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diff --git a/old/65505-0.txt b/old/65505-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 47dc71d..0000000 --- a/old/65505-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,5980 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of Musical Instruments, by Carl Engel - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: Musical Instruments - -Author: Carl Engel - -Release Date: June 4, 2021 [eBook #65505] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -Produced by: Carol Brown, Turgut Dincer and the Online Distributed - Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was - produced from images generously made available by The Internet - Archive and the HathiTrust.) - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS *** - - [Illustration: FIG. 1.――MUSIC. After an oil painting attributed to - Melozzo da Forlì (1438-1494). - National Gallery.] - - - - -BOARD OF EDUCATION, SOUTH KENSINGTON, - -VICTORIA AND ALBERT MUSEUM. - - - - -MUSICAL - -INSTRUMENTS - -BY - -CARL ENGEL - - -_WITH SEVENTY-EIGHT ILLUSTRATIONS_ - - [Illustration: logo] - -REVISED EDITION. - -LONDON: - -PRINTED FOR HIS MAJESTY’S STATIONERY OFFICE, - -By WYMAN AND SONS, LIMITED, 109, FETTER LANE, E.C. - - - - -And to be purchased, either directly or through any Bookseller, from - -WYMAN AND SONS, LIMITED, 109, FETTER LANE, FLEET STREET, E.C. or - -OLIVER AND BOYD, TWEEDDALE COURT, EDINBURGH; or - -E. PONSONBY, 116, GRAFTON STREET, DUBLIN. - -1908. - -_Price_ 1_s._ 6_d._; _in Cloth_, 2_s._ 3_d._ - - - - -NOTE. - - -In the preparation of the revised edition of the late Dr. Engel’s -handbook, first published in 1875, care has been taken to make as few -alterations as possible and to express no views from which he might -have dissented. - -The greatly enlarged chapter relating to post-mediæval instruments has -been chiefly compiled from Dr. Engel’s Descriptive Catalogue of the -musical instruments in the Museum, published in 1874. - -The pages relating to the Ancient Egyptians have been revised by Dr. -W. M. Flinders Petrie, those dealing with the Greeks, Etruscans and -Romans by Dr. Cecil H. Smith, and the description of Chinese and -Japanese instruments by Dr. Stephen W. Bushell. The thanks of the -Board are due to these gentlemen for their valuable co-operation. - - - - -CONTENTS. - - - PAGE - -NOTE iii - -LIST OF CONTENTS v - - “ ” ILLUSTRATIONS vii - -CHAPTER I.――Introduction 1 - - “ II.――Pre-Historic Relics and Ancient Egyptian 9 - - “ III.――Assyrian and Hebrew 16 - - “ IV.――Greek, Etruscan and Roman 27 - - “ V.――Oriental 37 - - “ VI.――American Indian 58 - - “ VII.――European Instruments of the Middle Ages 83 - - “ VIII.――European Instruments of the Middle Ages 92 - - “ IX.――European Instruments of the Middle Ages 99 - - “ X.――Post-Mediæval Instruments 104 - -APPENDIX 135 - -INDEX 139 - - - - -LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. - - -FIG. PAGE. - - 1.――MUSIC, after an oil painting attributed to Melozzo da - Forlì (1438-1494) _Frontispiece_ - - 2.――PAINTED WOODEN HARP. Ancient Egyptian. XVIIIth - dynasty (B.C. 1450) _Facing_ 10 - - 3.――BRONZE AND REED FLUTES. Ancient Egyptian. B.C. 600, - or later _Facing_ 12 - - 4.――BRONZE SISTRA. Ancient Egyptian. XXIInd-XXVIth - dynasty (B.C. 1000-600) _Facing_ 14 - - 5.――SERIES OF BELLS. Ancient Egyptian. Late Period 15 - - 6.――A MUSE WITH A HARP, AND TWO OTHERS WITH LYRES. - From a Greek vase 29 - - 7.――PAIR OF BRONZE FLUTES, with mouthpiece in the form of a - bust of a Mænad holding a bunch of grapes. - Greek _Facing_ 30 - - 8.――A MUSE PLAYING THE DIAULOS. Greek 31 - - 9.――WALL PAINTING of a youth wearing a myrtle wreath and - playing on the DOUBLE PIPES. Said to have been found - in a columbarium in the Vigna Ammendola on the Appian - Way near Rome, about 1823. British Museum _Facing_ 34 - - 10.――TUBA, CORNU AND LITUUS. Roman 35 - - 11.――HSÜAN. Chinese 42 - - 12.――(_a_) CH’IN (a species of Lute). Modern Chinese - (_b_) SHÊNG (Mouth Organ). Chinese. 19th century - (_c_) YUEH-CH’IN (Moon Guitar). Chinese. 19th century - _Facing_ 42 - - 13.――(_a_) KOTO (a species of Lute). Japanese. 19th century - (_b_) BIWA (a species of Guitar). Modern Japanese - (_c_) SÂMISEN. Japanese _Facing_ 44 - - 14.――(_a_) SÂRINDA AND BOW. Indian (Bengal). 19th century - (_b_) RUDRA VINA. Southern Indian (Madras). 19th century - (_c_) SÂRANGI AND BOW. Southern Indian. 19th century - _Facing_ 48 - - 15.――(_a_) KEMÁNGEH OR SITÂRA OR FIDDLE. Persian. About 1800 - (_b_) NUY (Flute). Persian. 19th century - (_c_) SANTIR (Dulcimer) CASE. Persian _Facing_ 54 - - 16.――POTTERY WHISTLES, with finger-holes. Ancient Mexican 59 - - 17.――POTTERY FLAGEOLETS, with finger-holes. (_a_) and (_c_) - Ancient Mexican; (_b_) from the Island of Sacrificios - _Facing_ 60 - - 18.――BONE FLUTES. Ancient Peruvian, (_a_) and (_b_) Truxillo; - (_c_) Lima _Facing_ 60 - - 19.――HUAYRA-PUHURA, discovered in a Peruvian tomb 64 - - 20.――WOODEN TRUMPET. Used by Indians near the Orinoco 65 - - 21.――JURUPARIS, with and without cover. South American 66 - - 22.――BOTUTO. Used by Indians near the Orinoco 68 - - 23.――CITHARA. From a 9th century MS. formerly in the - monastery of St. Blasius in the Black Forest 84 - - 24.――PSALTERIUM. From a 9th century MS. formerly in the - monastery of St. Blasius in the Black Forest 85 - - 25.――CITHARA. From a 9th century MS. formerly in the monastery - of St. Blasius in the Black Forest 85 - - 26.――KING PLAYING PSALTERY. After an engraving in N. X. - Willemin’s _Monuments Français Inédits_, Vol. I., - pl. 19, taken from _Hortus Deliciarum_, a MS. of the - 12th century 86 - - 27.――NABLUM. From a 9th century MS. at Angers 86 - - 28.――FEMALE PLAYING A SPECIES OF CITOLE. From a 9th - century MS. formerly in the monastery of St. Blasius - in the Black Forest 86 - - 29.――HARP. From a 9th century MS. formerly in the monastery - of St. Blasius in the Black Forest 87 - - 30.――CRWTH. Welsh. 18th century _Facing_ 90 - - 31.――ORGANISTRUM 93 - - 32.――SACKBUT 94 - - 33.――ORGAN. From a 12th century psalter in the library of - Trinity College, Cambridge 95 - - 34.