Chapter VII: Part 7

(_The bird seizes the Queen, mistaking her red mantle for flesh,
flies away with her to the mountains, and deposits her in a tree.
The bird comes as if to devour her, when the Queen claps her hands
at him, which frightens the bird, and he flies away_).

This scene shows that the Burmese employ in their dramas loud and soft music, according to the events represented; and that the orchestra is conducted by a leader or music-director. The following example, from another scene, indicates the employment of the full orchestra _fortissimo_ in conformity with the action.

_Forest. A Hunter._

HUNTER.--"I and my dog will now go and kill whatever enemy appears. With my bow and my dog I care not what I encounter, elephants, deer, or what not; so come along (_to his dog_) brave Tiger. (_To the band._) Now as I go on a grand expedition, burst forth like thunder!"

A detailed description of a kind of opera which was performed at Singapore is given by Charles Wilkes;[101] but, as the actors were transient visitors to Singapore, who came from the neighbourhood of Madras, their play must have been a specimen of the popular Hindu dramas. Its title was 'The Results of Misplaced Friendship;' the words were recited in a "monotonous recitative," accompanied by a band of instrumental performers. As regards the plot of the piece, suffice it to say that it had a moral aim, and that a Brahmin and a clown were the most amusing characters of the Dramatis Personæ. The clown displayed much cleverness in mimicking a European in his dress and manners. The 'Select Specimens of the Theatre of the Hindus,' translated from the original Sanskrit, by R. H. Wilson, London, 1835, contain but few allusions to music; but these are ancient dramas, and the Hindus possess, as R. H. Wilson in his interesting Introduction points out, different kinds of theatrical entertainments. There was in former time no building appropriated to the public performance of dramas. The Kings had in their palaces a kind of music hall, called _Sangita Sálá_, in which were given entertainments consisting principally of music and dancing, and occasionally of dramatic representations.

Turning to Thibet, we meet with actors who are also singers, dancers, and acrobats. They perform in the streets, courtyards, and other open places of the towns, and their entertainments are enlivened by a musical band, and by the witticisms of their clowns. The actors generally wear masks.[102]

In China, dramatic performances, enacted by itinerant players, take place not unfrequently in the Joss-houses, or houses of religious ceremonies. The plays generally have reference to some remarkable event in the lives of the earliest Chinese Emperors, and almost always combine the comic with the tragic. The musical band occupies the back part of the stage behind the actors. The expenses of the entertainment are sometimes defrayed by private persons. Thus, on a certain occasion three performances were given in a town daily, for three days in succession, in honour of "The Mother of Heaven," a goddess who presides over the welfare of sailors, the defrayers of the entertainment being three merchants who had just received the returns of a lucky venture.[103] Female characters are represented by boys and eunuchs. The plot of a Chinese drama, which was performed at Tien-sing before the English Ambassador, in a temporary theatre erected opposite to his yacht, is described by Sir G. Staunton, as follows:--

"An Emperor of China and his Empress are living in supreme felicity, when on a sudden his subjects revolt. A civil war ensues, battles are fought; and, at last, the arch-rebel, who is a General of cavalry, overcomes his sovereign, kills him with his own hand, and routes the imperial army. The captive Empress then appears upon the stage in all the agonies of despair naturally resulting from the loss of her husband and her dignity, as well as the apprehension of that of her honour."

How interesting would it be to the student of National Music to possess an exact notation of the music belonging to this scene, and to ascertain in what manner the intense emotions and vehement passions represented are expressed in the Chinese musical compositions!

"Whilst she is tearing her hair, and rending the skies with her complaints, the conqueror enters, approaches her with respect, addresses her in a gentle tone, soothes her sorrows with his compassion, talks of love and adoration, and like Richard the Third with Lady Anne, in Shakespeare, prevails in less than half-an-hour on the Chinese Princess to dry up her tears, to forget her deceased consort, and to yield to a consoling wooer. The piece concludes with a wedding and a grand procession."[104]

The Japanese are fond of dramatic representations, and have special buildings for their performances. Captain Golownin describes the theatre in Matsmai, the capital city of the island of Yesso, as "a large and pretty high building. At the back is the stage, which, as with us, has a raised floor. From the stage to the front wall, where the entrance is situated, two rows of seats are placed for the spectators. In the middle, where we have the pit, there is a vacant space in which straw mats are laid down for the spectators. As this space is much lower than the stage, those in front do not intercept the view from those behind. There is no orchestra, either because the Japanese perform no music in their theatres, or because the musicians are reckoned among the actors."

