Chapter I: Preface

I have here endeavored to provide a readable account of the entire history of the art of music, within the compass of a single small volume, and to treat the luxuriant and many-sided later development with the particularity proportionate to its importance, and the greater interest appertaining to it from its proximity to the times of the reader.

The range of the work can be most easily estimated from the Table of Contents (pages 5-10). It will be seen that I have attempted to cover the same extent of history, in treating of which the standard musical histories of Naumann, Ambros, Fétis and others have employed from three times to ten times as much space. In the nature of the case there will be differences of opinion among competent judges concerning my success in this difficult undertaking. Upon this point I can only plead absolute sincerity of purpose, and a certain familiarity with the ground to be covered, due to having treated it in my lectures in the Chicago Musical College for five years, to the extent of about thirty-five lectures yearly. I have made free use of all the standard histories--those of Fétis, Ambros, Naumann, Brendel, Gevaert, Hawkins, Burney, the writings of Dr. Hugo Riemann, Dr. Ritter, Prof. Fillmore, and the dictionaries of Grove and Mendel, as well as many monographs in all the leading modern languages.

I have divided the entire history into books, placing at the beginning of each book a general chapter defining the central idea and salient features of the step in development therein recounted. The student who will attentively peruse these chapters in succession will have in them a fairly complete account of the entire progress.

W. S. B. MATHEWS.

_Chicago, May 5, 1891._

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

PAGE.