――ORGAN (Grand Orgue). After an engraving in N. X. - Willemin’s _Monuments Français Inédits_ 96 - - 35.――BAS-RELIEF, representing a group of musicians, formerly - at the abbey of St. Georges de Boscherville. Late - 11th century (?). After an engraving in N. X. - Willemin’s _Monuments Français Inédits_ _Facing_ 98 - - 36.――HURDY-GURDY (Vielle). With arms of France and crowned - monogram of Henry II. on back and front. About - 1550 _Facing_ 100 - - 37.――TYMPANUM of the Glory Gate of the Cathedral of Santiago - de Compostella. Dated 1188. From a plaster cast in - the Victoria and Albert Museum _Facing_ 100 - - 38.――MINSTREL GALLERY, Exeter Cathedral. 14th century. - From a plaster cast in the Victoria and Albert - Museum _Facing_ 102 - - 39.――LUTE. Italian (Venetian). Beginning of the 17th century - _Facing_ 104 - - 40.――ANGEL PLAYING A LUTE. After an oil painting by - Ambrogio da Predis. Late 15th century _Facing_ 104 - - 41.――ARCHLUTE. Inscribed “Rauche in Chandos Street, - London, 1762” _Facing_ 104 - - 42.――CHITARRONE. Italian. Made by Buchenberg in Rome, - anno 1614 _Facing_ 106 - - 43.――PANDURINA. French. Second half of 16th century - _Facing_ 108 - - 44.――GUITAR. French (?). 17th century _Facing_ 108 - - 45.――QUINTERNA, OR CHITERNA. German. Dated 1539 _Facing_ 108 - - 46.――CITHER. German. End of 17th century _Facing_ 108 - - 47.――HARP THEORBO. Made by Harley. English. About 1800 - _Facing_ 110 - - 48.――HARP VENTURA. English. Early 19th century _Facing_ 110 - - 49.――BANDURIA. English. Early 19th century _Facing_ 110 - - 50.――HARP. Old Irish _Facing_ 110 - - 51.――HARP. French. About 1770 _Facing_ 112 - - 52.――VIOLIN. Said to have belonged to James I. English. - Early 17th century _Facing_ 112 - - 53.――ANGEL PLAYING A VIOL. After an oil painting by - Ambrogio da Predis. Late 15th century _Facing_ 104 - - 54.――VIOLA DA GAMBA. Italian. About 1600 _Facing_ 114 - - 55.――VIOLA DA GAMBA. Italian. 17th century _Facing_ 114 - - 56.――VIOLA DI BARDONE, OR BARITON, WITH BOW. German. - 17th century _Facing_ 114 - - 57.――VIOLA D’AMORE. Probably English. Late 17th century - _Facing_ 116 - - 58.――DOUBLE-BASS, WITH BOW. Known as “The Giant.” - Italian. 17th century _Facing_ 116 - - 59.――SORDINO, OR POCHETTE. Probably German. Late 17th - or early 18th century _Facing_ 118 - - 60.――BÛCHE, OR SCHEITHOLZ. Made by Fleurot, of the Val - d’Ajol in the Vosges Mountains. Early 19th - century _Facing_ 118 - - 61.――VIRGINAL. Formerly belonging to Queen Elizabeth. - Italian. Second half of 16th century _Facing_ 118 - - 62.――VIRGINAL. Flemish. Second half of 16th century - _Facing_ 118 - - 63.――SPINET. Made by Annibale dei Rossi of Milan. Italian. - Dated 1577 _Facing_ 120 - - 64.――SPINET. Signed “Johannes Player fecit” English. - About 1700 _Facing_ 120 - - 65.――CLAVICHORD. Inscribed “Barthold Fritz fecit, Braunschweig, - anno 1751.” German. 18th century _Facing_ 120 - - 66.――CLAVICEMBALO. Signed “Joanes Antonius Baffo, - Venetus.” Italian. Dated 1574 _Facing_ 122 - - 67.――CLAVECIN. Made by Pascal Taskin of Paris. French. - Dated 1786 _Facing_ 124 - - 68.――ORGAN-HARPSICHORD, OR CLAVIORGANUM. Formerly in - the chapel of Ightham Mote, near Sevenoaks, Kent. - Probably English _Facing_ 124 - - 69.――TRIPLE FLAGEOLET. Italian. About 1820 _Facing_ 124 - - 70.――FLAUTO DOLCE, OR FLUTE. Ivory. Inscribed “Anciuti - a Milan, 1740” _Facing_ 124 - - 71.――FLAGEOLET. Italian. Middle of 18th century _Facing_ 126 - - 72.――OBOE. Made by Anciuti of Milan. Formerly in the - possession of the composer Rossini. Latter half - of 18th century _Facing_ 126 - - 73.――BASSOON, species of. English. Late 18th, or early 19th - century _Facing_ 128 - - 74.――THE SERPENT. Made by Gerock Wolf, in London. - English. Early 19th century _Facing_ 128 - - 75.――SERINETTE OR BIRD ORGAN. French. Period of Louis XIV. - _Facing_ 128 - - 76.――ORGAN (Positive). German. Dated 1627 _Facing_ 128 - - 77.――BAGPIPES. English. 18th century _Facing_ 130 - - 78.――HANDEL’S HARPSICHORD. Made by Andreas Ruckers, of - Antwerp, 1651 _Facing_ 134 - - - - -MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS. - - - - -I. - -INTRODUCTION. - - -Music, in however primitive a stage of development it may be with some -nations, is universally appreciated as one of the Fine Arts. The -origin of vocal music may have been coeval with that of language; and -the construction of musical instruments evidently dates with the -earliest inventions which suggested themselves to human ingenuity. -There exist even at the present day some savage tribes in Australia -and South America who, although they have no more than the five first -numerals in their language and are thereby unable to count the fingers -of both hands together, nevertheless possess musical instruments of -their own contrivance, with which they accompany their songs and -dances. - -Wood, metal, and the hide of animals are the most common substances -used in the construction of musical instruments. In tropical countries -bamboo or some similar kind of cane and gourds are especially made use -of for this purpose. The ingenuity of man has contrived to employ in -producing music, horn, bone, glass, pottery, slabs of sonorous -stone――in fact, almost all vibrating matter. The strings of -instruments have been made of the hair of animals, of silk, the -runners of creeping plants, the fibrous roots of certain trees, of -cane, catgut (which, absurdly referred to the cat, is from the sheep, -goat, lamb, camel, and some other animals), metal, etc. - -The mode in which individual nations or tribes are in the habit of -embellishing their musical instruments is sometimes as characteristic -as it is singular. The negroes in several districts of Western Africa -affix to their drums human skulls. A war-trumpet of the king of -Ashantee which was brought to England is surrounded by human jawbones. -The Maoris in New Zealand carve around the mouth-hole of their -trumpets a figure intended, it is said, to represent female lips. The -materials for ornamentation chiefly employed by savages are bright -colours, beads, shells, grasses, the bark of trees, feathers, stones, -gilding, pieces of looking-glass inlaid like