The place for the orchestra was probably at the back of the stage, as in the Chinese theatre. Captain Golownin visited the building only in the day-time, and when the house was empty, the permission to see a piece performed having been refused to him by the government of the capital.

"Opposite the stage, where in our theatres are the Emperor's box and the galleries, there are only a bare wall and the door for the entrance. There were no ornaments in the interior; the walls were not even painted. The dresses and decorations are kept in a separate building. The subjects of their plays are chiefly memorable events in Japanese history; but they have also other representations which are of a comic nature, and which serve to amuse the public."[105] Moreover, the Japanese have annual religious festivals in which scenic representations take place, and which are very popular. The dramas usually commemorate the deeds of ancient heroes or a myth; some have for their subject a fanciful love-story; and some are especially designed to enforce a certain moral precept. According to Siebold and Fisher, many of the Japanese plays are very instructive and moral. They are often so constructed that not more than two actors appear on the stage during a scene. There are no actresses, the female characters being represented by boys. It is not unusual for the actors to pass through the pit on their way to the stage, in order to give the audience an opportunity to admire their appearance and costume as closely as possible.

Such dramatic music of extra-European countries as has been derived from Europe does not come within the scope of our present inquiry. It happens, however, not unfrequently that the European music is to some extent modified, by being interspersed with national tunes of the extra-European country into which it has been introduced, or by being performed in a peculiar manner. Whenever this is the case, it deserves the special attention of the student of national music.

The Tagals, or the aborigines of the Philippine Islands, have theatrical performances in bamboo buildings. The characters consist principally of fairies, demons, and other supernatural creatures; but, the musical part of these entertainments is said to contain much which has been borrowed from the Spaniards. Probably this is especially the case in Manilla. Besides the principal theatre, in which the actors are Spaniards, Manilla has two theatres of the natives. In South America we find, as might be expected, Spanish and Italian operas. In Lima the orchestra is deficient; Spanish dances, as the Bolero, Fandango, Don Mateo, are often performed instead of our ballets. At the theatre in Mexico, Spanish dances are frequently introduced between the plays. The Teatro de Tacon in Havana, said to be one of the finest edifices of the kind in the world, has singers who perform Italian operas, as in Europe. The female spectators sit in places separate from those of the men.

There can hardly be a doubt that many operatic entertainments, which are now secular, had originally a sacred character. The ancient nations performed religious dances with pantomimic representations. Also the Chinese at the time of Confucius thus enhanced their sacred ceremonies. The Burmese, at the present day, sing and dance by the coffin of a deceased priest. They are Buddhists. Funeral dances are common with several uncivilized races. Our Christian ancestors, during the earlier centuries of the Middle Ages, performed sacred dances in the church. The Christian priests of the Abyssinians still dance at certain religious ceremonies. In the Cathedral of Seville, boys, from the age of twelve to seventeen, dressed in an old Spanish costume, annually execute a ballet every evening during the Ottave del Corpus. Again, sacred dances with recitations, dialogues, and hymns are performed in several European countries during Christmastide. The Mysteries, Miracle Plays, or musical-dramatic entertainments on biblical subjects, so popular during the Middle Ages, have not entirely fallen into disuse. Passion-Plays are still occasionally performed by the peasantry in Bavaria, in the Tyrol, and in Moravia. The "Mayings," or popular rejoicings with music, dancing, and processions, remains of which are still to be found in England as well as on the Continent, had probably in pagan time also a religious character, as they were intended to welcome the approach of the sunny season. Turning to America, we meet in Peru with musical entertainments which were introduced among the Indians by the Spanish monks, who accompanied Pizarro's army, and who dramatized scenes in the life of Christ, and had them represented to facilitate by this attractive means the conversion of the heathen aborigines. These plays are no longer performed in the larger towns of Peru, but are still kept up by the villagers of the Sierra. Good Friday especially is celebrated by them in this manner; and on Palm Sunday an image of the Saviour seated on an ass is paraded through the principal streets of the town or village.[106] In Brazil we find on Hallelujah Saturday (between Good Friday and Easter Sunday) the popular ceremony of burning effigies of Judas Iscariot, the traitor, in company with dragons, serpents and demons; and there are besides several other religious celebrations in which music is employed in combination with fire-works and dramatic representations.

