fulfil allhis own desires in the spirit in which

they were commenced. His unwea ried industry

told upon his hea lth .

His la st grea t efiort wa s made in 1800 , in the

c omposition o f the exercise for his Doctor ’s degree,a La tin anthem, Propter Sion non pla cebo,

’

the

RICHARD JOHN SAMUEL STEVENS 281

w ords selected from the book of the prophet Isa iah .

He broke down in his labours a s lecturer at the

Roya l Institution , to whi ch pla ce he had been ap

pointed ih succession to Dr. Crotch, and he wa s all

a t once rendered incapable of fulfilling any Of his

enga gements .

’

He died on May 15 , 1821 , in the fifty-fifth year

of his age , and wa s buried a t Kensington .

He had all the qua lities which make men grea t

and noble with one exception ,tha t o f pa tient

endurance . His son-ih -law and pupil, William

Horsley, edited a collection o f about fifty of his

works , in two volumes, which wa s published in 1823 ,with a portra it, memoir, and a critica l examina tion

of some of his best glees. These a re among the

finest specimens of this particular style Of voca l

composition they form the nucleus o f the repertoire

of all glee societies of the present , and will con

tinne so until the day when men have lost the power

of singing and the hea rt to apprecia te na tive

productions.

The name of Richard John Samuel Stevens wa s

mentioned in connection with Callcott in referring

to those musicians who had selected words from

O ssian for voca l compositions. This poet and

S hakespeare seemed to present to him the grea test


a ttra ctions in awakening his inspira tion, and in his.

music wedded to their words his art found its

happiest expression .

He wa s one of the many memorable musicians

who owe the a dvantages o f their early tra ining to

the kindly care o f an ecclesia stica l establishment

He wa s born in London in 1753, or, a s some writers

say, in 1757 . He wa s a chorister o f St . Paul ’s

Ca thedra l under Savage, the ma ster of the boys,

and when his voice broke he studied the organ

and wa s appointed organist a t the Temple in 1786.

He reta ined this appointment when he became

organist a t the Cha rterhouse in 1796 , and while

he wa s professor o f music a t Gresham College, to

which pla ce he wa s elected in 1801 , he wrote

a number of glees, two of which See wha t horrid

tempests rise and It was a lover and his la ss

ga ined prizes a t the Ca tch Club in 1782 and

1786 respectively . Nine glees and a ca tch are

in Warren’

s collection , and he published three

sets o f glees and some songs . He wa s one o f the

first among composers who cla imed an interest in

his published songs, and who signed all the copies

issued to reta in his rights. This wa s the germ of

the roya lty system which wa s a fterwards to be

transferred to singers . He edited a collection of


song wa s not yet recognised a s a thing of inde

pendent existence.

One o f his Ossian settings,’ Strike the harp in

pra ise of Bragela,’

ha s an obbliga to a ccompaniment,and in this respect he may be cla imed a s one of the

p ioneers of another a ltera tion in the form of the

glee, made by the introduction of an instrumenta l

a ccompaniment . His setting of Ben Jonson’

s‘

words,‘ From Oberon in fa iry land ,

’ though it

possesses contra sted movements, is a lso part-song

like in style, and To be gazing on those charms ,’

words by Henry Carey , is distinctly a harmonised

melody, o f rare sweetness however, but not a true

glee . The words of the majority Of his glees, to

adopt his own description o f them , were selected by

his friend and pa tron Mr. Alderman Birch, o f Com

hill, who was a great ama teur of music, and to the

time of his dea th wa s wont to have meetings for

the pra ctice of voca l music a t his house ‘ over

a ga inst the Roya l Exchange.

’

The a lderman,who wa s gifted with considerable

literary ta ste, wa s the author of a musical drama ,

The Adopted Chi ld,’

which was a stock-piece on

the boards of the’

thea tre, and a volume o f poems

which were once as popular a s his confectionary

wares. He was born in 1757 and wa s sa id to

THE END OF THE GOLDEN AGE 285

have been a fellow-chorister with Stevens, and to

have reta ined a friendship for him all through life .

It wa s chiefly through his interest tha t Stevens

wa s elected Gresham Professor, and it wa s owing to

his good judgment tha t his glees were a ssocia ted

with words of higher poetica l merit than the gene

rality of such compositions.

Stevens wa s able to write in the true glee style,

a s may be seen in his five-voice glees, O thou tha t

rollest a bove,’

and Some of my heroes are low ,

’

both sets o f words taken from Ossian, and both

full of drama tic power and poetica l beauty.

With him the golden age of glee-writing pa ssed

away , to be succeeded by an age of silver, whose

chief representa tive wa s William Horsley.


CHAPTER XVI .



William Horsley, Mus. Ba c., Oxon— The purity o f his style, the

grace o f his melodies, and his poetical fancy, a s shown in

his glees— Samuel Wesley, the elder, his love for the workso f John Seba stian Ba ch— His own ma sterly independence ofstyle

—His works indica ting a complete advance in trea tment,while yet ma inta ining a reverence f or the old contrapuntalrules— Theodore Aylwa rd, Samuel Arnold , and othersThoma s Attwood, the pupil o f Mo zart— His glees intendedfor domestic use .

THE world o f musica l art, when the years were

gliding by in their progress towards the present

century , wa s grea tly enriched by the many dis

coveries and revela tions made and impa rted by the

mighty ma sters of all European countries. The

wea lth thus a cquired became ava ilable a s a tta inable

property of allwho ca red to labour for a portion.

The mighty genius of Ludwig van Beethoven

wa s striving to rid itself of the restra ints imposed

upon it by early studies. Alrea dy he had given

indica tions o f the possession of more a dvanced


short and a rt was‘ long, but art wa s lovely and

kindly, and ministered consola tions to its disciples.

which mitiga ted the virulence of the contumely

a ttending its pursuit .

The Whirligig o f time had brought about its.

revenges, and the prostitution o f art which had

been encouraged in former years wa s brought a s a

charge aga inst those who had lent themselves to

the ma tter . All musicians were looked upon with

jaundiced eyes a s the propaga tors o f immora lity,whose society wa s only tolerable when their art was

required to be exercised .

The timid ma de weak efforts a t concilia tion only

to make themselves more despised, and the strong

recklessly justified the chara cter given to their class

by a course o f behaviour which wa s a sserted to be

typica l . Even now , when musicians are the friends

o f princes, there is a large section o f worthy people

who think them a lmost beyond sa lva tion , and their

exemplary mora l chara cter is looked upon a s a mask

to concea l depravity .

The priva te life o f a man o f business is never

considered a s interfering with his commercia l capa

city. The priva te life o f a musician is held to colour

his whole artistic productions, and to tinge the

estima te o f his genius .

WILLIAM HORSLEY 289

Thus hampered on all sides, the marvel is tha t

music could have found any representa tives to

continue its pra ctice, more especia lly when there

were so many means of making money Open to the

enterprising- means which would command the

respect of their fellow-men , if they could not insure

true respectability.

With proper encouragement such a man as

William Horsley ought to have become one of those

whom the world should delight to honour. His

chara cter wa s beyond reproa ch . His probity, his

amiability of disposition,his refinement of ta ste

and honesty of purpose ma de him estimable. Had

his genius been properly recognised, and duly re

warded , there is rea son to believe tha t he would have

been one of the grea test musicians to which the

na tion had ever given birth. His stra itened means

compelled him to a dopt pursui ts forhi s ma intenance

which were fa ta l to the full development of his

genius, and the world is the poorer for ha ving kept

his Pega sus harnessed to a ha ckney-carriage.

The grea ter part of hi s life wa s spent in the

drudgery of tea ching, and so of propaga ting medio

crity. Had the country offered any prizes for the

encouragement of a rt, there might have been a .

di fferent record to show of his artistic a spira tions

U


than tha t which is aflorded by his immorta l glees.

Beyond the mere sta tement of the list of these

works, there is little in the history o f his pure and

blameless life tha t possesses any degree o f a ttra ction

for the student of biography.

He wa s born in London on November 15 , 1774,

and began the serious study of music a t the age of

sixteen under Theodore Smith , a musician of mean

capa cities and of bruta l mind . The five years of

Horsley’ s a ssocia tion with this crea ture wa s a period

o f terror and neglect . He became a cqua inted with

the brothers Ja cob , Joseph , and Isa a c Pring, all

three about his own age and possessing sympathies

a nd a spira tions in common . The elder, Ja cob

(1771—17 wa s organist of St . Botolph ’s, Alders

ga te Street , and is known a s the composer of a

number o f glees of skilful construction and refined

taste ; the second brother (1776—1842) became

organist of Bangor Cathedra l, and in tha t capacity

succeeded in wresting from the authorities a proper

recognition of his rights a s a member of the ca the

dra l body ; the third , Isa a c , succeeded Dr. Hayes

a s organist of New College, Oxford , and died in 1799 ,

two years a fter his appointment , in the twenty

second year of his age.

Dr. Callcott a lso gave the young musician


he resigned his situa tion a t Ely Chapel . He took

his degree as Ba chelor of Music at Oxford on

June 18 , 1800 , a t the same time tha t Callcott pro

ceeded to his Doctor’ s degree. When the Voca l

Concerts were revived in 1801 , Horsley supplied

them with glees, songs, and instrumenta l pieces,including three symphonies for complete orchestra ,in which his refined ta ste and origina lity of thought

were amply elucida ted. These works, if they had

been encouraged , would have brought others

forward , and the full powers o f the ta lent of the

composer might have been developed to fruition .

He succeeded Callcott a s organist of the Asylum,

and in 1812 wa s appointed to Belgrave Chapel,

then newly erected. In 1837 he became organist

to the Charterhouse, a post he reta ined until his

dea th , on June 12 , 1858, when he wa s succeeded by

his famous pupil, John Pyke Hullah.

Horsley published five collections of glees, a

collection o f forty canons, a collection o f psa lm

tunes with interludes, An Explana tion o f theMajor

and Minor Sca les,’

and a number o f songs, duets,

trios, single glees, sona ta s, and other pieces for the

p ianoforte.

He a lso edited the second edition of Clementi ’s

Voca l Harmony ’

and published a collection o f the

HORSLEY AND MENDELSSOHN 293

glees and other voca l compositions of his fa ther-in

law, Dr. Callcott , in two volumes, with a memoir

and critica l analysis of some of the pieces prefixed

a s introduction ,and a s a member of the Musica l

Antiquarian Society he edited Book I. of Birde’ s

Cautiones Sa crae.

’His glees still keep his name

before the public . For pure cla ssica l ta ste and

refinement of expression they a re deservedly con

sidered a s of high rank. The chief of these, By

Celia ’ s arbour,’ Cold is Cadwallo ’s tongue,

’ O

nightinga le,’

See the chariot a t hand,’ Nymphs of

the forest,’ When the wind blows on the sweet rose

tree,’ Mine be a cot ,

’ Blow light thou ba lmy a ir

(his own favourite composition) , and many others,

a re models of gra ceful form and voca l excellence.

He was the king of the silver age o f the glee, and

had in him the potentia lity of grea tness, which only

needed proper apprecia tion to have been led to its

true expansion.

Mendelssohn enterta ined the highest regard for

his persona l chara cter, and a fter their first intro

duction to ea ch other they ma inta ined a friendly

correspondence. He a lso gave lessons to Horsley’ s

son,Charles Edward (1821 a fterwards cele

brated a s a composer o f ora torios, cantatas, etc.

It wa s owing to his a ssocia tion with Horsley that


Mendelssohn wa s moved to write those voca l com

positions o i his which inspired his countrymen with

a desire to imita te the English glee . The best

specimens ‘ of their eff orts are conta ined in the

Orpheus collection . They are charming, eff ective,

and popular, but they are not glees . The German

mind took up the ta le where English capacity had

left it , and so carried on the development .

The popularity o f these part-songs abroa d led

to their introduction into this country, and our

na tive composers reunited the threa d o f continuity

whi ch had been broken through their own careless

ness and indifference, a s it were.