Chart of Greatest Composers 11

Chart of Italian Composers 12

Chart of German Composers 13

Pianists and Composers for Piano 14

King David Playing the Three-stringed Crwth 24

Egyptian Representations, 4th Dynasty 28

Bruce's Harpers 30

Harp and Musicians of 20th Dynasty 32

Lyres Found in Tombs 33

Women, Street Musicians 34

Shoulder Harps 35

Kinnor 42

Larger Jewish Harp 43

Assyrian Harps 45

Assyrian Banjo 46

Assyrian Psaltery 47

Greek Lyres 64

Music to Ode of Pindar 69

Hindoo Vina 71

Ravanastron 72

Chinese Ke 74

Japanese Ko-Ko 76

Old Breton Song 88

Old Welsh Song 92

Welsh Song in Praise of Love 94

Harp of Sir Brian Boirohen 97

Facsimile "Sumer is Icumen In" 101

The Same Written out 102

Saxon Harp 104

Saxon Harp 105

Crwth 107

Scotch Pentatonic Melody 108

Arab Rebec 112

Arab Eoud 113

Arab Santir 114

Song by Thibaut, 13th Century 122

Reinmar, the Minnesinger 124

Frauenlob 125

Minstrel Harps 126

Gregorian and Ambrosian Scales 132

Hucbald's Staff 141

Diaphony 141

Diaphony in Fourths 142

Guido of Arezzo 144

Table of the Schools of the Netherlands 162

Orlando di Lassus 167

Music by Palestrina 173 to 175

Roman Letter Notation of Guido 181

Neumæ of 10th Century 181

Neumæ of 11th Century 182

Neumæ with Lines 183

Lament for Charlemagne 184

Early Staff of Five Lines 185

Lute 191

Tuning of the Lute 192

Early Forms of Rebec 195

Angel Playing Rebec, 13th Century 196

Viol da Gamba 197

Barytone 198

Stradivarius Violin 200

Old Organ 202

Portable Organ 204

Bellows Bags at Halberstadt 206

Concert of 7th Century 208

Extract, Peri's "Eurydice" 225

Aria, Monteverde's "Arianna" 230

Aria, Cavalli's "Erismena" 231

Aria, Scarlatti's Cantata 232

Aria, Lulli's "Roland" 240

Heinrich Schütz 246

Jean Pieters Swelinck 251

Samuel Scheidt 252

Johann Adam Reinken 254

John Sebastian Bach 266

Geo. Friedrich Händel 274

Joseph Haydn 286

The Mozart Family 293

Mozart (Miss Stock) 300

Mozart 302

Beethoven 311

Beethoven as He Appeared on the Street 314

Beethoven Autograph 315

Facsimile Title Page Mss. Beethoven 318

Gluck 329

Grétry 340

Boieldieu 343

Purcell 350

J.L. Dussek 358

Hummel 362

Moscheles 363

Schubert 390

Spinet, 1590 393

Ornamentation of Same 394

Another View of the Same 395

Mozart's Grand Piano 396

Cristofori's Design of Action 397

His Action as Made in 1726 398

Érard Grand Action 399

Steinway Iron Frame and Over-stringing 400

Carl Maria von Weber 407

Meyerbeer 412

Richard Wagner 417

Mme. Schröder-Devrient 420

Paganini 430

Paganini in Concert (Landseer) 431

Chopin 442

Liszt 452, 453

Hauptmann 460

Mendelssohn 462

Schumann 476

Rossini 480

Verdi 484

Auber 489

Gade 498

Sterndale-Bennett 502

Rubinstein 506

CONTENTS.

PAGE.

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 4

CHRONOLOGICAL CHART OF GREATEST COMPOSERS 11

CHRONOLOGICAL CHART OF ITALIAN COMPOSERS 12

CHRONOLOGICAL CHART OF PRINCIPAL GERMAN COMPOSERS 13

CHRONOLOGICAL CHART OF PIANISTS AND COMPOSERS FOR PIANO 14

INTRODUCTION 15-23

Music defined--general idea of musical progress--conditions of fine art--qualities of satisfactory art-forms--periods in musical history--difference between ancient and modern music.

BOOK FIRST--MUSIC OF THE ANCIENT WORLD.

CHAPTER I--MUSIC AMONG THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS 27-39

Sources of information--antiquity of their development--instruments--uses of music--their ideas about music and education--"Song of the Harper"--kindergarten.

CHAPTER II--MUSIC AMONG THE HEBREWS AND ASSYRIANS 40-47

Music among the Hebrews--Jubal--kinnor--ugabh--musicians in the temple service--psaltery--flute--larger harp--Miriam--liturgy of the temple--musical ideal in Hebrew mind--music among the Assyrians--types of instruments.

CHAPTER III--MUSIC AMONG THE ANCIENT GREEKS 48-69

Importance of this development--extent of the time--date of Homeric poems--epoch of Æschylus--extracts from Homer--Hesiod--patriotic applications of music--choral song--festivals--lyric drama--début of Æschylus, Sophocles and Euripides--nature of the classic drama--orchestic--Socrates--Aristoxenus--problems of Aristotle--Greek theory of music--Pythagoras and ratios of simple consonances--devotional use of music--Greek scales--Claudius Ptolemy--Didymus--the lyre and cithara--magadis--flute--æsthetic importance--Plato on the noble harmonies--loyalty to the true--Greek musical alphabet--notation--Ode from Pindar.

CHAPTER IV--MUSIC IN INDIA, CHINA AND JAPAN 70-77

Early beginning--use of the bow--national instruments--the vina--theory--ravanastron--music exclusively melodic--saying of the Emperor Tschun--the ke--Japanese ko-ko.

BOOK SECOND--APPRENTICE PERIOD OF MODERN MUSIC

CHAPTER V--THE TRANSFORMATION AND ITS CAUSES 81-86

General view of the transformation to modern music--causes co-operating--difference between ancient and modern music--harmony and tonality--consonance and dissonance--three steps in the development of harmonic perceptions--when were these steps taken?--tonality defined--growth of tonal perception--unconscious perception of implied or associated tones.

CHAPTER VI--THE MINSTRELS OF THE NORTH 87-108

Importance of Celtic development of minstrelsy--origin of the Celts--the minstrel--old Breton song--the druids--classification of bards--degrees--Fétis on the Welsh minstrel--"Triads of the Isle of Britain"--old harp music--"The Two Lovers"--Gerald Barry on the Welsh--old Welsh song--the Irish--Sir Brian Boirohen's harp--English and Saxon music--King Arthur as minstrel--organ at Winchester--Scandinavian scalds--Eddas--"Sumer is Icumen in"--Anglo-Saxon harp--source of the harp in Britain--the crwth--melody in pentatonic scale.

CHAPTER VII--THE ARABS, OR SARACENS 109-114

The Arab apparition in history--their taste for poetry--competitive contests of poetry and song--encouragement of literature--rebec--eoud; santir.

CHAPTER VIII--ORIGIN OF THE GREAT FRENCH EPICS 115-120

Period of the Chansons de Geste--social conditions of France as given by M. Léon Gautier--"Cantilena of St. Eulalie"--subjects of the Chansons de Geste.