Comic scenes were not excluded from the old Mysteries of mediæval time. On the contrary, they appear to have been highly relished by the worshippers, and contributed much to the popularity of the entertainments. In Paris a building was erected, in the year 1313, principally for dramatic performances relating to the Passion of Christ and the Resurrection, enacted with music and dancing. Soon, attempts were made to vary these entertainments by the occasional introduction of some play founded on a myth, or on a wonderful event recorded in secular history, or also by the admission of profane comedies and farces. Although music, instrumental as well as vocal, did not constitute the chiefest point of attraction in these plays, it certainly contributed much to the impressiveness of the whole.[107] During the second half of the thirteenth century, Adam de la Hale wrote dramatic plays with songs, founded on secular subjects. These plays, called Gieux (_jeux_), might perhaps be called operettas, since they contained dialogues interspersed with songs. In fact, although our opera may be said to date from about the year 1600, secular plays in which music and poetry were intimately associated were known long before that time. The ancient Greeks used in their dramas the vocal music of choruses and the instrumental accompaniment of flutes and other instruments, in close connection with the poetry. The latter art was, however, the principal one, while in our present opera _music_ is the principal art.

As regards the secular dances of the ancient Greeks, it may be observed that some of them were similar to the pantomimic exhibitions which are still relished by several nations. The Pyrrhic dance, which was executed according to fixed rules, to the sound of the flute, depicted a combat of warriors. Lord Broughton, during his stay in Albania, was struck with the resemblance between some of the dances of the Albanians and those of the ancient Greeks. He notices especially the Pyrrhic dance.[108] The war-dance of the Jajis, a wild and hostile tribe in the mountainous districts of Afghanistan, is probably quite as picturesque and exciting as was the Pyrrhic dance. A European eye-witness of the war-dance of the Jajis states that it is performed by about twelve or fifteen men placed in a ring before a number of spectators who are arranged in a semi-circle. "The performers commenced chanting a song, flourishing their knives overhead, and stamping on the ground to its tones; and then each gradually revolving, the whole body moving round together and maintaining the circle in which they first stood up. Whilst this was going on, two of the party stepped into the centre of the ring and went through a mimic fight, or a series of jumps, pirouettes, and other movements of a like nature, which appeared to be regulated in their rapidity by the measure of the music; for, towards the close of the performance the singing ceased, and the whole party appeared twirling and twisting about in a confused mass amidst the flashing of their drawn knives, their movements being timed by the rapid roll of their drums. It was wonderful that they did not wound each other in these intricate and rapid evolutions with unsheathed knives. On the conclusion of the dance the whole party set up a shrill and prolonged yell, which reverberated over the hills, and was caught up by those in the neighbouring heights and thus prolonged for some minutes. Whilst all this was going on upon the heights around our camp, several parties of armed Jajis ranged in columns, three or four abreast, and eight or nine deep, followed each other in succession round and round the skirt of our camp, all the time chanting an impressive and passionate war-song in a very peculiar sonorous tone that seemed to be affected by the acoustic influences of the locality, which was a deep basin enclosed for the most part by bare and rocky eminences and hills."[109]

Not less characteristic, and equally descriptive, are the sword-dances of the Anazehs, in Syria, and of the warriors in Little Thibet, which are not unfrequently acted with too much reality, since the performers, having worked themselves up to a state of frenzy, are apt to forget that they ought only to feign fighting.