Another grea t but neglected genius wa s Samuel

Wesley, a member of a family distinguished in the

world o f religion a s well as o f music . He wa s born

a t Bristol on February 24 , 1766 ; his brother wa s

tha t Charles Wesley of whose early promise of

genius mention ha s been a lrea dy ma de .

Samuel , like Charles, could play on a musical

instrument when he wa s only three years o f age,

and, like him ,had written an ora torio in his eighth

year ; and Dr . Boyce, by whom some o f his earlycompositions were examined, sa id, This boy writes,

by na ture, a s true a ba ss to his melodies a s I can

do by rule and study.

’

He composed a ma ss


made no marked a dditions to the form of the secular. ‘

compositions in which he wrote . He wa s cont'

eht '

to follow in an able manner, and did not seem to

care to lea d in this direction . One of his best

motets he set to his fa ther’S dying words,‘ Omnia

variita s et vexatio spiritus, praeter amare Deum et'

illi servire.

’

His life presents another instance of the sup

pression of genius for la ck of encouragement . Thathe possessed un

’

daunted courage in the pursuit Of

a favourite fancy 1s amply proved by the exertions

he made to Obta in recognition in England fer

the mighty works o f John Seba stian Ba ch . As an

organist of musica l a tta inments and skill he had

learned to apprecia te a t the highest estima te the

compositions for the instrument by his favourite .

composer. In conjunction with Jona than Ba ttis

hill and Benjamin Ja cob he began the enterprise

which resulted In Inspiring his countrymen with an

a dmira tion ,if not for a love, of Ba ch

’

s works .

He wa s the founder o f the modern school of

organ-playing, andwrote a number of pieces for the

organ which were beyond the skill of all players but

himself in his own day, but which now can be com

pa ssed without difficulty by the modera tely skilful.

He died October 11 , 1837 , leaving a numerous

LESSER GLEE-WRITERS 29 4

family by hisO

firSt and Second wives . It is sa id

that in his la tter days he wa s wont to compla inbitterly of the neglect he hadsuffered, and to prayfor the day when musici ans should be redeemed

from the b ondage of social Sla very and contumely

which hindered the proper a dvancement o f art in

this country . His voca l Works, but more especia lly.

his organ music , are. full Of fancy , originality, and

a dvanced thought . It wa s a disa dvantage to him .

tohave been born at a time when appreciation of

such high eff orts a s his should have been denied

o r wi

thheld .sHe was one o f the ma rtyrs o f a rt out

o f whose sufferings and endurance the ease, pea ce ,

quietness , and confidence which a re the strengthOf

the privi leges of posterity have been. prepared and’

rendered secure , if not permanent .

There were many other writers of the period

who , in the'

midst of their other labOurs, found time

t o ca st t heir thoughts in the direction o f the glee .

Some acquired eminence, others never passed the

limits of mediocrity .

Among these may be mentioned James Adcock

(1778 and Theodore Aylwa rd (1730

who wa s appointed Gresham Professor in 1777.

Dr . Samuel Arnold (1740—1802) is better known

f or his collections o f sa cred music andhis theatrica l


compositions than for his glees a lso Thoma s Att

wood , the pupil o f Mozart , and one of the ma sters

of John Goss .

Attwood, who wa s born in 1765 , wa s a chorister

of the Chapel Roya l , and, like his predecessor

Pelham Humfrey, wa s sent abroad a t the expense

of the king to prosecute his musica l studies. He

became the pupil of Mozart, and a cquired more of

his style than any of his pupils.

’

He wa s appointed

organist o f St . Paul ’s Ca thedra l in 1796 , on the dea th

Of John Jones, and composed a large number of

pieces for the stage . His melodies a re gra ceful and

elegant , and his anthems and services devotiona l

and expressive in chara cter. His glees are excel

lent and eff ective , and in such pieces a s The

Curfew ,

’

for three voices with pianoforte a ecom

paniment , he carried out the suggestion made in

former years by Dr . Callcott by contributing to the

music intended for domestic use . The line thus

marked out wa s followed by severa l writers , conspi

cuons among whom were Count Joseph Ma z z inghi,

a Corsican by birth , an Englishman by na tura lisa

tion John Whittaker (1776 the composer o f

the song 0 say not woman ’

s heart is bought,’

the

charming glees The brea th o f the briar,’ Winds~

gently whisper,’

and others Jona than Ba ttishill


Phillips‘

(1774—1841) William Reeve (1757

the Rev . Legh Richmond (1772 the author

o f the well-known ‘ Anna ls of the Poor ’

; Michael

Rock (1753—1809) William Rock (1768—1802

his brother ; Sir John Leman Rogers, Bart . (1780

William Russell, Mus . Ba c . (1777

William Shield (1748—1829) Clement Smith (1760

Robert Archiba ld Smith (1780 the

composer o f The Flower of Dunblane Sir John

Andrew Stevenson (1761—1833) Thoma s Forbes

Walmisley (1783—1866) Samuel Webbe, jun.

(1770—1843) Richard Webster 1785—1852

Thoma s Welsh (1770—1848) Zerubbabel Wyvill

(1762 the composer o f the hymn tunes

Ea ton and Da rnley ; and Thomas Simpson Cooke

(1782 All these composers were born

before the end o f the la st century, and many of

them had made themselves conspicuous a s musi

cians while the present century wa s young.

Judged by their works , the:grea test musicians

on this list were Ba ttishill, Charles Evans, and

Tom Cooke, a s he wa s familiarly ca lled .

The glees by James Hook were not among the

happiest eflorts o f his genius : his grea test strength

wa s exhibited in his melodious songs, and his cla im

upon the gra titude o f posterity is founded upon the

CHARLES EVANS 301

fa ct tha t he wa s the first who had the courage

to play the fugues of Ba ch in public . He‘ thus

initia ted the work to be carried on in la ter years bySamuel Wesley, Ba ttishill, and Ja cob . Ba ttishill

earned a niche in the temple of fame by the beauty

of his anthems : he can therefore afford to take an

inferior pla ce in the ga llerydevoted to composersof a cla ss of music to which he did not give the best

a ttention of his mind.

The glees of Cha rles Evans are full of vigour

and chara cter, scientific in construction yet purely

voca l . He wa s a singer himself, and wrote the

upper part of his glees to fit his own voice, a high

counter-tenor. He ga ined four prizes for his glees.

His poetica l predilections ran in favour of words of

Ana creontic chara cter, in the musica l interpreta tion

of which he wa s most successful. Some of his

glees show a lso tha t he wa s capable of conveying

his thoughts most agreeably, a ccompanied by much

tenderness of expression .

He wa s fellow-organi st a t St. Paul’ s, Covent

Garden, with Dr. Callcott , and wa s sa id to be in

every way superior to him a s a performer. He re

tained the like vigour and energy o f body which

were chara cteristic Of his mind throughout his long

life. Hewas a littleman , but he had a grea t soul. ’


CHAPTER XVII .



Thoma s Cooke , his versa tility —His perversions of cla ssicalworks— Sir Henry Rowley Bishop, and his glees with a ccompani

ments— The refining tendency o f his music— The national

cha ra cter o f his melodies— The undeserved neglect of his

compositions.

As a composer, Tom Cooke deserves a s high a place

a s Evans a s a glee-writer, and perhaps should be

entitled to a more exa lted gra de if the rest o f his

ta lents were to be ca st in the ba lance o f critica l

judgment .

He wa s a man o f extra ordinary versa tility of

chara cter and a tta inments. His abilities were,

m oreover, not of tha t superficia l description which

ight be expected o f one who wa s able to spread

himself over so wide a surfa ce. He did everything

well tha t he undertook, and would have become

eminent if he had confined his a ttention to any one

o f his a ccomplishments. The charms of variety


it is not surprising to find tha t he was equa llygifted a s a glee-writer. He ga ined no fewer than

eight prizes for his compositions of this chara cter

between the years 1829 and 1844 Strike the

lyre,’ ‘ Shades of the heroes,

’ Fill me, boy, as

deep a draught ,’

On Linden ,when the sun is low

,

’

and other of his glees a re perennia l favourites

with those who cultiva te this cla ss of composition.

He was a man o f infinite humour and wit , a fa ct of

which the many stories rela ted of him bea r witness.

He wa s a warm-hea rted , impulsive Irishman,

kind and generous to all. The a ffection and regard

in which he wa s held is best indica ted by the fami

liar use o f his name : he is a lways spoken o f and

known a s Tom Cooke . He did much towards

ministering to the people ’s love for music in the

composition and selection of suitable works for

the drama tic pieces which in his days pa ssed for

opera s. He did, perhaps, too much for his own

reputa tion by such pra ctices, ina smuch a s they led

him to enterta in but little respect for a composer’s

intention, and to ha ck and hew his works to make

them fit the purpose he had in hand .

The age wa s not a ltogether guiltless in lending

itself to the trea tment to which music wa s subjected.

It wa s ea sier to cull from many sources than to

DISRESPECTFUL OPERATIC PERVERSIONS 305

give employment to men of ta lent to produce ori

ginal works. The genius of invention wa s held

under the heel o f the demon of the scissors and

pa ste-pot , and the flavour of cold steel and mouldy

flour wa s considered the needful condiment for all

dishes prepared for the public ta ste . The opera tic

works of Gretry, Philidor, Lesueur, Monsigny, and

even Moza rt were presented in delica te fra gments

mixed up with tra sh of all kinds, good , bad, and

indif ferent , sometimes worse than indifferent .

Musicians like Stora ce , Linley, Arnold , and others

lent themselves to the pra ctice, and Tom Cooke ,

whose genius wa s capable of better things , wa s

forced by the pressure of circumstances to conform

to the habit of the age .

The present century had a ctua lly seen its

fortieth yea r before the pra ctice wa s discontinued .

Weber’s Der Freischutz wa s produced byWilliam

Hawes in 1826 under such humilia ting conditions.

Rossini ’ s William Tell ’ wa s submitted to a like

excision by a m an of genius (Sir Henry Bishop) , who

confessed himself heartily a shamed o f the business,

and Handel ’ s Acis and Ga la tea wa s ha shed and

Cooke’d for performance a t Drury Lane Thea tre in

1841 , by order of Mr. Ma crea dy , the work"

beingx


supplemented by additions from composers other

than those whom Handel had la id under forced

contribution .

The principle wa s bad, but the men were so far

honest in its exercise tha t they rarely fa iled to

a cknowledge their indebtedness by naming all-the

composers from whose works they had ma de selec

tions. The pra ctice is still frequently observed,

with a diff erence— the nomina l composer or com

piler cla ims all the credit for himself.

English art wa s so far weakened for want .of

proper food and hea lthy exercise that composers

could not obta in more than the ba rest pittance for

their labours. One o f the most remarkable musi

ciane o f his age , Henry Rowley Bishop , was, in spite

of unwearying industry, a poor man all his life.

When the history o f English art is written,

three of the grea test names among the epoch

makers of native music wi ll be found to be those

of Purcell, Arne, and Bishop.

The influence which the two former exercised

upon their contempora ries and successors has been

a lready made the subject o f comment. The labours

of the la st-named o f thi s grea t trio would form a

most interesting chapter in the history of art in

England , and ofler a further proof o f the existence


mission from the directors o f the King ’ s Theatre,

in the Haymarket, to compose the music for a

ba llet, Tamerlane and Baja z et .’ This was per

formed in 1806 , and the music wa s so bright and

clever tha t envious critics declared it wa s the work

of Bianchi , and not of Bishop . On February 29 ,

1809 , his music to the play The Circa ssian Bride

wa s played a t Drury Lane Thea tre, and received

with enthusiasm . The thea tre wa s burned to

the ground on the following night , and the score

and parts were destroyed . Bishop re-wrote the

work from memory, and by this convinced the

sceptics of their errors in misjudging him . This

work la id the founda tion o f his fame, for the

directors o f Covent Garden engaged him as com

poser to the thea tre for three years. His first

work produced under this engagement was The

Knight o f Snowdon,

’ founded upon Sir Wa lter

Scott ’ s poem of The La dy of the Lake.