mosaic, etc. Uncivilised -nations are sure to consider anything which is bright and glittering -ornamental, especially if it is also scarce. Captain Tuckey saw in -Congo a negro instrument which was ornamented with part of the broken -frame of a looking-glass, to which were affixed in a semicircle a -number of brass buttons with the head of Louis XVI. on them,――perhaps -a relic of some French sailor drowned near the coast years ago. - -Again, musical instruments are not infrequently formed in the shape of -certain animals. Thus, a kind of harmonicon of the Chinese represents -the figure of a crouching tiger. The Burmese possess a stringed -instrument in the shape of an alligator. Even more grotesque are the -imitations of various beasts adopted by the Javanese. The natives of -New Guinea have a singularly shaped drum, terminating in the head of a -reptile. A wooden rattle like a bird is a favourite instrument of the -Indians of Nootka Sound. In short, not only the inner construction of -the instruments and their peculiar quality of sound exhibit in most -nations certain distinctive characteristics, but it is also in great -measure true as to their outward appearance. - -An arrangement of the various kinds of musical instruments in a -regular order, beginning with that kind which is the most universally -known, and progressing gradually to the least usual, gives the -following results. Instruments of percussion of indefinite -sonorousness or, in other words, pulsatile instruments which have not -a sound of a fixed pitch, as the drum, rattle, castanets, etc., are -most universal. Wind instruments of the flute kind――including pipes, -whistles, flutes, Pandean pipes, etc.――are also to be found almost -everywhere. - -Much the same is the case with wind instruments of the trumpet kind. -These are often made of the horns, bones, and tusks of animals; -frequently of vegetable substances and of metal. Instruments of -percussion of definite sonorousness are chiefly met with in China, -Japan, Burmah, Siam, and Java. They not infrequently contain a series -of tones produced by slabs of wood or metal, which are beaten with a -sort of hammer, as our harmonicon is played. - -Stringed instruments without a finger board, or any similar -contrivance which enables the performer to produce a number of -different tones on one string, are generally found among nations whose -musical accomplishments have emerged from the earliest state of -infancy. The strings are twanged with the fingers or with a piece of -wood, horn, metal, or any other suitable substance serving as a -_plectrum_; or are made to vibrate by being beaten with a hammer, as -our dulcimer. Stringed instruments provided with a finger-board on -which different tones are producible on one string by the performer -shortening it more or less――as on the guitar and violin――are met with -almost exclusively among nations in a somewhat advanced stage of -musical progress. Such as are played with a bow are the least common; -they are, however, known to the Chinese, Japanese, Hindus, Persians, -Arabs, and a few other nations, besides those of Europe and their -descendants in other countries. - -Wind instruments of the organ kind――_i.e._, such as are constructed of -a number of tubes which can be sounded together by means of a common -mouthpiece or some similar contrivance, and upon which therefore -chords and combinations of chords, or harmony, can be produced――are -comparatively of rare occurrence. Some interesting specimens of them -exist in China, Japan, Laos, and Siam. - -Besides these various kinds of sound-producing means employed in -musical performances, a few others less widely diffused could be -pointed out, which are of a construction not represented in any of our -well-known European specimens. For instance, some nations have -peculiar instruments of friction, which can hardly be classed with our -instruments of percussion. Again, there are contrivances in which a -number of strings are caused to vibrate by a current of air much as is -the case with the Æolian harp; which might with equal propriety be -considered either as stringed instruments or as wind instruments. In -short, our usual classification of all the various species into three -distinct divisions, viz., _Stringed Instruments_, _Wind Instruments_, -and _Instruments of Percussion_, is not tenable if we extend our -researches over the whole globe. - -The collection at South Kensington contains several foreign -instruments which cannot fail to prove interesting to the musician. -Recent investigations have more and more elicited the fact that the -music of every nation exhibits some distinctive characteristics which -may afford valuable hints to a composer or performer. A familiarity -with the popular songs of different countries is advisable on account -of the remarkable originality of the airs; these mostly spring from -the heart. Hence the natural and true expression, the delightful -health and vigour by which they are generally distinguished. Our more -artificial compositions are, on the other hand, not infrequently -deficient in these charms, because they often emanate from the lingers -or the pen rather than from the heart. Howbeit, the predominance of -expressive melody and effective rhythm over harmonious combinations, -so usual in the popular compositions of various nations, would alone -suffice to recommend them to the careful attention of our modern -musicians. The same may be said with regard to the surprising variety -in construction and in manner of expression prevailing in the popular -songs and dance-tunes of different countries. Indeed, every nation’s -musical effusions exhibit a character peculiarly their own, with which -the musician would find it advantageous to familiarise himself. - -Now, it will easily be understood that an acquaintance with the -musical instruments of a nation conveys a more correct idea than could -otherwise be obtained of the characteristic features of the nation’s -musical compositions. Furthermore, in many instances the construction -of the instruments reveals to us the nature of the musical