Some of the sword-dances still in use in European countries represent scenes with poetry and music. There is, for instance,--or, at any rate, there was still in the eighteenth century,--an ancient sword-dance occasionally performed in some villages of North Germany, in which the principal dancer, or "The King," addresses the people in a speech.[110] Here may also be noticed the "Fool Play" still popular in some villages of Northern England, which is described as "a pageant that consists of a number of sword-dancers dragging a plough, with music, and with one, sometimes two, in very strange attire; the Bessey, in the grotesque habit of an old woman; and the Fool, almost covered with skins, a hairy cap on, and the tail of some animal hanging from his back." And the sword-dance performed in the North Riding of Yorkshire, from St. Stephen's Day till New Year's Day. "The dancers usually consist of six youths dressed in white ribands, attended by a fiddler, a youth with the name of Bessey, and also by one who personates a Doctor. They travel from village to village. One of the six youths acts the part of the King in a kind of farce which consists chiefly of singing and dancing, and the Bessey interferes while they are making a hexagon with their swords, and is killed."[111]

The Cavalcade, or procession on horse-back, is supposed to have been originally connected with the Mysteries of the Middle Ages. It is still occasionally performed in Belgium, and its Flemish name is 'Ommegang.' A number of persons dressed in historical and fanciful costumes ride on horse-back and drive in carriages through the principal streets of the town in which the Cavalcade takes place, with the object of representing scenes from sacred or profane history, or allegorical subjects. The procession is made imposing by the splendid dresses of the principal characters, by the gorgeous gildings of their carriages, and the display of baldachins and flags. This show is supposed to have been introduced into the Netherlands by the Spaniards during their former possession of the country. At a certain religious festival, held in Malines in the year 1838, the entire Litany to the Virgin Mary was represented, each Invocation being written on a beautiful flag, carried by a beautiful and richly-dressed young girl, who was riding on a gorgeously-caparisoned horse led by men. The Invocations: "Queen of the Angels!" "Queen of the Patriarchs!" etc.,--were depicted by groups of characters in open carriages; each carriage, splendidly decorated, having the Virgin Mary seated on a high throne, while at her feet were placed picturesquely on steps the angels, patriarchs and prophets, all of whom were dressed in their appropriate costumes, and provided with their requisite attributes. Again, at a festival which was held at Brussels, in September, 1839, two parishes of the town arranged a grand Cavalcade, in which a scene was represented commemorating a political event from the history of Belgium. Many of the riders were dressed in mediæval costume, while some appeared in Oriental dresses. The sons and daughters of the most influential citizens generally undertake the representation of the principal characters in these processions. Music is, of course, an indispensable assistance for the solemnity of such pageants. However, as recitations are of secondary importance in them, or are even entirely omitted, the first attempts at dramatic music are less traceable in these remains of mediæval entertainments than they are in the rude amusements of savages noticed in the beginning of this survey.

It has probably already occurred to the reader that the "Opera of the Future," aimed at by Wagner, will be in some respect a return to the opera in its infancy, inasmuch as it will be devoid of the various artistically-written forms of composition which greatly contribute to the clearness and impressiveness of the music, and which Mozart has developed in his operas to the highest degree of perfection. Much might be said on this subject, were here the proper place for it. Enough if the facts which have been noticed convince the reflecting musician that the contemplated innovations alluded to might as well be termed retrocessions. Gluck was also a reformer of dramatic music, who aimed at truth in its noble simplicity; but, his objection to anything artificial in the opera did not mislead him to disregard the artistic beauties dependent upon form, which ensure the impressive total effect essential to a true work of art.

Furthermore, the examples given in the preceding pages will probably have convinced the reader that the origin of the opera can be traced more minutely in the first dramatic attempts of uncivilized races of the present time, than by a reference to the theatrical performance of the ancient nations. At any rate, the latter research does not render the former superfluous; they should go hand-in-hand.

[84] 'Popular Customs, etc., of the South of Italy,' by Charles Mac Farlane, London, 1846; p. 68.

[85] 'Voyage pittoresque autour du Monde, par M. Louis Choris;' Paris, 1822; p. 9.

[86] 'Polynesian Researches,' by William Ellis; London, 1827. Vol. I., p. 285.

[87] 'A Voyage round the World, in His Britannic Majesty's Sloop "Resolution," commanded by Captain James Cook, during the years 1772-75;' by George Forster; London, 1777. Vol. I., p. 398.