’ This was

followed by The Virgin o f the Sun,

’

The ZEthiop,’

and The Renega de When his engagement was

renewed for five years he brought out The Miller

and his Men,

’

the music of which a chieved an

enormous popularity, and certa in of the numbers

are even now among the best known of his works .

The Fa rmer’ s Wife,’

The Forest o f Bondy,’

and

BISHOP’S OPERAS 309

other pieces followed in rapid succession , ea ch

a dding to his fame and increa sing the receipts of

the trea sury o f the thea tre.

Notwithstanding the fa ct tha t the directors of

the thea tre knew by experience tha t they had a

musician of rare and origina l powers a t their com

mand, whose efforts were a lways profitable, they

did not think it inconsistent with their knowledge

to require him to make p a sticcios of other men’

s

music, instea d o f commissioning him to supply

further evidences of hi s origina l ta lent . He wa s

thus ca lled upon to ‘adapt ’ Boieldieu ’s ‘ John of

Paris,’ Mozart ’ s Don Giovanni ’ and Figaro ,

’

and

Rossini ’s Il Ba rbiere and William Tell a t suc

cessive times duringhis connection with the thea tre .

The Comus o f Dr. Arne , the Cymon of his son

Michael, and a series of Shakespearean a dapta tions,

of whi ch, Ma cfarren says, even the beauty of some

of Bishop ’s introduced pieces ha s happily not pre

served to the stage,’ were the further fruits of his

labours in connection with Covent Ga rden.

His own works during this period were The

Slave,’

The Law of Java ,’ Clari , theMa id of Milan,

’

Ma id Marian,

’

and other works , which conta in such

immorta l pieces a s Blow, gentle ga les,’ A soldier’s

gra titude,’ ‘ Mynheer van Dunk,

’ Home, sweet


home,’

O bold Robin Hood,’

and a variety of other

compositions which are honourable to English

art .

His connection with Covent Ga rden now cea sed

for a time. He a ccepted an engagement with

E lliston a t Drury Lane in 1825, and produced his‘ Fa ll of Algiers ’

a s his first work under this new

a rrangement. The success of the mangled version

of Weber’s Der Freischutz’

had induced the

directors of Covent Ga rden to employ the composer

to write Oberon .

’ There was a riva lry between

the two pa tent thea tres, and E lliston conceived the

idea o f pla cing upon the stage a work of imagina tion

and fancy which should be more a ttra ctive a t his

own house than the proposed opera Oberon ’

was

expected to be . With every confidence in the ta lent

of Bishop , he gave him the book o f Ala ddin ’ to

set to music. Upon this work Bishop spent a vast

amount of trouble and care, and it conta ins some

excellent music . But the book wa s bad, the story

uninteresting a s a drama , and, despite the lavish

expense a ttending its production, it wa s a miserable

f a ilure . Bishop had taken too much trouble with

the composition , and the pa trons of the theatre

were not educa ted up to the mark a t which he had

a imed .


Bishop wa s gifted a s a performer and a s a tea cher,

though the multitude of his occupa tions in connec

tion with the theatre left him little leisure for the

exercise of either capa city to any grea t extent .

He took a large and sympa thetic interest in all

works ca lcula ted to benefit the profession to which

he belonged , andwa s distinguished for the kindness

he a lways extended to young a spirants for fame.

He wa s one of the first members of the Philhar

monic Society, founded in 1813, and a t the request

of tha t body wrote a sa cred canta ta , The Seventh

Day,’

which wa s performed in 1833. There wa s

some disappointment experienced a fter the hearing

o f this work for Bishop had, for some rea son or

other, completely a ltered his style for the occa sion.

This he had done once before in ‘ Ala ddin,

’

and

his new fa shions did not sit ea sy upon him, and

the public could not withhold their respect for his

labours, but they kept a respectful distance from

them . He had pa ssed his fiftieth year before he

presented himself for a musica l degree at the

University of Oxford in 1839 , where he became

Professor in 1848, on the dea th o f Dr . Crotch .

The higher gra de wa s conferred upon him by

the University, honoris causa , when Lord Derby

was insta lled a s chancellor in 1853 . Some years

BISHOP’S WORKS 313

previously—namely, in 1841— he held the cha ir of

Music in the University o f Edinburgh , an office he

resigned in 1843. In tha t same year he became

conductor of the Ancient Concerts in succession to

William Knyvett , and he held tha t post until the

society wa s dissolved in 1848.

Besides his drama tic productions and the can

ta ta ‘ The Seventh Day,’ Bishop wrote an ora torio

,

The Fa llenAn gel,’ which ha s never been published

or performed , incidenta l music to three tragedies,The Aposta te,

’ Mirandola ,’

and The Retribution.

’

He a rranged a volume o f Melodies o f va rious

Na tions,

’ inserting his own‘ Home, sweet home ’

a s a Sicili an a ir ,’ three volumes o f Na tiona l

Melodies,’

and a collection o f English songs pub

lished a s supplements to the Illustra ted London

News.

’

He a lso edited a selection o f the works o f

Handel , and a collection o f glees by va rious com

posers , for whi ch he furnished pianoforte a ccompani

ments in a ccordance with the demands o f the time.

Many of his own glees have pianoforte accompani

ments, and a s such show a devia tion from the old

pra ctice and spirit of the form o f composition, and

a further step in the pa th of development towards

the part-song.

He died on April 30 , 1855, and wa s buried in


Finchley Cemetery, where a simple monument was

erected to his memory by subscription . There are

two errors in the inscription on the monument

the first in sta ting tha t he wa s born in 1787 and

the second, tha t he died in 1856 .

In his la ter years he delivered a number Of

interesting lectures on music, some of which were

published . The industria l habits of his youth

never left him when years had ca st their frosts

upon his head . He had furnished the music for

over sixty-seven drama s, and had composed a vast

number o f pieces in all styles. If he ‘ had done

no more than give to the world tha t sweet and

perennia l song,! Home, sweet home, which has

insensibly interwoven itself into the sympathies

and a ffections o f all English-speaking people,

appea ling a s it does to the most cherished feelings

of a home-loving ra ce ; if he had done no more

than bequea th to posterity tha t loving and living

melody, he would have earned the right to be con

sidered a s one o f the foremost among those to whom

Englishmen owe a debt of gra titude— a debt which

can never be repa id in full, because of the constantly

increa sing interest a tta ched to it . But he ha s done

more. He ha s left a lega cy of ever-growing plea sure

in the va st collection o f voca l part-music allhis own


CHAPTER XVIII.

THE GLEE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY.

Sir John Goss one of the few glee-writers who excelled in thecomposition o f Church music— The decay of glee-writingThe loss of the art through the cultiva tion of instrumental

music and other causes- Robert Luca s Pearsall and his

happy union of the glee and madrigal styles— The introduc

tion of the so-called Germ an glees— The origin of the partsong—J. L. Hatton, Henry Sm art, Macf a rren, and otherwriters of part-songs— Collect i ons o f glees— Glee societies

and choral unions— The a dvantages to be derived from a

study of the subject— Conclusion.

WITH the dea th o f Samuel Webbe, in 1816, the

period o f the golden age o f the glee ceased and

determined.’ The silver age wa s inaugura ted and

presided over by William Horsley, and the age of

iron, brass, and clay wa s represented by the musi

cians who Surrounded Sir Henry Bishop . The

glee had lost its vita l power. The introduction of

new forms and ma teria ls had completely a ltered

its chara cter and destroyed the possibility of

further fruitful expansion . The art of interweaving

REFLECTIONS ON THE STYLES or GLEES 317

contrapunta l melodies with the ingenuity which

had been exhibited by the pa triarchs of this school

wa s transferred to other forms of musica l com

position .

‘

In the golden age the glee-writers were ani

ma ted by the enthusia sm which a ccompanies the

exercise o f new and eff ective powers . They conso

lidated the form and moulded new pa tterns out of

the old ma teria ls they had inherited , and by their

genius gave the impress of individua lity to the

novel design . In the silver age no new forms

were invented , but the musicians invested their

labours with a specia l interest arising out of the

employment of melodious themes, a ccompanied by

gra ceful harmony. In the age of iron ,the pa tterns

were reproduced with mechanica l fidelity, but the

particular a ttra ction which arises out o f the con

templa tion of work in which the ma ster’

s hand

invests his labour with unique charm is not a lways

present in the existing specimens of the work o f

this period . The grea test musician of this third

age wa s Henry Rowley Bishop , and his pla ce a s a

glee-writer is a dmitted on his own description o f

his works.

His glees, so ca lled, a re not a lways true glees,

they are mostly choruses in glee form . Many of


them were written a s illustra tions to dramatic

pieces. They a re o f suffi cient excellence and

chara cter to ha ve formed a new school , had there

been any one capable o f taking up the work and

pursuing it a fter his manner . His a ccompanied

glees or concerted pieces are ma rvels of beauty,

new in trea tment though not new in idea . Dr.

Cooke, in his Hark !the lark,’

had introduced the

novel fea ture o f an independent and characteristic

accompaniment . Dr. Callcott and others had also

employed the like contrivance in certa in of their

pieces of voca l harmony, but Bishop exa lted the

pra ctice into a distinct a rtistic device , the more

worthy as in the majority of ca ses his work was

written to cover a drama tic weakness. In his days

stage-choruses were rarely written ,because of the

difficulty of finding singers who were competent

to undertake the duties . When their services were

employed , the work they were required to do was

purposely made of the simplest chara cter. This is

shown in such choruses a s the Chough and Crow,

’

the Tramp Chorus,’

and the like . Concerted

music wa s usua lly performed on the stage by Single

voices, by voca lists who had enjoyed some degree of

tra ining. The demands of stage effect were metby the introduction o f orchestra l a ccompaniments.


James Elliott (1783—1856) wa s a lso a singer

and a prize-winner . Five o f his glees were rewarded

with meda ls between the years 1821 and 1835.

But those which carry his name to the present

genera tion , Come, see wha t plea sures ,’

and The

Bee,’ were neither o f them considered worthy o f the

distinctions won by his lesser-known works.

William Hawes, who wa s born in 1785 , wa s one

of the adapters o f opera s to the English stage

a fter the manner o f Tom Cooke . He wa s a lso a

glee-writer and bass voca list . With these occupa

tions he combined the offices o f fiddler, conductor,

tea cher, music-seller, stage-manager, and chorister

farmer . He received the rudiments o f his musica l

educa tion a s a chorister in the Chapel Roya l under

Stafiord Smith , and in due time held the offices-of

vica r chora l a t St . Paul ’s , ma ster o f the children

there and at the Chapel Roya l , lay vicar o f West

minster Abbey, gentleman o f the Chapel Roya l,

conductor o f the Madriga l Society, and organist of

the German Lutheran Church in the Savoy . Many

of these pla ces he held by deputy . He wa s one of

the founders of the Philharmonic Society, and the

first promoter of the Harmonic Institution a t the

Argyle Rooms. He carried on the business o f a

music publisher in the Strand opposite the Savoy ,

ORATORIO PERFORMANCES 32 l

and here he published many works of his own and

of other composers . His own works consist of Six

Glees for Three andFour Voices,

’ Six Scotch Songs

harmonised a s Glees,’

Five Glees and a Ma driga l ,’

and many single pieces.

He edited the publica tion in score o f the

Triumphs of Oriana ,’

a collection o f madriga ls by

composers o f the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries ,

and a very bad edition of certa in posthumous glees

of Regina ld Spoff orth and other works .

He brought out a mangled version of Der

Freischutz in 1824 , interspersed with ba lla ds, and

with the finales omitted . The Huntsman ’

s Chorus

wa s sung a s a glee and the concerted pieces were

given by single voices , for the stage chorus had no

existence in those days.