CHAPTER IX--TROUBADOURS, TROUVÈRES AND MINNESINGERS 121-127

The troubadours--Count Wilhelm--varieties of their songs--melody from Thibaut--Adam de la Halle--"Story of Antioch"--"Song of Roland"--minnesinger Reinmar--Heinrich Frauenlob--minstrel harps--Hans Sachs--influence of these minstrel guilds.

CHAPTER X--INFLUENCE OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH 128-133

Church not influential in the development of music as such--nature of the early Christian hymns--St. Ambrose--the Ambrosian scales; corruptions elsewhere--St. Gregory and his reforms--the Gregorian tones--many later reforms--limitations of these reforms--incidental influence of the Church through her great cathedrals.

CHAPTER XI--MUSICAL DIDACTIC FROM THE FIFTH TO FOURTEENTH CENTURY 134-147

Macrobus--Martinus Capella--Boethius--Cassiodorus--Bishop Isidore; Venerable Bede--Aurelian--Rémi of Auxerre--Hucbald--examples--instruments of music during the seventh and eighth centuries--Odon of Cluny--Guido of Arezzo--staff--Franco of Cologne--Franco of Paris.

CHAPTER XII--THE RISE OF POLYPHONY; OLD FRENCH AND GALLO-BELGIC SCHOOLS 148-159

Origin and meaning of polyphony--monodic and homophonic--canonic imitation--chords as incidents--variety and unity--early French school--Coussemaker's researches--Léonin--descant--Pérotin--names of pieces--Robert of Sabillon--Pierre de la Croix--Jean of Garland--Franco of Paris--Jean de Muris--fleurettes--John Cotton--Machaut--Gallo-Belgic school--Dufay--Hans de Zeelandia--Antoine de Busnois.

CHAPTER XIII--SCHOOLS OF THE NETHERLANDS 160-167

Wealth of the Low Countries--freedom of the communes--strength of the burgher class--period of these schools--table of periods and masters--Okeghem--Tinctor--Josquin--his popularity--Arkadelt; Gombert--Willaert--Goudimel--Cypriano de Rore--Orlando de Lassus--his Munich school--his genius.

CHAPTER XIV--POLYPHONIC SCHOOLS OF ITALY--PALESTRINA 168-178

Prosperity of Italy in fifteenth century--great cathedrals and public works--conservatories founded at Naples--Willaert at St. Mark's, Venice--Zarlino--his reforms in theory--Cypriano de Rore--Goudimel; Palestrina--the council of Trent--Palestrina's music--Martin Luther.

CHAPTER XV--CHANGES IN MUSICAL NOTATION 179-188

General direction of musical progress toward classification and the establishment of unities of various kinds--early letter notation of the Greeks and Romans--Roman notation as used by Guido of Arezzo--neumæ--with lines--additional lines--"Lament for Charlemagne"--notation employed by the French Trouvères--clefs--new staff proposed by an American reformer.

CHAPTER XVI--MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS--THE VIOLIN AND ORGAN 189-207

Progress in tonal perceptions--influence of harp and lute--description of the latter--system of stringing--locating the frets--the violin--bow discovered in India--early forms of bowed instruments--rebec; barytone--viol da Gamba--Amati--Stradivari--peculiarities of his instruments--Maggini--Stainer--antiquity of the organ--early forms--organ sent Charlemagne--organs at Munich--Malmesbury Abbey--measure of organ pipes--portable organ--clumsiness of the old keyboards--the organ in 1500 A.D.

BOOK THIRD--THE DAWN OF MODERN MUSIC.

CHAPTER XVII--CONDITION OF MUSIC AT BEGINNING OF EIGHTEENTH CENTURY 211-220

Justification of the name "apprentice period"--office of domestic musicians in England in the reign of Elizabeth--great fondness for music everywhere--casual influence of counterpoint in educating harmonic sense--madrigal--multiplicity of collections of this kind--absurd use of madrigals for dramatic monody--the work of the seventeenth century, free melodic expression--the new problem of the musical drama--the representative principle in music--music last of the arts--Florence and Venice the centers--statistics of books published from 1470 to 1500.