[88] 'An Account of the Natives of the Tonga Islands, in the South Pacific Ocean, compiled and arranged from the extensive communications of Mr. William Mariner, several years resident in those Islands, by John Martin;' London, 1817. Vol. II., p. 309.

[89] 'An Account of a Government Mission to the Fiji Islands, in the years 1860-61;' by Berthold Seeman; Cambridge, 1862. p. 116.

[90] 'A Second Journey through Persia, Armenia, and Asia Minor, etc.,' by James Morier; London, 1818. p. 104.

[91] 'Travels in Georgia, Persia, Armenia, etc.,' by Sir Robert Ker Porter; London, 1822; Vol. II., p. 272.

[92] 'Travels in Greece, Russia, etc.,' by Bayard Taylor; London, 1859; p. 282.

[93] 'A Lady's Second Journey round the World,' by Ida Pfeiffer; London, 1855; Vol. I., p. 211.

[94] 'The Kingdom of Siam.' By Sir John Bowring. London, 1857; Vol. II., p. 325.

[95] 'A Voyage to Cochin-China.' By John White. London, 1824; p. 302.

[96] 'An Authentic Account of an Embassy from the King of Great Britain to the Emperor of China,' etc. By Sir George Staunton. London, 1797; Vol. I., p. 344.

[97] 'A Voyage to Cochin-China in the years 1792 and 1793,' by John Barrow. London, 1806; p. 295.

[98] 'A Seaman's Narrative of his Adventures in Cochin-China,' by Edward Brown. London 1861; p. 221.

[99] '_Náts_' are sprites corresponding to the Hindu _Dewas_ whose place they take in the Burman Buddhist system. They are supposed to have been the objects of Burman worship in pre-Buddhistic times.

[100] 'A Narrative of a Mission, sent by the Governor-General of India to the Court of Ava, in 1855,' by Captain Henry Yule. London, 1858; p. 368.

[101] 'Narrative of the United States Exploring Expedition, during the years 1838-42,' by Charles Wilkes; London, 1845; Vol. V.; p. 389.

[102] 'Travels in Tartary, Thibet, and China, during the years, 1844-46,' by M. Huc; Vol. II.; p. 238.

[103] 'Twelve Years in China,' by a British Resident, (John Scarth), Edinburgh, 1860; p. 56.

[104] 'An Authentic Account of an Embassy from the King of Great Britain to the Emperor of China, etc., taken chiefly from the papers of His Excellency the Earl of Macartney,' by Sir George Staunton; London, 1797. Vol. II.; p. 31.

[105] 'Japan and the Japanese,' by Captain Golownin (of the Russian Navy); London, 1853. Vol. II.; p. 149.

[106] 'Travels in Peru, by J. J. von Tschudi.' London, 1847; p. 377.

[107] 'Wesen und Geschichte der Oper, von G. W. Fink.' Leipzig, 1838; p. 53.

[108] 'Travels in Albania, etc., by the Right Hon. Lord Broughton.' London, 1855; Vol. I., p. 145.

[109] 'Journal of a Political Mission to Afghanistan, by H. W. Bellew.' London, 1862; p. 143.

[110] 'Das deutsche Volk, geschildert von Eduard Duller.' Leipzig, 1847; p. 183.

[111] 'Observations on Popular Antiquities, by John Brand, revised by Henry Ellis.' London, 1813; Vol. I., pp. 396, 401.

A SHORT SURVEY OF THE HISTORY OF MUSIC.

The perusal of Chronological Tables illustrating the history of music must appear to many readers a dry occupation. Still, it enables the lover of music to obtain in a short time a comprehensive and clear view of the gradual development of the art from the earliest period of its cultivation recorded in history to the present day. Perhaps a coloured chart contrived like the "Stream of Time," which at a glance shows the great events in universal history, might answer the purpose even better. There is no disconnection in the progress of an art, though certain occurrences may appear to the superficial observer as being entirely accidental. A musical "Stream of Time" might exhibit in various colours the natural connection between the several branches of the art of music, and their modifications conspicuous in its history.