He adapted a number of opera s by Sa lieri,

Winter , Ries , Ma rschner, and Moza rt on the same

free-and-ea sy principles, and libera lly furnished

severa l opera s with music nomina lly his own . He

a lso gave wha t were ca lled ora torio performances

a t the two pa tent thea tres, Drury Lane and Covent

Garden . These performances were composed o f

selections of pieces of sa cred music sandwiched with

ba lla ds o f the Kelvin Grove and Buy a broom

type. They were ca lled Ora torio Concerts be


cause they were given in the sea son of Lent , when

thea trica l representa tions were suspended . Hawes

possessed undoubted genius , a s his glees abundantly

prove , but he often turned a dea f ear to its dicta tes

in his desire to pander to a popular ta ste which he

took no trouble to eleva te or improve . He died

in 1846 .

William Shore (1790—1877) wa s another clever

glee-writer o f the minor order. His glee,‘ Willie

brew’

d a peck o ’ maut ,’

had an extra ordinary popu

larity, and he helped to keep a live the love for glee

singing in his na tive town (Manchester) for many

years. He wrote severa l other glees, which are now

sca rcely known . He lived to the pa triarcha l age

o f eigthy-seven , and died in 1877 . John Smith , of

Dublin (1795 the Professor of Music in the

University there, who dubbed himself Doctor o f

Music, a lso wrote a la rge number o f glees, which

were popular a t one time . Many o f these ga ined

prizes a t Dublin and Liverpool .

John Jolly (1794—1838) and his nephew ,John

Ma rks Jolly, were glee composers and chorister

farmers. John Bianchi Taylor, o f Ba th (1801

Charles Child Spencer (1799 one

o f the earliest a dvoca tes for the reviva l of

Gregorian song in the present century,were


the a uthor of severa l glees. He died in 1884,

a ged seventy . Dr . William Richard Bexfield, whose

ora torio, Israel Restored ,’

ha s met with unmerited

neglect, and whose anthems are rarely performed,wrote some charming glees, two o f which ga ined

prizes . His dea th in 1853, a t the early age o f

twenty-nine, cut ofl the promise o f grea t musica l

excellence . GeorgeWilliamMartin (1825-1881) a lso

wrote many good glees, some o f which ga ined prizes.

The form of the glee possessed a ttra ctions for nearly

all the composers of the present century whose

names a re household words Micha el William

Ba lfe (1808 the immorta l author of ‘ The Bo

hemian Girl and The Ta lisman ,

’

and twenty-nine

successful opera s, andWilliam VincentWa lla ce, the

composer o f Maritana ,’ Lurline,

’

and a number o f

other opera s , may a lso be cla ssed among the glee

writers o f the present century.

The la st of the glee composers whose life was

extended far into the present century wa s John

Goss. His works of this type were allproduced while

he wa s a young man , and, a lthough they are excel

lent specimens o f hismusica l capabilities, they were

exceeded by his productions o f a more exa lted kind.

He published his six glees and a madriga l in the

year 1826 . This collection is a ca sket o f gems o f the

JOHN GOSS 325

rarest order, and qua lifies him for a pla ce among

the higher ranks of English glee-writers. They

may be considered a s the fina l eff orts of the school

whi ch had been consolida ted, if not founded, by

Samuel Wehbe, andwere like the la st flicker o f the

light which had burned so brightly for nearly three

quarters of a century before its fina l extinction .

They conta in curious evidences of the development

of the glee and the modifica tions of the old forms

which died away to return to life in a new sha pe.

The glee There is beauty is more like a part-song

than a glee, though it conta ins remnants of the glee

style. Ossian’

s hymn to the sun’is a glee p a r

excellence. The others of the set show a mixture o f

the two styles, and they allmay be considered a s the

la st links of a cha in of various styles of ornamenta

tion ba sed upon one genera l pa ttern or outline.

The part-song proper never presented sufficient

a ttra ction to Goss to induce him to try his hand a t

the style ; his versa tility wa s sufficiently individua l

a nd marked to have justified him in hoping for

success in any field of musica l composition . He

wa s a clever instrumenta l writer, and a s an opera

composer he ma de a distinct hit with his only

effort . This, ca lled The Soldier’ s Wife,’

wa s pro

duced a t the Lyceum Thea tre, and ran for upwards


o f a hundred nights . During its ca reer his efforts

were directed into a new channel , and, finding the

ta sk of working for Church and stage simultaneously

somewha t inconsistent with his principles and the

promptings of his conscience , he bade a dieu to the

thea tre and never entered its wa lls aga in .

He wrote a book on‘ Harmony,

’

and devoted

himself to tea ching and to his church duties.

When he became organist o f St . Paul ’s Ca thedra l

he ventured into the arena o f Church composition,

his first work being an anthem for the ma rriage o f

the Queen . He wa s a successful candida te for the

Gresham anthem prize given by Miss Ha ckett , but

the want o f encouragement o f his efforts in this

direction on the part o f those from whom he had a

right to expect support led him to lay a side his

pen only to resume it a t a period Of life when other

men cea se from work . He wa s fifty-four years of

age when he wrote his magnificent anthem ,Pra ise

the Lord,’

for the Bi-centenary Festiva l o f the

Corpora tion Of the Sons o f the Clergy . Success

and encouragement, withheld from him by those in

the immediate circle o f his a ction,were pressed

upon him from without, and this work gave rise to

a large number o f beautiful compositions for the

Church , cont inuously produced until the yea r 1872,


Wilderness,’ ‘ Ascribe unto the Lord,

’ ‘ Wa sh me

thoroughly ,’

and ‘ Blessed be the God and Fa ther,’

are embodiments of genius and devotiona l expres

sion in music , and will carry his name to a remote

posterity , who can only judge of his extra ordinary

ta lents a s an executive musician by report and the

evidence o f those who enjoyed the privilege of

hearing him , and have left their impressions on

record. He wa s the last of the Wesley family who

earned specia l distinction in music a s a composer

and as a performer. Whether the passion for

music which was inherent in the family will yet

off er a further demonstra tion rema ins to be seen.

The grea ter pa rt o f the compositions ca lled glees

by Bishop, Wesley, and Goss were written in the

early years o f the present century . The institution

of chora l societies, prompted by the success o f the

Sa cred Harmonic Society, and the establishment

o f cla sses for tea ching Singing for the Million,

’

of

which movement the la te John Hullah wa s the

lea ding spirit, had effected a revolution in musica l

ma tters and crea ted a demand for new forms. The

harmonised melody represented voca l harmony in

its most favoured a spect . The glee wa s forgotten,because it was beyond the rea ch of those who

flocked to the singing cla sses . It wa s probably .

ORATORIO AND CHORAL SOCIETIES 329

hoped tha t those who had ma stered the rudiments

of music , and had imbibed a ta ste for its various

modes of expression, would be led to cultiva te a

knowledge of the trea sures o f voca l harmony . In

the meantime, however, the temporary neglect had

been followed by forgetfulness, and the habit of

singing harmonised melodies had been recogni sed ,and composers who sought for popula rity poured

forth streams of well-known tunes, arranged in ea sy

styles, to minister to the existing requirements .

An artificia l form o f composition supplanted

the productions o f art, and but for the timely

interference of men of genius, who directed into sa fe

harbours the cra fts which were helplessly drifting

into a sea of inanity, part-music would ha ve become

degenera te, and the voca l a rt would have resolved

itself into undesirable elements . The societies

which were formed for the pra ctice of the ora torios

of the grea t ma sters were sprea ding and doing

really good work, but the pa rt-music which sa tisfied

the needs of a large number of the chora l societies

wa s by no means of an eleva ting chara cter . The

love for music wa s increa sing, but the pra ctice wa s

confined to two extremes of highest and lowest

forms ; the food upon which the la tter wa s susta ined

wa s not of nourishing constituents.


The a dvent o f a body o f highly cultiva ted

German singers, the Cologne Choir, who, probably

a s a concession to English ta ste, introduced many

harmonised melodies among the pieces of their

repertoire, effected a reform . They brought with

them a number of works by German composers,

Mendelssohn included, which were ca lled glees, and

were such a s the Teutonic mind had evolved in

imita tion of the grea ter works so named by English writers. These German glees were part-songs.

Such merits a s they possessed recommended them

to the attention of composers in England, and one

who had spent much o f his time in Germany, and

had caught the spirit of German music with

out losing any of the melodious features which

a lways distinguished Engli sh art, united the best

qua lities of the music of both countries , and pro

duced the first of a series of part-songs which

have since been imita ted by many and surpa ssed

by none .

This was John Liptrot Hatton, born in 1809 , a t

Liverpool, died at Marga te 2oth Sept., 1886 . His

first important work wa s an Operetta , The Queen

o f the Thames,’ which wa s produced a t Drury Lane

Thea tre in 1844, on the recommenda tion of Michael

William Ba lfe his grand opera , Pasca l Bruno,’


the Crysta l Pa la ce December 15 , 1877 ; a cantata ,

Robin Hood,

’

for the Bradford Festiva l of 1856 ;

a multitude o f part-songs, and more than 400

ba llads , besides services and anthems for the use

o f the Church.

Ha tton wa s followed a s a part-song writer

by Henry Smart (1813 an organist of the

highest ability, who, like Ba ch and Handel , became

blind in the la ter yea rs o f life . He wa s the most

ta lented o f all the members o f a family who for at

lea st three previous genera tions had been famous

a s musicians . His compositions , which cover

nearly the whole area o f music , a re a lways gra ceful,

tuneful, and efiective . His ora torio, Ja cob his

secular canta ta s, The Bride o f Dunkerron and

King René ’ s Daughter,’

a re held deservedly in

high estima tion . He a lso wrote ma ny orchestra l

pieces, and a la rge number o f beautiful works for

the organ , besides a quantity o f songs, in which

richness o f fancy is enhanced by appropria teness

o f expression . His part-songs are well and widely

known among chora l societies, and will carry his

name to the genera tions yet to come .

The brothers Sir George andWa lter Ma cfarren

have a lso expended some o f their best ef forts in the

production o f beautiful part-songs.

HENRY SMART AND HIS PART-SONGS 333

The list of composers o f this kind of voca l music

comprehends nearly the whole of the names of those

who ha ve earned favour with the public by their

ta lents . Dr. Hopkins,'

JameS Coward, Sir George

Elvey, William Hayman Cumm ings, Sir Frederick

Ouseley, Lord Beauchamp, James Dewar, of Edin

burgh , Sir Robert P. Stewart, Professor of Music,Trinity College, Dublin, and many other musicians

havewritten pieces in the glee style. The litera ture

of part-songs is da ily increa sing, andbids fa ir to riva l

in number the sum of glees whi ch have been given

to the world through the medium of the press . It is

ca lcula ted tha t nearly glees have been pub

lished. It would be impossible to reckon the number

of those tha t rema in in manuscript . All these a re by

English composers. The a rt of glee-writing, and the

style in genera l, seems to ha ve restricted its a ttra c

tions to na tivemusicians . There is no other country

in the world which can show glee-writers among the

pra ctitioners of the a rt a nd science of music . The

cha ra cteristics of the so-called German glees have

been alrea dy described . With French composers

the very name is unknown , so tha t the student may

search in va in in all records of music for any de

scription of its nature or information as to its con

struction in the Ga lli c tongue. Like the anthem


employed in the service o f the Anglican Church ,

it defies all a ttempts a t successful imita tion by

foreigners. Our na tive composers exhibit their

superiority in this cla ss of work even aga inst the

genius of a Mendelssohn .

Madriga ls have been produced in Germany, in

France, and in Spa in , the chief representa tives of

musica l art in Europe a fter the Low Countries,

Ita ly , and England, but the happiest modern types

of polyphonic harmony of this sort ha ve been pro

duced by Englishmen . William Bea le wa s perhaps

the most successful o f modern writers in reviving

the style in his compositions, and next in point o f

excellence o f workmanship to his madriga ls may be

named those o f Robert Luca s Pearsa ll , or de Pear

sa ll ,’

a s he wa s ca lled a fter his dea th .

Pearsa ll , who wa s born a t Clifton,near Bristol,

on March 14, 179 5 , wa s a most a ccomplished man,

who excelled in everything he undertook . His

literary works exhibited a sympa thetic and refined

style, and a s an archaeologist he wa s shrewd, obser

vant , and a ccura te . He wa s a self-taught musician ,

and the ability he displayed in his works would

have led him into the most exa lted position if he

had thought proper to confine his a ttention solely

to music .