CHAPTER XVIII--FIRST CENTURY OF ITALIAN OPERA AND DRAMATIC SONG 221-234

Circle of the Literati in Florence--Galilei and his monody--Peri's "Dafne"--Schütz's setting of the same--Peri's "Eurydice"--rare editions--_Il stilo rappresentativo_--Cavaliere's oratorio "The Soul and the Body"--second period of opera--Monteverde's "_Arianna_"--orchestra of the same--new orchestral effects--scene from "Eurydice"--director of St. Mark's--Legrenzi--Cesti--public theaters--Alessandro Scarlatti--_recitativo stromentato_--Corelli--sonatas for the violin--influence of the violin upon the art of singing--origin of Italian school of singing--artificial sopranos--Porpora; Selections from Monteverde, Cavalli and Scarlatti.

CHAPTER XIX--BEGINNINGS OF OPERA IN FRANCE AND GERMANY 235-243

Slow progress of opera to other parts of Europe--origin of French opera--ballets of Boesset--Perrin--Cambert--their first opera--their patent from the king--Lulli--his success and productivity--attention to verbal delivery and the vernacular of the audience--foundations of the French Académie de Musique--opera in Germany--Schütz--Hamburg and Keiser--selection from Lulli--"Roland"--Mattheson.

CHAPTER XX--THE PROGRESS OF ORATORIO 244-248

Oratorio invented simultaneously with opera--Cavaliere--mystery plays--Carissimi--two types of oratorio--cantata--Händel's appropriation from Carissimi--sacred oratorio--Schütz's Passions--"Last Seven Words."

CHAPTER XXI--BEGINNINGS OF INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC 249-260

Beginnings of instrumental music in seventeenth century--tentative character of instrumental music of sixteenth century--Gabrieli and organ pieces--imitations of vocal works--melodies not fully carried out--Swelinck--Scheidt--Schein--Frescobaldi--Reinken--Pachelbel; Muffat--Corelli--orchestra of the period--its defects.

BOOK FOURTH--FLOWERING TIME OF MODERN MUSIC.

CHAPTER XXII--MUSIC IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY 261-264

The flowering time of modern music--complexity of developments now taking place--principal actors--two main channels of improvement; fugue--sonata--Bach and Händel as writers of fugue--people's song makes its way into cultivated instrumental music--reference to Mozart's sonatas--thematic and lyric as elements of contrast.

CHAPTER XXIII--JOHN SEBASTIAN BACH 265-272

Bach as a composer--sketch--his clavier--attainments as virtuoso upon the clavier and the organ--choral works--Passion oratorios--his pre-eminence as writer of fugues--general sketch of the form of a fugue--prelude--mutually complementary--Bach's concertos--his rhythm.

CHAPTER XXIV--GEO. FRIEDRICH HÄNDEL 273-281

The companion figure of Bach--early life--violinist at Hamburg--conductor; composer--first opera--Italy--successes there--England--Italian operas--oratorio "Messiah"--other oratorios--list of his works--Bach and Händel compared--Händel's place in art--personalities.

CHAPTER XXV--EMANUEL BACH, HAYDN--THE SONATA 282-291

The sons of Bach--Emanuel Bach as composer--difficulty of founding a new form--Haydn--early years--conductor for Prince Esterhazy, compositions--the visit to London--the money he made--"The Creation"; second visit to London--Haydn and the sonata form--"The Last Seven Words"--his rank as tone-poet.

CHAPTER XXVI--MOZART AND HIS GENIUS 292-304

Charming personality--childhood--early talent--concerts--Mozart at Bologna and the test of his powers--Haydn's opinion--early operas--"Marriage of Figaro"--success--accompaniments added to Händel's "Messiah" and other works--call to Berlin--mysterious order for the "Requiem"--death--general quality of Mozart's music.

CHAPTER XXVII--BEETHOVEN AND HIS WORKS 305-315

A worthy successor to Haydn and Mozart--early years--orchestral leader--piano playing--his friends--Count Waldstein--his first visit to Vienna--settled in Vienna--compositions--life--appearance--place in art.

CHAPTER XXVIII--HAYDN, MOZART AND BEETHOVEN COMPARED 316-326

Their relation to symphony--refinement of Mozart--early age of Mozart--Beethoven's independence--relation to sonata--Beethoven more free--climax of classical art--Beethoven adagios--summing up--tendency of progress.