Or, this might be achieved by the representation of a tree. As in the genealogical tree which has been published of Johann Sebastian Bach the proper relation of the numerous members of his family is at once brought clearly before the eyes of the inquirer, so might the growth and spread of the different branches of the art of music be indicated, exhibiting distinctly their highest degree of culture, as well as their infancy and decay.

Diagrams of this kind are, however, only suitable for a very condensed historical survey. More detailed information is better conveyed by means of chronological tables, such as Carl Czerny has compiled in his 'Umriss der ganzen Musik-Geschichte' ('A Sketch of the whole History of Music'), published at Mayence, in the year 1851. Carl Czerny, of Vienna, was a very industrious man, who, although he gave pianoforte lessons during the whole day, nevertheless found time to write above nine hundred compositions, not to mention his innumerable arrangements of operas, oratorios, symphonies, and overtures. That he could engage in such laborious research as the preparation of his chronological tables must have required is certainly surprising, especially as he was a very practical man with regard to money-making, and there is probably no musical occupation less likely to yield pecuniary advantage than is the compiling of chronological tables. It used to be said of Czerny that he was in the habit of composing while he was giving pianoforte lessons. If this is no false rumour, it perhaps accounts for the enormous number of his compositions, as well as for the slight merit of most of them. But, chronological tables he may have compiled in this way without detriment to them, since they do not require to be written with feeling, even less with inspiration, but merely with careful discernment, and with perseverance. Be this as it may, he certainly was an eminent pianoforte teacher, as is proved by his having instructed Liszt, Döhler, and other distinguished pianists. His finger-exercises, or pianoforte-studies, have outlived his other compositions, and his chronological tables will probably be used for reference long after his finger-exercises have been supplanted by more modern ones.

As the object is to supply the lover of music with an historical survey, similar to that of Czerny, but on a smaller scale,--it may be useful to notice the plan adopted by Czerny.

He has divided his work into two Sections. The first Section records the ancient traditions respecting the origin of music, and gives an account of the music of the nations before the Christian era, of the music of our forefathers during the Middle Ages, and of the rise of our modern tone-art. This Section is arranged in eighteen Periods, thus:--

_First Period._--The primitive Music of the Greeks until the time of the Trojan War (B.C. 2000-1200). Mythic and mythic-heroic Age. Beginning of the public games and contests.

_Second Period._--From the Trojan War until Pythagoras (B.C. 1200-584). Gradual development of singing associated with poetry. Invention and improvement of different Stringed Instruments, Wind Instruments, and Instruments of Percussion. Encouragement given to artists by the bestowal of great honours.

_Third Period._--From Pythagoras until Aristoxenus of Tarentum (B.C. 584-340). Highest development of all the Arts in Greece. The Art of Music founded on fixed rules.

_Fourth Period._--From Aristoxenus until the Birth of Christ (B.C. 340-A.D. 1). New Musical System. Decay of the Arts.

_Fifth Period._--From the Birth of Christ until Hucbald (A.D. 1-900). Gradual decay of the Ancient Music. Origin of the Christian Church-song.

_Sixth Period._--From Hucbald until Franco of Cologne (A.D. 900-1200). The first attempts in Polyphonic Harmony. Invention of Musical Notation and Measure of Time.

_Seventh Period._--From Franco of Cologne until Dufay (A.D. 1200-1380). Invention and development of Counterpoint.

_Eighth Period._--From Dufay until Ockeghem, or Ockenheim (A.D. 1380-1450). The elder Netherlandish School. Developed Regular Counterpoint. Musical Notation fixed. Composers according to the new system of Harmony.

_Ninth Period._--From Ockeghem until Josquin des Prés (A.D. 1450-1480). The newer or second Netherlandish School. Artificial Counterpoint. Beginning of the reputation of the Netherlandish masters. In Italy and Germany executive artists on the Organ, Clavichord, and other instruments, make their appearance.

_Tenth Period._--From Josquin des Prés until Willaert (A.D. 1480-1520). Commencement of the flourishing, state of the Netherlandish masters, and their influence upon all European countries. Masters in Counterpoint arise in Germany. Meritorious teachers in Italy. French musicians attain reputation in other countries besides in France.