336 ENGLISH GLEEs AND PART-SONGS

which he ca lled a‘ ba llad dia logue,

’

in ‘ Light of

my soul ,’

in Allan-a-da le ,’in Lay a garland ,

’

in

Who sha ll win my lady fa ir ,’

in Caput apri de

fero ,’

in his adapta tion of Sumer is icumen in,

’

and in The Hardy Norseman ’

and 0 who will

o’

er the downs so free .

’

The two la st-named owe

their popularity to the exertions o f John Hullah,

who introduced them to the genera l public through

his Advanced Cla sses.

’ They a re the best-known

of allhis works, but they a re inadequa te to express

the wea lth o f his ta lent and his ingenious power o f

dea ling with the ma teria l in which he worked . He

a lso composed a number o f pieces o f sa cred music

consisting o f services, anthems , hymn tunes, and

chants, o f which a collection wa s ma de and edited

by Mr . W. F . Trimnell , and published in 1881 ,

twenty-five years a fter his dea th .

These confirm the views taken o f his ability by

those capable of judging, and help to establish

his cla im to recognition among the most origina l

thinkers and writers o f musica l works o f the

present century , a lthough he was but an ama teur.

George Ha rgreaves wa s another glee-writer

gifted with versa tility . He wa s a pupil o f Sir

Henry Bishop for composition , and o f Sir Thoma s

Lawrence for pa inting. His works in both depa rt

COLLECTIONS OF GLEES AND PART-SONGS 337

ments a re admirable. He wrote severa l ma sses

which ha ve been a dopted by the Roman Ca tholic

Churches of Lanca shire . He a lso composed an opera

whi ch was performed a t Liverpool, his na tive town,

in 1842 . He ga ined six prizes for hi s glees, and

as a flute player he wa s considered second only to

Nicholson . His ivory minia tures are now eagerly

sought a fter by collectors, and his prize glees Lo

a cross the blasted hea th ,’

1833,

‘Ha il!grea t Apollo,’

1837 , and Joy, we search for thee in vain ,

’

1838,

are among the most fa voured pieces with Lanca

shire glee singers . He died a t Liscard, Cheshire,

in 1869 , aged seventy.

It may be interesting to the student to sta te

tha t the collections of glees which have been made

from time to time are many. They form a goodly

library in themselves . Those who desire to refer

to these works and wish to make themselves ac

qua inted with the movements of the art will be

gla d to have a list of the famous collections, in

Order tha t they may pursue their researches for

themselves .

Many have been mentioned incidenta lly in

this a ttempt to tra ce the historica l development

of glees and part-songs. It may not be considered

a va in repetition if some of them are spoken of

z


once more in the genera l ca ta logue o f which it is

now proposed to speak.

One collection , now very rare, wa s published

a t the beginning o f the present century in three

volumes oblong, under the title of Amusement for

the Ladies : Being a Fa vourite Collection of Ca tches,

Glees and Madriga ls.

’

The work conta ins compo

sitions by Lord Morningt on , Drs. Arne, Arnold,

Alcock, Cooke , Dupuis, Hayes, andHa rrington, and

Messrs. Atterbury , Callcott, Danby, Norris,Paxton,

Smith , Stevens, and Wehbe, the grea test of the

ma sters o f the eighteenth century. The Apollo

a Collection of Ancient and Modern Glees, Canons,’

&c . , in eight sma ll volumes, with portra its of glee

composers .

Bishop ’ s own glees, revised by the author, in

eight volumes , published in 1839 , and a collection

by many writers in severa l volumes.

The Plea sant Musica l Companion : Being a

Choice Collection o f Ca tches for Three and Four

Voices , by Dr . Blow and Henry Purcell ,’ published

about the year 1710 . There is a lso ‘ The Ca tch

Club ,’

in two volumes, conta ining music of a similar

chara cter.

Dr. Callcott’

s glees, published in his own life

time, and Horsley’

s collection of his works, in two


who died in 1856 Webbe’

s collections of his own

glees in nine volumes , besides other publica tions by

him .

The ‘ Convito Armonico ,’

a collection of madri

ga ls, elegies, glees, canons, ca tches, and duets,

selected from the works of the most eminent

composers, by Samuel Wehbe, junior, in four vol

umes, now exceedingly scarce andva luable Thomas

Warren ’s Voca l Harmony,’ published about the

year 1762 , and The Collection of Ca tches, Canons,

and Glees,’in thirty-two parts, which is the rarest

of all. It owes its rarity to two causes. The

greater part of the copies were destroyed by fire,

and many o f the owners of the existing copies,

haunted by scruples of conscience, either mutila ted

them by excising some of the objectionable portions,

or consigned the whole publica tion to the flames.

A complete edition in the present day is difi cult to

meet with, and undesirable when found.

Modern collections of reprinted glees of the best

kind are many , and cheap , so tha t the student and

the singer is not hindered in the desire to become

a cqua inted with the construction or to a tta in a

pra ctica l knowledge of the works of the ma sters of

this delightful form of voca l harmony.

The part-song ha s completely superseded its

GLEE AND CATCH CLUBS 341

earlier deriva tive , and so , by the force of circumstances and the progress of time, the glee has

become , a s it were, cla ssica l . It speaks in a lan

gua ge of the pa st, yet its utterances a re powerful

and a ttra ctive , and an a cqua intance with its many

examples cannot be made by the ea rnest student

without a la rge amount o f profit following and

a ccompanying the study .

Besides the Ca tch Club founded in 1761 , of

whi ch frequent mention ha s been ma de, and which

still exists in undiminished vigour,though with

purified a ims, and the Concentores Sodales

instituted for the encouragement of glee writing

and singing in the year 1798, and dissolved in 1847 ,mention may be made among the famous glee clubs

in London : o f the Round, Ca tch , and Canon Club,’

founded in 1843 and still flourishing ; and o f the

two ‘ Glee Clubs ’

now no more The first com

menced in 1783 and dissolved in 1837 , when the

library wa s sold , and the second wa s formed in

1793, and continued to meet for a short time .

There is a lso the Abbey Glee Club , founded about

the year 1845 , and theWestern Ama teur Glee Club ,

the Moray Minstrels , and some ha lf-dozen societies

instituted by professiona l singers , ca lled by the

title o f some bird of night.


Still the number o f professiona l and ama teur

bodies in the metropolis who meet for the pra ctice

o f glee singing might be considerably extended with

considerable ga in to the cause o f music , and the

ma intenance o f an institution peculiarly English .

It is , however, much to be regretted tha t there

are not more societies and a ssocia tions in existence

for the cultiva tion o f the pra ctice than there are.

It is a consumma tion devoutly to be wished ,’ that

better and more pra ctica l editions of the popular

glees are not issued before the art o f glee singing

is entirely lost .

The old writers seldom gave any indica tions of

the chara cter o f the expression they desired in the

interpreta tion ,neither did they a lways indica te the

pa ce a t which they proposed tha t the severa l move

ments should be taken . When the art of glee

singing wa s a living rea lity, these things were known

and understood by the performers by intuition, a s

it were . It is not a t all unlikely tha t the composers

directed the ea rliest performances , nay ,often took

a pa rt in the performance themselves . Those who

immedia tely succeeded them would derive the

tradition from this pra ctice , and hand it over to

those who followed . But when the glee was

supplanted in popular favour by other compositions


sympa thetic and artistic trea tment . The grea ter

number o f those who sing glees a fter this manner

can never form any idea o f their beauties. The

richness of the harmonies may possibly ga in in

grandeur by multiplica tion o f the voca l pa rts, but

the charm of interwoven melodies, and the feeling

and expression with which they require to be sungin order to produce the proper and intended efiect

by singers in perfect a rtistic a ccord with ea ch other,

can never be a tta ined , a s it were, by ma chinery .

There is the like contra st in a glee properly and

ta stefully given by those who have a cquired a per

feet knowledge of the truly English principle of

give and take,’

and the automa tic delivery o f a

body directed by signa ls, a s there is between an

origina l pa inting with all the power o f the touches

of a ma ster ’s hand, and the German oleographs

poured through the press in thousands without a

sha de o f difl’erence.

It may be considered sca rcely necessary to enter

a pleading on beha lf o f a form o f musica l composi

tion which can so eloquently speak for itself. But

it is surely not out o f pla ce here , a t all events, to

a sk tha t opportunities should be given to it to urge

its own cause. This can only be done by the estab

lishment o f societies for its cultiva tion, and the

THE CULTIVATION OF GLEE-SINGING 345

preserva tion of such of the traditions a s have not

yet been oblitera ted by the remorseless hand of

changing fa shion .

It would be too much to hope for a further

development of its artistic capabilities. The times

change, and we must change with them . If we

have been a ble to show in these la tter days tha t we

are in some respects better than our fa thers, there

is no va lid reason why we should persistently ignore

all tha t our fa thers have done for us.

If it becomes possible for us to form a distinct

and recognised school o f music a t some future

period and the day may be nearer to us than we

think—we may be gla d to remember the steps by

which we ha ve a scended to the proud eminence we

may occupy .

If it is to be our fa te for ever to rema in in the

position of followers, and never to take rank a s

leaders, there surely will be some consola tion afiorded

by the reflection tha t severa l periods of hi story are

distinguished by the names of those who have

earnestly striven to promote the art of which they

were exponents to the best position it wa s possible

for it to occupy .

If the progress of art has been interrupted

by causes impossible to foresee or to prevent, the


merit of those who laboured earnestly to exhibit

the worthiest front in the ba ttle of progress , even

though their sflorts were not crowned with the

success expected, ought no t to be ignored or lightly

rega rded . During many periods of the history of

musica l art, England ha s held high office in the

Sta te of Culture .

The inhabitants of this island were famous as

part-singers in the remote dayswhen harmony had

not been reduced to a science . At a time when a

too slavish respect for the hampering tra ditions of

rules derived from the practices o f the ancient

Greeks retarded progress and bound the knowledge

o f music with cha ins which ga lled and vexed the

soul,there were unknown artists in England who

could express their thoughts in beautiful melody,

and harmony more or less truly scientific.

The invention of the time table ha s been a ttri

buted to an Englishman ,Wa lter Odington , a simple

monk o f the fertile Va le of Evesham , and there

fore we may cla im through him a discovery which

wa s o f the highest importance in the development

of art .

In la ter a ges Dr. Fayrfax, Redford , Ta llis, Tye,Birde, John Bull, Orlando Gibbons, William and

Henry Lawes , Pelham Humfrey, Henry Purcell,

ENGLISH GLEES AND PART-SONGS

a cknowledged to be equa l with , if not superior to,

some o f the best works by foreign writers, ought to

be quoted a s a proof o f the high sta te o f cultiva tion

which the art of music had rea ched in those days.

It is a ltogether unlikely tha t the power had been

suddenly a cquired by a desire to emula te the

pa tterns brought under notice. Music must have

been in a very flourishing condition when every

man of educa tion wa s expected to sing his part a t

sight , when the wea vers sang ca tches, the servants

warbled ditties in two-part ha rmony , when the

cobblers sang psa lms in pa rts and the lowest kind

trolled songs a t the plough , and the waggoner

whistled impromptu music , which they ca lled his

fancies .

’

The na tion tha t could produce a Purcell at a

time when the science of music wa s still in a rudi

menta ry condition must have been musica l.

How did so-ca lled musica l Germany trea t Ba ch,

Haydn , Moza rt , Beethoven, or Schubert !