intervals, -scales, modulations, and suchlike noteworthy facts. True, inquiries -like these have hitherto not received from musicians the attention -which they deserve. The adepts in most other arts are in this respect -in advance. They are convinced that useful information may be gathered -by investigating the productions even of uncivilised nations, and by -thus tracing the gradual progress of an art from its primitive infancy -to its highest degree of development. - -Again, from an examination of the musical instruments of foreign -nations we may derive valuable hints for the improvement of our own; -or even for the invention of new. Several principles of construction -have thus been adopted by us from eastern nations. For instance, the -_free reed_ used in the harmonium is an importation from China. The -organ builder Kratzenstein, who lived in St. Petersburg during the -reign of Catherine II., happened to see the Chinese instrument -_cheng_, which is of this construction, and it suggested to him, about -the end of the 18th century, to apply the _free reed_ to certain organ -stops. At the present day instruments of the harmonium class have -become such universal favourites in western Europe as almost to -compete with the pianoforte. - -Several other well-authenticated instances could be cited in which one -instrument has suggested the construction of another of a superior -kind. The prototype of our pianoforte was evidently the dulcimer, -known at an early time to the Arabs and Persians, who call it -_santir_. One of the old names given to the dulcimer by European -nations is _cimbal_. The Poles at the present day call it _cymbaly_, -and the Magyars in Hungary _cimbalom_. The _clavicembalo_, the -predecessor of the pianoforte, was in fact nothing but a _cembalo_ -with a key board attached to it; and some of the old _clavicembali_ -still preserved, exhibit the trapezium shape, the round hole in the -middle of the sound-board, and other peculiarities of the first -dulcimer. Again, the gradual development of the dulcimer from a rude -contrivance, consisting merely of a wooden board across which a few -strings are stretched, is distinctly traceable by a reference to the -musical instruments of nations in different stages of civilisation. -The same is the case with our highly perfected harp, of which curious -specimens, representing the instrument in its most primitive -condition, are still to be found among several barbarous tribes. We -might perhaps infer from its shape that it originally consisted of -nothing more than an elastic stick bent by a string. The Damaras, a -native tribe of South-western Africa, actually use their bow -occasionally as a musical instrument when they are not engaged in war -or in the chase. They tighten the string nearly in the middle by means -of a leathern thong, whereby they obtain two distinct sounds, which, -for want of a sound board, are of course very weak and scarcely -audible to anyone but the performer. Some neighbouring tribes, -however, possess a musical instrument very similar in appearance to -the bow, to which they attach a gourd, hollowed and open at the top, -which serves as a sound-board. Again, other African tribes have a -similar instrument, superior in construction only inasmuch as it -contains more than one string, and is provided with a sound-board -consisting of a suitable piece of sonorous wood. In short, the more -improved we find these contrivances the closer they approach our harp. -And it could be shown, if this were requisite for our present purpose, -that much the same gradual progress towards perfection, which we -observe in the African harp, is traceable in the harps of several -nations in different parts of the world. - -Moreover, a collection of musical instruments deserves the attention -of the ethnologist as much as of the musician. Indeed, this may be -asserted of national music in general; for it gives us an insight into -the heart of man, reveals to us the feelings and predilections of -different races on the globe, and affords us a clue to the natural -affinity which exists between different families of men. Again, a -collection must prove interesting in a historical point of view. -Scholars will find among old instruments specimens which were in -common use in England at the time of Queen Elizabeth, and which are -not unfrequently mentioned in the literature of that period. In many -instances the passages in which allusion is made to them can hardly be -understood, if we are unacquainted with the shape and construction of -the instruments. Furthermore, these relics of bygone times bring -before our eyes the manners and customs of our forefathers, and assist -us in understanding them correctly. - -It will be seen that the modification which our orchestra has -undergone, in the course of scarcely more than a century, is great -indeed. Most of the instruments which were highly popular about a -hundred years ago have either fallen into disuse or are now so much -altered that they may almost be considered as new inventions. Among -Asiatic nations, on the other hand, we meet with several instruments -which have retained unchanged through many centuries their old -construction and outward appearance. At South Kensington may be seen -instruments still in use in Egypt and western Asia, precisely like -specimens represented on monuments dating from a period of three -thousand years ago. By a reference to the Eastern instruments of the -present time we obtain therefore a key for investigating the earlier -Egyptian and Assyrian representations of musical performances; and -likewise, for appreciating more exactly the biblical records -respecting the music of the Hebrews. Perhaps these evidences will -convey to some inquirers a less high opinion than they have hitherto -entertained, regarding the musical accomplishments of the Hebrew bands -in the solemn processions of King David or in Solomon’s temple; but -the opinion will be all the nearer to the truth. - -There is another point of interest about such collections, and -especially that at South Kensington, which must not be left