_Eleventh Period._--From Willaert until Palestrina (A.D. 1520-1560). The Netherlandish masters institute Schools in Italy and develop the art of music with great success in that country. The Madrigal becomes the favourite kind of composition of the Venetian School.

_Twelfth Period._--From Palestrina until Monteverde (A.D. 1560-1600). Commencement of the flourishing state of the Italian musical artists. Conclusion of the great Netherlandish epoch. Refinement of the stiff Netherlandish style. Romish School. Church Music of a high degree of perfection.

_Thirteenth Period._--From Monteverde until Carissimi (A.D. 1600-1640). Commencement of Operatic Music. First attempts in the Recitative style, in the melodious song for a single voice (Monody) and in the Concertante style.

_Fourteenth Period._--From Carissimi until Alessandro Scarlatti (A.D. 1640-1680). Improvements in the Recitative and in the Dramatic Melody. Origin of the Cantata and the Oratorio. Introduction of Concertante Instruments to the song. Neapolitan School.

_Fifteenth Period._--From Alessandro Scarlatti until Leo and Durante (A.D. 1680-1720). Essential improvement in the Recitative and in Dramatic Music. Increase of the Orchestral Instruments. Development of Instrumental Music. Rise of great Composers in Germany.

_Sixteenth Period._--From Durante until Gluck (A.D. 1720-1760). Flourishing state of the Neapolitan School. Reform in Melody. The highest art in Counterpoint in Germany. Oratorios. German Composers study in Italy, and write Italian Operas.

_Seventeenth Period._--From Gluck until Haydn and Mozart (A.D. 1760-1780). Reform in the style of the Opera. Introduction of the Ensemble pieces and the Finales. Rise of the French Opera. Development of Instrumental Music.

_Eighteenth Period._--From Mozart until Beethoven and Rossini (A.D. 1780-1820). Great improvement of the Orchestra, and of Instrumental Music in general. Development of the German Operatic Style. Tone-artists of the Vienna School. Beginning of the popularity of the Pianoforte. Beethoven brings Instrumental Music to the highest degree of perfection. Flourishing state of the French Opera. With Rossini commences a new and effective epoch in Italian Operatic Music. Numerous Virtuosos on instruments. In the Opera, amalgamation of different styles. In the most recent time, an undecided direction.

Thus much about the Eighteen Periods noticed in Section I. of Czerny's work. Only the first seven periods are fully treated in this Section; the others form the subject of Section II., which is divided into Three Principal Epochs, thus:--

_First Principal Epoch._--From the establishment of our Theory of Harmony until the commencement of the Opera (A.D. 1400-1600). Separation of the four chief nations: 1, France (with the Netherlands); 2, Italy (with Spain and Portugal); 3, England; 4, Germany (with Bohemia, Hungary, Poland, Sweden, and Denmark).

_Second Principal Epoch._--From the commencement of the Opera until the development of Instrumental Music and Chamber Music (A.D. 1600-1700). Division of the Art of Music into Church Music and Operatic Music. First appearance of some distinguished performers on instruments. 1, Italy (with Spain and Portugal); 2, France (with the Netherlands); 3, England; 4, Germany (with Bohemia, Hungary, Poland, Sweden, and Denmark).

_Third Principal Epoch._--From the development of Instrumental Music until the end of the Eighteenth Century (A.D. 1700-1800). Division of Church Music, Operatic Music, and Instrumental Music. 1, Italy (with Spain and Portugal); 2, France (with the Netherlands); 3, England; 4, Germany (with Bohemia, Hungary, Poland, Sweden, and Denmark).