How did England trea t Handel ‘2

Wha t country in the world can point to so long

a line o f inspired melodists such a s may be repre

sented by a few names like Henry Carey,Dr. Arne,

Sir Henry Bishop , and scores o f others

Can it therefore with truth be sa id any longer

ENGLISH LOVE FOR MUSIC 349

tha t England is not a musica l na tion 9 Can it be

a sserted with any sa fe ground of foundation tha t

the people who excelled in the composition of the

madriga l, who possess thousands of the most

beautiful popular melodies, who invented the

anthem , and the glee, and ca rried the part-song to

so grea t a degree of perfection , are not musica l

If Englishmen are urged to undertake the study

o f the hi story of music, even if it is only by tha t

section which rela tes to the a cts and deeds of their

own countrymen , they will be provided with the

most powerful and convincing answers to these

questions . There is scarcely a period in musica l

art in which an Englishman ’

s name is not pro

minent if not paramount. There is scarcely a

discovery of importance which wa s not helped and

fostered by a member of this most unmusica l

na tion.

It is,therefore, time tha t these sta tements of

the deficiency of musica l capacity in Englishmen,

o ften so sweetly and complacently made, should be

strenuously Opposed with counter sta tements in

vindica tion of fa cts. These fa cts can be a cquired

by a careful and earnestly directed study of the

history of music.

The field is wide and extensive, and the student


may be embarra ssed a t the outset by the ma gnitude

o f the task such a recommenda tion imposes. For

Englishmen and searchers a fter truth there will

be found no grea ter incentive to a pa triotic defence

of their musica l qua lifica tions a smembers of a grea t

na tion whi ch ha s borne no inconsiderable part in

the cultiva tion and encouragement o f music, than

in the examina tion of a particula r branch in which

their countrymen hold a position entirely unique.

Such a theme is ofiered in the Historica l Develop

ment of Glees and Part-Songs.

The study of the subject will insensibly lead to

the a ccumula tion Of other knowledge, and if rightly

used will be found ava ilable for the highest pur

poses. Limited a s the subject m ay seem to be, it

pra ctica lly covers the grea ter part of the area of

musica l history ; an earnest a cquisition of the fa cts

a dvanced in the course o f the examina tion into the

rise and progress of the subject will form a nucleus

round which it will not be difficult to ga ther much

other knowledge, all interesting, and possibly va lu

able, to the student Every kind of menta l power,once evoked and a pplied to a worthy ' purpose,becomes ava ilable for other purposes, and is cap

able of being transformed into power o f another

kind .

’

I N D E X .

ABBEY Glee Club, the, 341Adam de la. Hale and others ,101

Adcock , J 297

Aim of the study o f music, 24Ainsworth, W . H., 87

Alcock, J 239

Aldrich, Dean, 175Alfred and the Danes, 70Ama teur glee composers, 323Ambrosia n system, 35

Ammnmmus lbua flhm, 67

Ancient bards , 67Ancient music, 26

Ancient rules of harmony, 109Anthem, 63, 64

Arcadelt , J 123

Arne, Micha el, 205Ame, T. A ., 79, 196, etc.

Arnold, Dr. , 297Ars organandi, 39

Artistic interregnum, 181

Arya n race, 27, 67

Atterbury, Lufimann, 239

Attwood,Thomas , 299

Aylward, Dr., 297

BACH , J. S., 188

Bagpipe , 9 1 , 104Ba ildon, J 242

BUL

Balf e , M. W., 324, 330Bands o f musicians, 135Bards o f Ireland and Sco tland,68

Ba tes and Ann Ca ttley, 2 17Ba tes, Joah, 241Ba t tishill, J 300

Bayley, J 299

Beale, Wiiliam, 299 , 334

Bea uchamp, Lord, 333Bea umont , the drama t ist 127

Beckwith, J. C ., 299

Beethoven, 122Bellamy, T. L., 299

Bennet, John, 128Berchem, Jaebet , 122

Berg, George, 211Bertamy, Lelio , 128Bevin, Elway, 75Binchois, Giles, 52Birde , William , 75 , 112, 125,128

Bishop, H. R., 79, 307 ; his

operas, 309 ; his songs f erVauxhall, 311

Blondel, 55Blow, John, 139 , 166

Boes, von, Hans, 122Brewer, Thoma s, 141BristolMadrigal Society, 335Bull, John, 125


BUR

Burney, Dr. , 91 , 140

Burns, R 87

CALDICOTT, A. J 79

Callcott , Dr., 274 et seq.

Canons and rounds, 140Canzoni , 9 6Carew

’

s Survey o f Cornwall, ’

132Carey, Henry, 171 and the

Na tiona l Anthem , 179

Ca rna by , W .,299

Ca rolan ,Turlogh O

’

, 69

Ca tch Club, 208, 341Ca tch tha t Ca tch Can,

151

Ca tches, 62, 215 , etc .

Ca t tley, Ann . 217

Ca vendish, Michael, 125Celtic ra ces. 21

Chansons , 62, 115Chappell, W ., 20 , 102

Character o f Ca tches, 215Cha t tertonian devices, 225Chaucer, 56, 85, 131Chester minstrels, 72Christ ian music, 22Clark, R ., 299

Clarke-Whitfield, Dr., 299

Clearsach, 68, 104

Clemens Alexandrinus, 32

non Papa , 76 , 112, 1 17Colema n, Robert , 143Collections o f ma dri gals, 129glees, 141 ; ca tches , 147 , 209

Commonw ealth, the, 133Concentores Sodales, 271, 29 1,341

Consecut ives, 101Constant ine the emperor, 33Cons truct ion o f a fugue, 233Conversi, 8, 128Convit o Armonico , 252 , 340Cooke , Dr B . , 249 , 339

Cooke, Robert , 251, 339

DANBY , John, 247, 339

Dance rhythms, 118Decay o f minstrelsy, 73

Definit ions and questions, 79 ,87

DelMell, 123Des Prés, Josquin, 76, 111, 112,116

Descent , 44Dewar, James, 333

Di Monte , Filippo , 123Dibdin, Charles, 299Bignum , Cha rles, 299Diodorus Siculus, 67Di srespect ful Opera tic perversions, 305

Dixon, W ., 299

Dona to , 128Douce

’

s Illustra tions of Shakespea re, ’ 85

Dowland, John, 125, 129 , 217Dryden and Purcell, 165

Dufay , Willem ,42, 51, 76

Dunsta ble, John, 42, 52, 125

Dupuis , Dr. T. S., 299

Dul

t

éz

éi and English musicians,

Dygon, John , 125

Dyne, John, 299

DYN

Cooke , Thoma s Simpson, 303

Corfe , Jo seph, 299Cot ton, John, 42

Coucy, Chatela in de , 101Counterpo int andpopula rmelodies, 77

Cowa rd, James, 333, 339Croce, Giovanni, 129Cro ft , Dr. W ., 172

Crowd or Om it , 68, 104Crowder, 105Crusades, the, and Art , 53Cummings, W. H., 333

Czapek, 331


HOP

Hopkins, Dr. E . J 333

Horsley, William , 289 ;Mendelssohn, 293

Hucbald’s inventions, 37

Hullah, John, 328

Humfrey, Pelham , 60, 137

Burdy-gurdy, 105Hutchinson, Dr., 244

INDIAN melodies, 27Insincere teachingandpra ctice,195

Instrumentalmusic and printing, 255

Ireland, F., 245

Isaa c, Henry, 60

JACKSON ,W ., of Exeter, 213Jacob, B., 296, 299 , 301

Jenkins, John, 155Jest ers, jocula tors, jongleurs,etc., 88

Jolly, John, 322Jolly, John Marks, 322Jonson. Ben, 127, 131Jubal, 7 , 30, 83Julian the Aposta te, 34

KEMANGEH , 104

King, M. P., 243, 339

King’s minstrels, the, 89Knyvett , W and others, 319

LAMPE, John Frederick, 177La ssus, Orlando di, 76 , 117 ,122, 128

Lawes,Henry andWilliam, 135

Lesser glee-writers, 297Linley, William, 299 , 339

Lochaber no more, 5Loui s XII , 116

NEU

Lulli , J. B.,

Lyre, 103

MACFARREN, Sir G. A., 332

Ma cf arren, Wa lter, 332

Ma cha ult , 116Ma drigal, 58, 62, 80, 115 So

ciety, 132

Manning, B., 84

Ma rbeck, John, 126Marenzio , Luca , 128

Marlowe, C ., 127

Ma rt in, G.W., 324

Massinger, Philip, 127!Memoirs o f Music,

’North’s,

153

Mendelssohn, 122, 293Milton, John, 129Minstrels, 54, 77Moray minstrels, 341Morley , Thoma s, 57, 125, 129 ,

Mornington, Lord, 245, 339Motes, 96Motet t , 64, 77, 115Mo za rt , 122

Music among the people, 91a nd emotion, 5a s a n element of study, 29in Fra nce, 59

in the Netherlands, 58in w orship, 1, 159

Musical clubs a nd meetings,153

gifts and culture, 9humour, 121li tera ture in the eighteenthcentury, 190

NAMES of no tes, 45Na t iona lAnthem, the, 179Netherclif t , Joseph, 323Netherlandishmusic, 58, 114Neuma ta , 15Neumes, 36

INDEX 357

N0 1

Noise, a band of music, 135North’s Memoirs of Musick,153

Nota tion, 12, 45

OBRECHT, Jacob, 43, 111Occleve, 131Ockenheim, Jehan, 43, 111

Odington , Walter, 41, 49. 346 QUEEN ELIZABETH , 22, 72 74

Odo o f Clugny , 41 75, 129

Old English canons , 75

Opera and ora torio , 60, 78

Organum, 39

Oriana , Tri umphs of , 129Origin o f music, .7

musical systems, 11

na tional melodi es, 27part-singing, 63

Orpheus collection, 294

Orpheus Voca lUnion, 331

Ossian, 278, etc .

Ouseley, Sir F . A. G., 246, 333

PALESTRINA, 128

Pandean pipes, 7Parson, Robert , 126Pastorates, 96

Pa xton, Stephen andWilliam,

243

Pearsall, R. L., 332

Petits violons du Ro i, les, 61Phillips, Thoma s, 299Playford, Henry and John, 57

Poetical references, 83Polyphonic compo sitions, 49harmony, 110

Popula r melo dies and counter

point , 77Pride in na tive art , 64Pring, the bro thers, 290Print ing press, its invention,113, 118

Priz e glees, 211 , etc .

Progress o f musical a rt , 253

Prola t ion, 47

Psalm-singing, 131Pulsa t or organorum , 40

Purcell, Henry, 60, 137, 158,161, 164

Puttenham, 73

Pythagora s, 39

RAKOCZY ma rch, 5Redf ord, John, 126

Reeve, William, 300

Reflec tions on the style o f

glees, 317

Ribible , 103Richa rd L, King of England,55

Richmond, the Rev . Legh, 300Rise o f the madrigal, 107

Rock, Micha el, 79 , 218, 300Rock, W illiam , 218, 300

Rogers , S ir J. Leman, 300

Roor, van, 122

Round , Catch, and Canon Club341

Rounds, ca tches, and canons ,

145

Russell, William, 300

SCANDINAVIAN SCALDS, 66Schubert , 122Schumann, 122Schuyt , C ., 125

Shakespeare , 77 , 81, 85 , 92 , 127,129 , 131

Sheppa rd , J 126

Shield, William 300

Shore, W ., 80, 322

Sma rt , Henry , 332

Smith, Clement , 300Smith, John Staff ord, 259 , etc .


SMI

Smith, R. Archiba ld, 300Sona ta , 119Songs f or Vauxhall Gardens,311

Songs of the troubadours, 57Spencer, 0 . C ., 322

Spofiorth, Reginald, 79 , 218,269

Sternhold and Hopkins, 130Stevens, R. J. S., 79 , 218

Stevenson, Sir John, 300Study of music, the, 19Sumer is icumen in,

’102

Sweelinck, 125Symphony, 78

TAVERNER, John, 126

Taylor, Edward, 335Taylor, John Bianchi , 322Thibaut o f Na va rre, 55. 97, 101Tierce de Picardie, 110Time-signs and names , 46Tinctor, John, 42Triumphs of Oriana , 129 , 321Trouba dours, the, 55, 93, 97100

Troublous times f ormusicians,133

Tudway, Dr., 177Tye, Christopher, 126

UDALL, Nicola s, 128

VAE'r, Ja cob, 123

Value of music a s an elementof study, 33

Van Ro or, 122

Spottim oode d: 00 . Printers, New-street Squa re, London.