unnoticed. -Several instruments are remarkable on account of their elegant shape -and tasteful ornamentation. This is particularly the case with some -specimens from Asiatic countries. The beautiful designs with which -they are embellished may afford valuable patterns for study and for -adoption in works of art. - - - - -II. - -PRE-HISTORIC RELICS AND ANCIENT EGYPTIAN. - - -A really complete account of all the musical instruments from the -earliest time known to us would require much more space than can here -be afforded. We can attempt only a concise historical survey. We -venture to hope that the illustrations interspersed throughout the -text will to the intelligent reader elucidate many facts which, for -the reason stated, are touched upon but cursorily. - - -PRE-HISTORIC RELICS. - -A musical relic has been exhumed in the department of Dordogne in -France, which was constructed in an age when the fauna of France -included the reindeer, the rhinoceros and the mammoth, the hyæna, the -bear, and the cave-lion. It is a small bone somewhat less than two -inches in length, in which is a hole, evidently bored by means of one -of the little flint knives which men used before acquaintance with the -employment of metal for tools and weapons.[1] Many of these flints -were found in the same place with the bones. Only about half a dozen -of the bones, of which a considerable number have been exhumed, -possess the artificial hole. - -M. Lartet surmises the perforated bone to have been used as a whistle -in hunting animals. It is the first digital phalanx of a ruminant, -drilled to a certain depth by a smooth cylindrical bore on its lower -surface near the expanded upper articulation. On applying it to the -lower lip and blowing into it a shrill sound is yielded. Three of -these phalanges are of reindeer, one is of chamois. Again, among the -relics which have been brought to light from the cave of Lombrive, in -the department of Ariège, occur several eye-teeth of the dog, which -have a hole drilled into them near the root. Probably they also yield -sounds, like those reindeer bones, or like the tube of a key. Another -whistle――or rather a pipe, for it has three finger-holes by means of -which different tones could be produced――was found in a burying-place, -dating from the stone period, in the vicinity of Poitiers in France; -it is rudely constructed from a fragment of stag’s horn. It is blown -at the end, like a _flûte à bec_, and the three-finger holes are -placed equidistantly. Four distinct tones must have been easily -obtainable on it: the lowest, when all the finger-holes were covered; -the other three, by opening the finger-holes successively. From the -character of the stone utensils and weapons discovered with this pipe -it is conjectured that the burying-place from which it was exhumed -dates from the latest time of the stone age. Therefore, however old it -may be, it is a more recent contrivance than the reindeer-bone whistle -from the cavern of the Dordogne. - - -THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS. - -The most ancient nations historically known possessed musical -instruments which, though in acoustic construction greatly inferior to -our own, exhibit a degree of perfection which could have been attained -only after a long period of cultivation. Many tribes of the present -day have not yet reached this stage of musical progress. - - [Illustration: FIG. 2.――PAINTED WOODEN HARP. Ancient Egyptian, XVIIIth - dynasty (B.C. 1450). - British Museum.] - -As regards the instruments of the ancient Egyptians we now possess -perhaps more detailed information than of those appertaining to any -other nation of antiquity. This information we owe especially to the -exactness with which the instruments are depicted in sculptures and -paintings[2]. Whoever has examined these interesting monuments with -even ordinary care cannot but be convinced that the representations -which they exhibit are faithful transcripts from life. Moreover, if -there remained any doubt respecting the accuracy of the representations -of the musical instruments it might be dispelled by existing evidence. -Several specimens have been discovered in tombs, preserved in a more -or less perfect condition. - -The Egyptians possessed various kinds of harps, some of which were -elegantly shaped and tastefully ornamented. The largest were about 6½ -feet high; and the small ones frequently had some sort of stand which -enabled the performer to play upon the instrument while standing. The -name of the harp was _bene_. Its frame had no front pillar; the -tension of the strings therefore cannot have been anything like so -strong as on our present harp. (Fig. 2.) - -The Egyptian harps most remarkable for elegance of form and elaborate -decoration are the two which were first noticed by Bruce who found -them painted in fresco on the walls of a sepulchre at Thebes, supposed -to be the tomb of Rameses III. who reigned about 1170 B.C. Bruce’s -discovery created a sensation among musicians. The fact that at so -remote an age the Egyptians should have possessed harps which vie with -our own in elegance and beauty of form appeared to some so incredible -that the correctness of Bruce’s representations, as engraved in his -“Travels,” was greatly doubted. Sketches of the same harps, taken -subsequently and at different times from the frescoes, have since been -published, but they differ more or less from each other in appearance -and in the number of strings. A kind of triangular harp of the -Egyptians was discovered in a well-preserved condition and is now -deposited in the Louvre. It has twenty-one strings; a greater number -than is generally represented on the monuments. All these instruments, -however much they differed from each other in form, had one -peculiarity in common, namely the absence of the fore pillar. - -The _nefer_, a kind of guitar, was almost identical in construction -with the Tamboura at the present day in use among several eastern -nations. It was evidently a great favourite with the ancient -Egyptians, and occurs in representations of concerts dating earlier -than from B.C. 1500. The _nefer_ affords the best proof that the -Egyptians had made considerable progress in music at a very early age; -since it shows that they understood how to produce on a few strings, -by means of the finger-board, a greater number of notes than were -obtainable even on their harps. The instrument had two or four -strings, was played with a plectrum and appears to have been -sometimes, if not always, provided with frets. In the British Museum -is a fragment of a fresco obtained from a tomb at Thebes, on which two -female performers on the _nefer_ are represented. The painter has -distinctly indicated the frets. - -Small pipes or flutes of the Egyptians have been discovered, made of -reed, with three, four, five, or more finger-holes. There are some -interesting examples in the British Museum; one of which has seven -holes burnt in at the side (Fig. 3). Two straws were found with it of -nearly the same length as the pipe, which is about one foot long. In -some other pipes pieces of a kind of thick straw have also been found -inserted into the tube, obviously serving for a similar purpose as the -_reed_ in our oboe or clarionet. - - [Illustration: FIG. 3.――BRONZE AND REED FLUTES. Ancient Egyptian. - B.C. 600 or later. - British Museum.] - -The _sebȧ_, a single flute, was of considerable length, and the -performer appears to have been obliged to extend his arms almost at -full length in order to reach the furthest finger-hole. As _sebȧ_ -is also the name of the leg-bone (like the Latin _tibia_) it may be -supposed that the Egyptian flute was originally made of bone. Those, -however, which have been found are of wood or reed. - -A flute-concert is painted on one of the tombs in the pyramids of -Gizeh and dates, according to Lepsius, from an age earlier than B.C. -2000. Eight musicians are performing on flutes. Three of them, one -behind the other, are kneeling and holding their flutes in exactly the -same manner. Facing these are three others, in a precisely similar -position. A seventh is sitting on the ground to the left of the six, -with his back turned towards them, but also in the act of blowing his -flute, like the others. An eighth is standing at the right side of the -group with his face turned towards them, holding his flute before him -with both hands, as if he were going to put it to his mouth, or had -just left off playing. He is clothed, while the others have only a -narrow girdle round their loins. Perhaps he is the director of this -singular band, or the _solo_ performer who is waiting for the -termination of the _tutti_ before renewing his part of the -performance. The division of the players into two sets, facing each -other, suggests the possibility that the instruments were classed -somewhat like the first and second violins, or the _flauto primo_ and -_flauto secondo_ of our orchestras. The occasional employment of the -interval of the third, or the fifth, as accompaniment to the melody, -is not unusual even with nations less advanced in music than were the -ancient Egyptians. - -The Double-Pipe, called _mam_, appears to have been a very popular -instrument, if we judge from the frequency of its occurrence in the -representations of musical performances. Furthermore, the Egyptians -had, as far as is known to us, two kinds of trumpets; three kinds of -tambourines, or little hand drums; three kinds of drums, chiefly -barrel-shaped; and various kinds of gongs, bells, cymbals, and -castanets. The trumpet appears to have been usually of brass. A -peculiar wind-instrument, somewhat the shape of a champagne bottle and -perhaps made of pottery or wood, also occurs in the representations -transmitted to us. - -The Egyptian drum was from two to three feet in length, covered with -parchment at both ends and braced by cords. The performer carried it -before him, generally by means of a band over his shoulder, while he -was heating it with his hands on both ends. Of another kind of drum an -actual specimen has been found in the excavations made in the year -1823 at Thebes. It was 1½ feet high and 2 feet broad, and had cords -for bracing it. A piece of catgut encircled each end of the drum, -being wound round each cord, by means of which the cords could be -tightened or slackened at pleasure by pushing the two hands of catgut -towards or from each other. It was beaten with two drumsticks slightly -bent. The Egyptians had also straight drumsticks with a handle, and a -knob at the end. The Berlin museum possesses some of these. The third -kind of drum was almost identical with the _darabuka_ of the modern -Egyptians. The Tambourine was either round, like that which is at the -present time in use in Europe as well as in the east; or it was of an -oblong square shape, slightly incurved on the four sides. - - [Illustration: FIG. 4.――BRONZE SISTRA. Ancient Egyptian. - XXIInd-XXVIth dynasty (B.C. 1000-600). - -The Sistrum consisted of a frame of bronze into which three or four -metal bars were loosely inserted, so as to produce a jingling noise -when the instrument was shaken. (Fig. 4.) The bars were often made in -the form of snakes, or they terminated in the head of a goose. Not -unfrequently a few metal rings were strung on the bars, to increase -the noise. The frame was sometimes ornamented with the figure of a -cat. The largest sistra which have been found are about eighteen -inches in length, and the smallest about nine inches. The sistrum was -principally used by females in religious performances. Its Egyptian -name was _seshesh_. - -The Egyptian cymbals closely resembled our own in shape. There are -several pairs of them in the British museum. One pair was found in a -coffin enclosing the mummy of a sacred musician, and is deposited in -the same case with the mummy and coffin. Among the Egyptian -antiquities in the British museum are also several small bells of -bronze (Fig. 5). The largest is 2¼ inches in height, and the smallest -three-quarters of an inch. Some of them have a hole at the side near -the top wherein the clapper was fastened. - - [Illustration: FIG. 5.