After these Divisions and Sub-divisions follows an alphabetically-arranged Register of the names of the musicians who are mentioned in the different Periods and Epochs. But also here we have Divisions and Sub-divisions, so that the Register, in fact, consists of six Indices, each containing the musicians of a certain epoch or a certain country, from A to Z. The author says that the plan of the work renders this arrangement necessary; but, as he does not prove his assertion, students using the work for reference will probably arrive at the conviction that one general Index, containing all the names in alphabetical order, would be more convenient. Another disadvantage is that the Indices are entirely restricted to the names of musicians, no reference being made to important events relating to the history of music. In fact, the chief aim of the work is to notice a great many musicians. The number of composers, theorists, and performers entered amounts to 1713, of whom 236 belong to the ancient Greeks and Romans, 132 to the Middle Ages, and 1345 to European nations from A.D. 1400 to 1800. Many of these musicians have left no mark upon the history of their art, and their names have justly fallen into oblivion. These might better have been omitted. Of what use, for instance, can it be to the student to be supplied with the names of the musicians who played before Alexander the Great on the occasion of his marriage with Roxanen, at Samarkand, in the year B.C. 328? Especially among the 1345 composers who distinguished themselves during the four centuries from A.D. 1400 to 1800 are many who might now as well have been left at rest. What possible advantage can the student derive from a record of mediocre pianoforte composers whose productions were not held in much esteem even during their lifetime? On the other hand, it was prudent in the author not to extend his list beyond the year 1800. The distinguished musicians of the present century are known to readers who take an interest in the history of the art, and who are most likely to use the book. Anyhow, it would be a delicate task to admit the names of living musicians, some of whom may still become more celebrated than they are, while others may show that they really are not so clever as they at first appeared to be. It is impossible to assign his proper place in the history of his art to an artist before he is dead.

Czerny has had the happy thought of placing in a column before each chronological table short memoranda of the events in general history of the time when the composers lived. Nothing can be more advisable to a professional musician than to make himself familiar with this column of facts bearing directly upon his art. There can hardly be a doubt that other artists,--especially painters and sculptors,--generally possess more historical knowledge than musicians. Perhaps their occupation suggests to them more forcibly the value of such information. Be this as it may, the music of an intelligent musician is better than that of an ignorant, narrow-minded one; even for this reason, musicians ought to study universal history, were it not on account of the intimate connection of the cultivation of the arts with the progress of civilization.

Moreover, if we are exactly acquainted with the political and social conditions of the time in which a distinguished artist lived, we are the better able to appreciate his merits. Unfortunately, Czerny records the musicians under the date of their birth. Thus, many are mentioned in the century previous to that in which they flourished. Take for instance Handel and Sebastian Bach: both were born in the year 1685, and produced their great works during the first half of the eighteenth century. Now, if the plan of recording the musicians under the date of their birth had been throughout adhered to, the student might, as a general rule, surmise the time of their activity to have been about half a century later. But, of several celebrities the date of whose birth is unknown, Czerny gives some year in which they are known to have distinguished themselves, and this deviation from the plan leads to confusion in the chronological arrangement. True, it is impossible to determine exactly the year in which the musician in his lifetime exercised the greatest influence upon his art; but, this can be done as nearly as possible by adopting his fortieth or fiftieth year as that of his best period. Those who did not attain that age might be noticed under a date referring to the period when they most distinguished themselves, which was generally the case during the last few years of their life.

Again, the mention of the musicians of each country separately has too little advantage to justify the inconvenience thereby occasioned to the student. Cherubini, like Bellini and Donizetti, is classed with the Italian composers; he would, however, have been more properly placed with the German composers. Rossini, when he wrote 'Guillaume Tell,' was more German than some musicians born in Germany. Lulli, the founder of the old French opera is certainly more properly mentioned with the French musicians than with the Italian. Other examples could be pointed out which evoke the question whether such a complicated classification really serves a scientific purpose.

In the 'Chronology of the History of Music' offered in the following pages, in which Czerny's tables have been of great assistance, the aim has been to avoid the defects just noticed. It will be seen that only a brief survey of the most important events in the history of music has been attempted. When the student has ascertained these, he will probably choose to refer to some treatise on the history of music instead of a more extensive chronological table. But the latter may afterwards be of use to him inasmuch as it will assist him in recalling to his memory in proper order those facts with which he has become more minutely acquainted by reading the treatise.

As some account of the mythological traditions respecting the origin of music has already been given in the present work,[112] there is no necessity to advert to them here.

The recorded dates of the Greek music with which the survey commences must not be taken as authentic until we arrive at about the seventh century before the Christian era.

[112] Vol. I., p. 74.

CHRONOLOGY OF THE HISTORY OF MUSIC.