WYV

Vaq ueyra s, 96

Verdelot , 123Villanelli , Villancicos,Viola r, 103Violin, 103Vitria co , Philip, 4Vox regis, 116

WAGNER, B., 122

Wa inwright , R 242

Wallace, W.V., 324

Walmisley, T. A., 339

Walmisley, T. F., 300, 339Warren

’

s collection, 340Wa tson, Thoma s, 128Wehbe, S., 79 , 219-235

Webbs, S.. junior, 252, 340Webster, Richard , 300Weelkes, Thoma s, 125, 128Welsh, Thomas, 300Wert , De, 128Wesley, C ., 2 94

Wesley, S., 245, 295Wesley, S. S., 327

Western Ama teur Glee Club,341.

Whit aker, John, 298White, Ro bert , 126W ilbye, John, 125 , 128Willa ert , Adrien, and others,122

Windandstringedinstruments,105

Wise, Michael, 140Words o f early ca tches, 139Writers f or instruments, 257

of ca tches, 163o f glees, 141, etc .

Wyvill, Zerubbabel, 300

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Tyndall’s Faraday as a Discoverer. Crown 8vc . 80. 6d.

FloatingMatter of the Air. Crown 8vo. 70. 6d.

Fragments of Science. 2 vols. post 8vc. 160.Hea t a Mode of Motion. Crown 8vo. 120.

Lectures on Light delivered in America . Crown 8vo. 50.Lessons on Electri city. Crown 8vo. 20. 6d.

Notes on ElectricalPhenomena . Crown 8vc. 10. sewed. 10. 6d. cloth.Notes of Lectures on Light. Crown 8vc. 10. sewed, 10. 6d. cloth.

Sound, with Frontispiece and 203Woodcut s. Crown 8vc. 100. 6d.Watts

’s Dictionary of Chemistry. 9 vols.medium 8vo . £15. 20. 6d.

Wilson’ sManual of Health-Science. Crown 8vo. 20. 6d.

THEOLOGICAL AND RELIGIOUS WORKS .

Arnold's (Rev . Dr. Thomas) Sermons. 6 vols. crown 8vo . 50. each.

Boulthee’s Commenta ry on the 39 Articles. Crown 8vc. 60.

Browne's (Bishop) Exposition o f the 39 Art icles. 8vo. 160 .

Biillinger’s Cri t ical Lexicon and Concordance to the English and Greek New

Testament . Royal8vc . 150 .

Colenso on the Pentateuch and Book of Joshua . Crown 8vo. 60.

Conder’s Handbook of the Bible. Post 8vc. 70. 6d.

Conyb eare Howson’s Life and Letters of St. Paul

Library Edi tion. with Maps, Pla tes, andWoodcuts. 2 vols. square crown8vo . 210.

Student’s Edition. revised and condensed, with 46 Illustra tions and Maps.

1 vol. crown 8vo. 70. 6d.

Cox’s (Homersham) The First Century of Christianity. 8vo. 120.

Davidson's Introduction to the Study o f the New Testament . 2 vols. 8vc. 300.Edersheim’

s Lif e and Times of Jesus the Messiah. 2 vols. 8vo. 240.Prophecy and History in relat ion to the Messiah. sve. 120.

Elli cott's (Bishop) Commentary on St . Paul’s Epi stles. evo. Galat ians, 80. 6d.

B sph sians, 80. 6d. Pastoral Epistles, 100. 6d. Philippians, Colossians andPhilemon, 100. 6d. Thessalonians, 70 . 6d.

Lectures on the Lif e of our Lord. 8vo. 120.

Ewald's Antiquities of Israel, transla ted by Solly. 8vc . 120. 6d.

History of Israe l, transla ted by Carpenter Smith. Vols. 1-7, 8vo. £5.

London : LONGMANS , GREEN, 8: CO.

10 Genera l Lists of Works.

Bent’s The Cyclades, or Lite among the Insular Greeks. Crown 8vo . 123. 6d.

Brassey’s Sunshine and Storm in the East. Crown 8y o. 73. 6d.

Voyage in the Y acht ‘ Sunbeam.

’ Crown 8vc. 73. 6d. School Edition,rcp . 8vo. 23. Popular Edition, 4to. 6d.

In the Trades, the Tropics, and the ‘ Ro aring Forties.’ Edition deLuxe, svc.£8. 133. Gd. Library Edition,

Crawford’s Across the Pampas and the Andes. CrownGvo. 73. 64.Dent’s Above the Snow Line. Crown 8vo. 73. 6d.Froude

's Oceans or, England andher Colonies. Crown svo. 23. boards 23. 6d.

cloth.Ha ssall’s San Remo Climatioally considered. Crown 8vo. 63.Howitt

’s Visits to Remarkable Places. Crown 8vo. 73.6d.

Maritime Alps (The) and their Seaboard. By'

tlieAuthor'

of Veia .

’ 8yo. 213.Three in Norway. By Two of Them. Crown avo. Illustrations, 63.

wonxs OF FICTION.

Beaconsfield’s (The Earl of) Novels and Tales. Hughenden Edition, with 2

Portraits on Steel and 11 Vignette s on Wood. 11 vols. crown 8vc . £2. 23.Cheap Edi tion, 11 vols. crown 8vo. 13. each, boards ; 13.6d.each, cloth.

Sybil.

Tancred. Vivian Grey.

Henria t a Temple.Black Poodle (The) and other Tales. By theAuthoror ViceVersfiJ Cr.8vo. 63.

Brabourne's (Lord) Friends and Foes from Fairyland. Crown 8vo. 63.

Harte (Bret) On the Frontier. Three Stories. l6mo. 13.By Shore and Sedge. Three Stories. 161110 . 13.

In the Olden Tim& By theAuthor of; Mademoiselle Mori.’ Crown svc. 63.

Melnlle’s (Whyte ) Novels. 8 vols. fcp. live. 13. each, boards ; 13. 6d. each, cloth.

Digby Grand. Go od for Nothing.

General Bounce.Th In

The Gladiators . The Queen’sMa rics.The Modern Novelist’ s Library. Crown 8vo . price 23. each, boards, or 23. 6d.

By Bret Harte.In the Carquinez Woods. The Atelier du Lys.

ByMrs Oliphant Egghegstone Priory.

In Trust, the Story of a Lady E15:figfifi fflgfimfl"

and her Lover Mademoiselle Mori.By James Payn. The Six Sisters of the Valleys.Thicker than Water.Oliphant’s (Mi-s.) Madam. Crovm svc . 33. 6d.

Payn’s (James ) The Luck of theDarrells. Crown syo. 33.6d.Reader’s Fairy Prince Follow-my-Lead. Crown 8vc. 53.Sewell's (Miss) Sto ries and Tales. Crown svc. 13. each, boards ; 13. 6d. cloth

23. 6d. cloth extra, gilt edges.Amy Herbert. Cleve Hall. A Glimpse of the World.The Earl's Daughter. Kathari ne Ashton.Experience of Lif e. Laneton Pars onage.Gertrude. Ivors. Margaret Percival. Ursula .


Genera l Lists of Works. 11

Stevenson's (B.L.) The Dynamiter. Fcp. sve. 13. sewed ; 13. ed. cloth.Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Fcp. 8vc.sewed 13. 6d. cloth.

Sturgis’ W Friend and I. Crown 8vc . 53.

Trollope's (Anthony) Novels. Fcp. svc. 13. each, boards . 13. 6d. cloth.amen -1 Bar-cheater Towers.

POETRY AND THE DRAMA.

Armstrong’s (Ed. J.) Poetical Works . Fcp. 8vc. 53.

King Saul. Fcp. 8vc . 53.King David. Fcp. 8vo . 63.King Solomon . Fcp. SW . 63.

Sto ries of Wicklow. Fcp. 8vc. 93.Bailey’s Festns, a Poem. Crown 8vo . 123. 6d.

Bowen's Harrow Songs and other Verses. Fcp. 8vo.-23. cd. or printed on

W e Family Shakespeare. Medium 8vo. 143. 6 vols.top. 8vo. 213.

Dante ‘ s Divine Comedy, translated by James Innes Minchin. Crown Bro. 153.

Goethe’s Faust, translated by Birds. Large crown svc. 123. 6d.translated by Webb. 8vc . 123. ta.

edited by Selss. Crown 8vc. 53.

Ingelow’s Poems. Vols. 1 and 2, top . svo. 123. Vol. 3 top. 8vo. 53.Macaulay’s la ys of Ancient Rome, with km and the Armada. Illustrated byWeguelin. Crown svc . 33. 6d gilt edges .

The same, Popular Edition. Illustrated by Scharf. Fcp. 4to. 6d.swd..13.cloth .I’enri‘ell’s

8(Chg

lmondeley)‘ From Grave to Gay.

’ A Volume oi Selections.cp vo. 3

Reader's Voices fromFlowerland, a Birthday Book, 23. 6d. cloth, 83. 6d. roan.

Shakespeare’s Hamlet , annotated by George Macdonald, LL.D. 8vo. 123.Southey’ sPoeticd Works. Medium 8vc .

Stevenson's A Child's Garden of Verses. Fcp. 8vo. 53.

Virgil's E neid, translated by Conington. Crown svc . 93.

Poems, transla ted into English Prose. Crown 8vc. 93.

AGRICULTURE, HORSES ; DOGS, AND CATTLE.

Dunster’s How to Make the Land Pay. Crown 8vc. 53.'

s Horses and Stables. 8vc . 53.

Horses and Roads. By Free-Lance. Crown svc. 63.Lloyd’s The Science of Agriculture. svc . 123.

London’s Encyclope dia of Agriculture . 213.

Mike's Horse’0 Foot, and How to Keep it Sound. Imperial 8vo. 123. 64 .Plain Treatise on Horse-Shoeing. Post 8vc. 23. 6d.Remarks on Horses’ Teeth. Post svc. 13. 6d.Stables and Stable-Fittings. Imperial 8vo. 153.

Nevilefs Farms and Farming. Crown svc . 63.

Horses andRiding. Crown 8vo . 63

Diseases of the 0 x, a Manual of Bovine Pathology. Svc. 153.

Stonehenge’5 Dog!

in Health and Disease . Square crown 8vo. 73. 6d.Greyhound. Squa re crown 8vo . lo3.

Taylor’s Agricultural Note Book. Fcp. 8vc . 23. 6d.

Ville on Artificial Manures, by Crookes. 8vc . 213.

Youstt’sWork on the Dog. svc. 63.

Horse. svc . 73. 6d.


12 Genera l Lists of Works.

SPORTS AND PASTIMES .

The Badminton Library of Sports andPastimes. Edited by theDuke of Beaufortand A. E. T. Watson. With numerous Illustrations. Crown 8vo. 103. 6d.each.

Hunting, by the Duke oi Beaufort, duo.Fishing, by H. Cholmondeley-Pennell, 6 m. 2 vols.Racin by the Earl of Suflolk, die.Shoo g, by Lord‘Walsingham, Aw. 2 vols.

Campbell-Walker’s Correct Card, orHow to Play at Whist. Fcp. 8vo. 23. 6d.Dead Shot (The) by Marksman. Crown 8vo .103. 6d.Francis

’l Treatise onFishing in all its Branches. Post 8vo . 153.

Jef feries’ The Red Deer. Crown 87 0 . 43. 6d.

Longman's Chess Openings. Fcp. svc. 23. 6d.

Peel'

slA Highland Gathering. illustrated. Crown 8vo . 103. 6d.

Pole's Theory of the Modern Scientific Game of Whist. Fcp. 8m. 23. 6d.

Proctor’ s How to Play Whist. Crown 8vo. 53.

Bonalds’s Fly-Fisher's Entomology. 8vc. 143.

Verney’s Chess Eccentricities. Crown 8vc. 103. 6d.

Wilcocks's Sea—Fisherman. Poet sve. 63.Year’ s Sport (The) for 1885. 8vo. 213.