――SERIES OF BELLS. Ancient Egyptian. Late - Period. The smaller examples were sewn on wearing - apparel. - British Museum.] - - - - -III. - -ASSYRIAN AND HEBREW. - - -THE ASSYRIANS. - -Our acquaintance with the Assyrian instruments has been derived almost -entirely from the famous bas-reliefs which have been excavated from -the mounds of Nimroud, Khorsabad, and Kouyunjik (the site of the -ancient Nineveh), situated near the river Tigris in the vicinity of -the town of Mosul in Asiatic Turkey. - -The Assyrian harp was about four feet high, and appears of larger size -than it actually was on account of the ornamental appendages which -were affixed to the lower part of its frame. It must have been but -light in weight, since we find it not unfrequently represented in the -hands of persons who are playing upon it while they are dancing. Like -all the Oriental harps, modern as well as ancient, it was not provided -with a front pillar. The upper portion of the frame contained the -sound-holes, somewhat in the shape of an hourglass. Below them were -the screws, or tuning-pegs, arranged in regular order. The strings -were perhaps made of silk, like those which the Burmese use at the -present time on their harps; or they may have been of catgut, which -was used by the ancient Egyptians. - -The largest assemblage of Assyrian musicians which has been discovered -on any monument consists of eleven performers upon instruments, -besides a chorus of singers. The first musician――probably the leader -of the band, as he marches alone at the head of the procession――is -playing upon a harp. Behind him are two men; one with a dulcimer and -the other with a double-pipe; then follow two men with harps. Next -come six female musicians, four of whom are playing upon harps, while -one is blowing a double-pipe and another is beating a small hand-drum -covered only at the top. Close behind the instrumental performers are -the singers, consisting of a chorus of females and children. They are -clapping their hands in time with the music, and some of the musicians -are dancing to the measure. One of the female singers is holding her -hand to her throat in the same manner as the women in Syria, Arabia, -and Persia are in the habit of doing at the present day when -producing, on festive occasions, those peculiarly shrill sounds of -rejoicing which have been repeatedly noticed by travellers. - -The dulcimer is in too imperfect a state on the bas-relief to -familiarize us with its construction. The slab representing the -procession in which it occurs has been injured; the defect which -extended over a portion of the dulcimer has been repaired, and it -cannot be said that in repairing it much musical knowledge has been -evinced. - -The instrument of the Trigonon species was held horizontally, and was -twanged with a rather long plectrum slightly bent at the end at which -it was held by the performer. It is of frequent occurrence on the -bas-reliefs. A number of them appear to have been generally played -together. At any rate, we find almost invariably on the monuments two -together, evidently implying “more than one,” “a number.” The left -hand of the performer seems to have been occupied in checking the -vibration of the strings when its discontinuance was required. From -the position of the strings the performer could not have struck them -as those of the dulcimer are struck. If he did not twang them, he may -have drawn the plectrum across them. Indeed, for twanging, a short -plectrum would have been more practical, considering that the strings -are placed horizontally one above the other at regular distances. It -is therefore by no means improbable that we have here a rude prototype -of the violin bow. - -The lyre occurs in three different forms, and is held horizontally in -playing, or at least nearly so. Its front bar was generally either -oblique or slightly curved. The strings were tied round the bar so as -to allow of their being pushed upwards or downwards. In the former -case the tension of the strings increases, and the notes become -therefore higher; on the other hand, if the strings are pushed lower -down the pitch of the notes must become deeper. The lyre was played -with a small plectrum as well as with the fingers. - -The Assyrian trumpet was very similar to the Egyptian. Furthermore, we -meet with three kinds of drums, of which one is especially noteworthy -on account of its odd shape, somewhat resembling a sugar loaf; with -the tambourine; with two kinds of cymbals; and with bells, of which a -considerable number have been found in the mound of Nimroud. These -bells, which have greatly withstood the devastation of time, are but -small in size, the largest of them being only 3¼ inches in height and -2½ inches in diameter. Most of them have a hole at the top, in which -probably the clapper was fastened. They are made of copper mixed with -14 per cent. of tin. - -Instrumental music was used by the Assyrians and Babylonians in their -religious observances. This is obvious from the sculptures, and is to -some extent confirmed by the mode of worship paid by command of king -Nebuchadnezzar to the golden image; “Then an herald cried aloud, To -you it is commanded, O people, nations, and languages, that at what -time ye hear the sound of the cornet, flute, harp, sackbut, psaltery, -dulcimer, and all kinds of musick, ye fall down and worship the golden -image that Nebuchadnezzar the king has set up.” The kings appear to -have maintained at their courts musical bands, whose office it was to -perform secular music at certain times of the day or on fixed -occasions. Of king Darius we are told that, when he had cast Daniel -into the den of lions, he “went to his palace, and passed the night -fasting, neither were instruments of musick brought before him;” from -which we may conclude that his band was in the habit of playing before -him in the evening. A similar custom prevailed also at the court of -Jerusalem, at least in the time of David and Solomon; both of whom -appear to have had their royal private bands, besides a large number -of singers and instrumental performers of sacred music who were -engaged in the Temple. - - -THE HEBREWS. - -As regards the musical instruments of the Hebrews, we are from -biblical records acquainted with the names of many of them; but -representations to be trusted are still wanting, and it is chiefly -from an examination of the ancient Egyptian and Assyrian instruments -that we can conjecture almost to a certainty their construction and -capabilities. From various indications, which it would be too -circumstantial here to point out, we believe the Hebrews to have -possessed the following instruments: - -THE HARP.