CHAPTER XXIX--OPERA IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY 327-351

Three great names--Graun--Gluck--his reforms--his ideal--early works--"Orpheus"--"Iphigenie"--Mozart's place in opera--Rameau--theoretical writings--Rousseau--Phillidor--Monsigny--Grétry--Gossec--Méhul--Lesueur; Boieldieu--French opera in general--Italian opera--Pergolesi--Jomelli; Sacchini--Paisiello--Piccini--Zingarelli--opera in England--Purcell; Dr. Arne.

CHAPTER XXX--PIANO PLAYING VIRTUOSI--VIOLINISTS--TARTINI AND SPOHR 352-369

Pianoforte established as domestic instrument--Scarlatti--Mattheson--Dr. Blow--John Bull--Clementi--Dussek--Cramer--Berger--Hummel--Moscheles; Tartini--Spohr.

BOOK FIFTH--EPOCH OF THE ROMANTIC.

CHAPTER XXXI--THE NINETEENTH CENTURY--THE ROMANTIC--MUSIC OF THE FUTURE 373-380

Classic and romantic defined--art in general--applied to music--illustrated by Schubert--Schumann--development of virtuosity--Berlioz--"music of the future"--how originating--the outlook.

CHAPTER XXXII--SCHUBERT AND THE ROMANTIC 381-391

Early life of Schubert--compositions--first songs--"Erl King"--rapidity of composition--unfinished symphony--industry--spontaneity--personal characteristics.

CHAPTER XXXIII--STORY OF THE PIANOFORTE 392-403

Origin of pianoforte--spinet--clavicembalo--Mozart's grand piano; Cristofori's design of action--Érard action--iron frame--Chickering; Steinway improvements.

CHAPTER XXXIV--GERMAN OPERA--WEBER, MEYERBEER, WAGNER 404-427

Tendency of German opera--Weber--"Der Freischütz"--romanticism--innovations in piano playing--Meyerbeer--early life--master works--place in art; Wagner--early life--early operas--"Lohengrin"--Zurich--Schröder-Devrient, "Nibelung's Ring"--peculiarities.

CHAPTER XXXV--VIRTUOSITY IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY--PAGANINI, BERLIOZ, CHOPIN, THALBERG, LISZT 428-454

Continuity of these appearances with those already recounted--Paganini--his playing--inspiring effect--Berlioz--works--place in art--progress of piano playing--virtuosi co-operating--Thalberg and his style--Parish Alvars--Pollini--Chopin--place in art--Liszt--early appearances--rivalry with Thalberg--style--Weimar--Bonn Beethoven monument--as teacher--as composer.

CHAPTER XXXVI--MENDELSSOHN AND SCHUMANN 455-477

Mendelssohn--personality--talent--early works--maturity--as player Leipsic Conservatory--Hauptmann--"Elijah"--"St. Paul"--Schumann; early education and habits--works--strength of the romantic tendency--his "New Journal of Music"--music in Leipsic--Clara Wieck--larger works for piano--technical traits--songs--general characteristics.

CHAPTER XXXVII--ITALIAN OPERA IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY 478-487

Spontini--Rossini--Donizetti--Bellini--Verdi--Boito--Ponchielli.

CHAPTER XXXVIII--FRENCH OPERA AND COMPOSERS IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY 488-496

Auber--Hérold--Adam--Gounod--Massé--Massenet--Saint-Saëns--Délibes, Bizet--Ambroise Thomas.

CHAPTER XXXIX--LATER COMPOSERS AND PERFORMERS 497-508

Gade--Brahms--Tschaikowsky--Svensden--Grieg--Bruch--Bennett--Macfarren; Mackenzie--Nicodé--Moszkowsky--Dvorak--Henselt--Litolff--Wilmers--Heller; Hiller--Rubinstein--Bülow--Reinecke.

CHRONOLOGY OF THE GREATEST COMPOSERS.

(_Copyright._)

EXPLANATION.--The heavy vertical lines are century lines. Light vertical, twenty-year lines. Horizontal lines, the life of the composer.

CHRONOLOGY OF PRINCIPAL ITALIAN COMPOSERS.

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From Palestrina to Present Time. (See explanation, page 11.)

CHRONOLOGICAL CHART OF THE MORE IMPORTANT GERMAN COMPOSERS.

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From Orlando Lassus to the Present Time. (See page 11.)

CHRONOLOGICAL SUCCESSION OF PIANISTS AND COMPOSERS FOR THE PIANOFORTE.

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From 1660 to the Present Time (1891).