ENCYCLOPE D IAS, D ICTIONARIES , AND BOOKS OF

REFERENCE.

Acton’s Modern Cookery f or Private Families. Fcp. 8vo. 43. 6d.

Ayre’s Treasury of Bible Knowledge. Fcp. 8vo . 83.

Brando’s Dictionary of Sci ence, Literature, and Art. 3 vols. medium 8vo. 833.Cabinet la wyer (The) , 8.Popular Digest of the Laws of England. Fcp. 8vo. 93.Cates

’s Dictionary of General Biography. Medium 8vo . 283.

Doyle’s The Official Baronage of England. Vols. I.-III. 8 vols. 4to. £5. 53.Large Paper Edition, £15. 153.

Gwilt's Encyclope dia of Architecture. 8vo. 523. cd.

Keith Johnst on's Dictionary of Geography, or General Gaz etteer. svc. 423.

M‘Culloch’s Dictionary of Commerce and Commercial Navigati on. 8vo. 683.

Maunder’ s Biographica l Treasury. Fcp. 8vc. 63.

Hist orical Treasury. Fcp. evo . 63.

Scientific and Literary Treasury. Fcp. 8vo . 63.

Treasury of Bible Knowledge, edited by Ayre. Fcp. svc. 63.

Trea sury o f Botany, edited by Lindley a Moore. Two Parts, 123.Treasury of Geography. Fcp. 8vo. 63.

Treasury of Knowledge and Library of Reference. Fcp. sve. 83.Treasury of Natural History. Fcp. 8vo. 63.

Quain’s Dictionary of Medicine. Medium svc. 813.M ., or in 2 vols. 843.

Reeve's Cookery and Housekeeping. Crown 8vc. 73. 6d.

Ri ch’s Dictionary of Roman and Greek Antiquities. Crown 8vo. 73. 6d.Roget's Thesaurus of English Words and Phrases. Crown svc. 103. 6d.Ure's Dictionary of Arts, Manufactures, and Mines. 4 vols.medium 8vc.£7. 73.Willich’e Popular Tables, by Marriott. Crown 8vo. 103.


14 A Selection of Educationa l Works.

Kennedy’s Greek Grammar. 12mo. 43 . 6d.

Liddell dz Scott’s English-Greek Lexi con. 4to. Square 12mo. 73. Gd.Linwood’ s Sophocles, Greek Text, Latin Notes. 4th Editi on. svc. 183.

new; Classical Greek Literature. Crown svc . Poets, 73 .8d. ProseWriters,3. 6

Morris’ sGreek Lemons. Square 18mo. Part I. 23. 6d. ; Part II. 13.Party

’s Elementary Greek Grammar. l2mo. 33. 6d.

Plato's Republic, Book 1. Greek Tex'

t, English Notes byHardy. Crown 8vc . 33.

Sheppard and Evane's Notes on Thucydides. Crown syo . 13. 6d.

Thucydides, Book IV. with Note s by Barton and Chavas se. Crown 8vo. 53.Valpy

's Greek Delectus, improved by White. ” mo. 23. 6d. Key, 23. 6d.

White’ s Xenophon’s Expedi tion of Cyrus, with English Notes. l2mo. 73. Cd.

Wilkins’s Manual of Greek Prose Composition. Crown av o . 53. Key, 63.

Exercises in Greek Prose Composition. Crown 8vo .43.6d. Key,23.661.

New Greek Delectus. Crown svc . 33. cd. Key , 23. 6d.

Progressive Greek Delectus. 12mc . 43 . Key, 28. 6d.

Progressive Greek Anthology. l2m6. 53.

Scriptores Attici , Excerpts W ith English Notes. Crotvn five. 73. 6d.

Speeches from Thucydides translated. Post five. 63.

Yonge‘s English-Greek Lexicon. 4to . Square l2mo.’ 83. 6d.

THE LAT IN LANGUAGE.

Bradley's Latin Prose Exercises. 12mo. 33. 6d. Key , 53.

Continuous Lessons in Latin Prose. 12mo. 53. Key, 53. 6d.

Cornelius Nepos, improved by White. 12mo. 83. 6d.Eutropius, improved by White. 12mo. 23. 6d.

Ovid's Metamorphoses, improved by White. l2mo. 4s. 6d.Select Fables of Phasdrus, improved by White. 12mo. 23. 6d.

Collis’s Chi ef Tenses of Latin Irregula r Verbs. svc . 13.

Pontes Latini, SteppingaStone to Latin Grammar. 12mo. 33. 6d.Hewitt's La tin Examination-Papers. l2mo. 13. 6d.

Isbister‘s Ce sar, Books I.-VII. 12mo. 43. or with Reading Lessons, 43. 6d.

Cmsar’s Commentaries, Books I.—V. 12mo. 33. 6d.First Book of Cm r

’s Gallic ,War. 12mo. 13 . 6d.

J’

eflcott Toasell’s Helps f or Latin Students. Fcp. 8vc. 23.

Jerram’s La tiné Reddenda. Crown 8ve . 13. 6d.

Kennedy's Child’ s Latin Primer , or First Latin Lessons. 12mo. 23.Child's Latin Accidence. l2mo . 13.

Elementary La tin Grammar. 12mo. 33. 6d.Elementary Latin Reading Book, or Tirocinium Latinum. 23.

Latin Prose, Palas tra Stili Latini. 121110 . 63.

Subsidia Primaria, Exercise Bucks to the Public SchoolLatin Primer.I. Accidence and Simple Construction, 23. M. II. Syntax, 33.Bd.Key to the Exercises in Sub srd-ia Primaria, Parts I. and II. price 63.Subsidia Primaria, III. the Latin Compound Sentence. ” mo. 13.Curriculum Sti li Letmi. 12mo. 43. 6d. Key, 73. 6d.

Pale stra Latina, or Second. Latin Readmg Book. 121110 . 68.

London : LONGMANS, GREEN, 6: CO.

A Selection of Educationa l Works. 15

Minington’

s Latin Prose Composition. Crown 8vo . 83. 6d.

Selections from Latin Prose. Crown 8vc. 23. 6d.Moody'sEton In tin Grammar. limo. 23. cd. The Accidence separa tely, 13.Morris's Elements Ia tina . Fcp. svc. 13. 6d. Key, 23. 6d.

Perry's Origines Romania , tram Livy, with English Notes. Crown 8vo. 43.

Bapier'a Introduction to Compodtion of La tinVerna 1zim. 83.6d. Key, 23. 6d.

Sheppmd and Turner's Aids to Cla ssical Study. 12mm 63. Key, 63.Valpy

’s Latin Delectus, improved byWhite . 12mo. 93. (id. Key , ,

33. 6d.

Virgil‘s E neid, translated into English Verse by Conington. Crown 8vc. 93.Works, edited by Kennedy. Crown svc. 103. 6d.

translated into English Prose by Conington. Crown 8vo . 93.

alford's Progres ivc Exercises in Latin Elegiac Verse. 12mo. 23. 6d. Key, 53.'

te and Biddle’ s la rge La tin-English Dictionary. 1 vol. 4to.

White ‘s Concise Latin-Eng. Dictionary forUniversity Students. Royalsvc. 123.

Junior Students’ Eng-In t. La t -Eng. Dictionary. Square 121310 . 53.

Yonge‘ s Latin Grades. Post svc. or with Appendix, 123.

WH ITE’S GRAMMAR-SCHOOL GREEK TEXTS.

Egggmab

les) Palmphatus (Myths) . Xenophon. Book I. without Vocabuqo. 3. h

iy. M.

St. a tthew’s and St. Luke's Gospels.

23. 6d. each.St. Ma rk’s and St. John’s Go spels.

V. & VL each ; Book II. l3. ; Ths Aots of theApostles.Book VII. 23. Sa l’aul

'sEpistlc to theRomans. 13.6d.

The Four Gospels in Greek, with Greek-English Lexicon. Edited by JohnT.

White, D.D. Oxon. Square 82mo. price 53.

WH ITE’S GRAMMAR-SCHOOL LAT IN TEXTS .

Caesar.Gallic War, Nepos, Miltiades,dz VI. 13. each. Aristides. 9d.

Ovid. Selections from Epistles andFashiOvid, Select Myths irom Metamor

Horace ,0des,Books IV. 13.each.Odes, Book III. 13. 6d.

Horace, Epodes and Carmen Seculare. Virgil, E neid, Books VII. VIII. x.

13. XI. I II. 13. 6d

London : LONGMANS, GREEN , CO.

uu a UL B e

THE FRENC H LANGUAGE.

Albités's How to Speak French.

_Fcp. 8vc . 5s. 6d.

Instantaneous French Exercises. Fcp. Key, 23.

Cassal's French Genders. Crown live . 33. 6d.

Cassal Gt Karcher’s Graduated French Translation Book. Part I. 33. 8d.Part II. to. Key to Part I. by Professor Cassal, price 53.

Oontanseau's Practical French and English Dicti onary. Post 8vo . 33. 6d.

Pocket French and English Dictionary. Square 18mo. ls. ta.Premieres Lectures. 121110 . 23. 6d.

First Stop i n French. 12mo . 23. ca. Key, 33.

FrenchA'

ocidenoe. 12mo. cd.

Grammar. 12mo. 43. Key, 8:

Contanseau'

s Middle-Class French Course. Fcp. 8voAccidence. 8d. French Translation-Book, 8d.Syntax, 8d. Ea sy French Deleotus, 8d.French Conversation-Book, 8d. First French Reader.8d.First French Exerci se~Book, 8d. Second French Reader, Get.Second French Exercise-Book, 8d. French andEnglish Dia logues,8d.

Contanseau’s Guide to French Translation. 12mo. 3s. 6d. Key, 33. 6d.

Prosateurs et Poetes Francoi s. 12mo. 5s.Préois de la Littérature Francaise. 12mo. 6d.

Abrégé de l’H istoire de France. 12mo. 2s. 6d.

Feval’s Chouans et Bleus, with Notes by C. Sankey, MA . Fcp . 8vo. 2d. 8d.

Jerram's Sentences for Translation into French. Cr. 8vo. Key, 23. 6d.

Prendergast’s Mastery Seri es, French. 12mo. 2s 6d.

Scuvestre’s Philosophe sous les Toits , by Strévenard. Square 18mo. 13. 8d.

Stepping-Stone to French Pronunciation. 18mo . ls.

Stiévenard's Lectures Franca ises from Modern Authors. 12mo. MRules and Exercises on the French Language. 12mo. 33. 6d.

Tarver'

s Eton French Grammar. 12mo. 63. 6d.

THE GERMAN LANGUAGE.

Bleckley's Practical German and English Dictionary. Post 8vc. 83. cd.

Buchheim’s German Poetry, f or Repetit ion. 18mo. la. 6d.

Coilis’s Card of German Irregular Va bs. svc.

Fischer-Fischart ’s Elementa ry German Grammar. Fcp. 8vo . 2s. 6d.

Just's German Grammar. lzmo . 1s. cd.

German Reading Book. 12mo. 83. 6d.

Longman'

s Pocket German and English Dictionary . Square 18mo. 2c. ta.Naf tei

’s Elementary German Course for Public Schools. Fcp. 8vo.

German Accidence. 9d. German Prose Composition Book. 9d.German Syntax. 9d. First German Reader. 9d.

First German Exercise-Book. 9d. SecondGerman Reader. 94.Second German Exercise-Book. 9d.

Prendergast's Mastery Series, German. 12mo. 2s. 6d.

Quiok’s Essentials of Germa n. Crown 8vo . 33. 6d.

Selss's School Edition of Goethe’s Faust. Crown 8vc . 53.

Outline of German Literature. Crown 8vo . 4s . 6d.

Wirth’s German Chit-Chat. Crown 8vo . 2s. 6d

London : LONGMANS , GREEN ,8c 00 .

Spontawoode d: 00 . Printers, New—street Squa re, London.

· vi preface racter may be sa id, brieﬂy, to consist of a series (few or many, a ccording to...

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