――There can be no doubt that the Hebrews possessed the harp, -seeing that it was a common instrument among the Egyptians and -Assyrians. But it is uncertain which of the Hebrew names of the -stringed instruments occurring in the Bible really designates the -harp. - -THE DULCIMER.――Some writers on Hebrew music consider the _nevel_ to -have been a kind of dulcimer; others conjecture the same of the -_psanterin_ mentioned in the hook of Daniel,――a name which appears to -be synonymous with the _psalterion_ of the Greeks, and from which also -the present oriental dulcimer, _santir_, may have been derived. Some -of the instruments mentioned in the book of Daniel may have been -synonymous with some which occur in other parts of the Bible under -Hebrew names; the names given in Daniel being Chaldæan. The _asor_ was -a ten-stringed instrument played with a plectrum, and is supposed to -have borne some resemblance to the _nevel_. - -THE LYRE.――This instrument is represented on some Hebrew coins -generally ascribed to Judas Maccabæus, who lived in the second century -before the Christian era. There are several of them in the British -Museum; some are of silver, and the others of copper. On three of them -are lyres with three strings, another has one with five, and another -one with six strings. The two sides of the frame appear to have been -made of the horns of animals, or they may have been of wood formed in -imitation of two horns which originally were used. Lyres thus -constructed are still found in Abyssinia. The Hebrew square-shaped -lyre of the time of Simon Maccabæus is probably identical with the -_psalterion_. The _kinnor_, the favourite instrument of king David, -was most likely a lyre if not a small triangular harp. The lyre was -evidently an universally known and favoured instrument among ancient -eastern nations. Being more simple in construction than most other -stringed instruments it undoubtedly preceded them in antiquity. The -_kinnor_ is mentioned in the Bible as the oldest stringed instrument, -and as the invention of Jubal. Even if the name of one particular -stringed instrument is here used for stringed instruments in general, -which may possibly be the case, it is only reasonable to suppose that -the oldest and most universally known stringed instrument would be -mentioned as a representative of the whole class rather than any -other. Besides, the _kinnor_ was a light and easily portable -instrument; king David, according to the Rabbinic records, used to -suspend it during the night over his pillow. All its uses mentioned in -the Bible are especially applicable to the lyre. And the resemblance -of the word _kinnor_ to _kithara_, _kissar_, and similar names known -to denote the lyre, also tends to confirm the supposition that it -refers to this instrument. It is, however, not likely that the -instruments of the Hebrews――indeed their music altogether――should have -remained entirely unchanged during a period of many centuries. Some -modifications were likely to occur even from accidental causes; such, -for instance, as the influence of neighbouring nations when the -Hebrews came into closer contact with them. Thus may be explained why -the accounts of the Hebrew instruments given by Josephus, who lived in -the first century of the Christian era, are not in exact accordance -with those in the Bible. The lyres at the time of Simon Maccabæus may -probably be different from those which were in use about a thousand -years earlier, or at the time of David and Solomon, when the art of -music with the Hebrews was at its zenith. - -There appears to be a probability that a Hebrew lyre of the time of -Joseph (about 1700 B.C.) is represented on an ancient Egyptian -painting[3] discovered in a tomb at Beni Hassan――which is the name of -certain grottoes on the eastern bank of the Nile. Sir Gardner -Wilkinson, in his “Manners and Customs of the Ancient Egyptians,” -observes: “If, when we become better acquainted with the -interpretation of hieroglyphics, the ‘strangers’ at Beni Hassan should -prove to be the arrival of Jacob’s family in Egypt, we may examine the -Jewish lyre drawn by an Egyptian artist. That this event took place -about the period when the inmate of the tomb lived is highly -probable――at least, if I am correct in considering Usertsen I. to be -the Pharaoh who was the patron of Joseph; and it remains for us to -decide whether the disagreement in the number of persons here -introduced, thirty-seven being written over them in hieroglyphics, is -a sufficient objection to their identity. It will not be foreign to -the present subject to introduce those figures, which are curious, if -only considered as illustrative of ancient customs at that early -period, and which will be looked upon with unbounded interest should -they ever be found to refer to the Jews. The first figure is an -Egyptian scribe, who presents an account of their arrival to a person -seated, the owner of the tomb, and one of the principal officers of -the reigning Pharaoh. The next, also an Egyptian, ushers them into his -presence; and two advance bringing presents, the wild goat or ibex and -the gazelle, the productions of their country. Four men, carrying bows -and clubs, follow, leading an ass on which two children are placed in -panniers, accompanied by a boy and four women; and, last of all, -another ass laden, and two men――one holding a bow and club, the other -a lyre, which he plays with the plectrum. All the men have beards, -contrary to the custom of the Egyptians, but very general in the East -at that period, and noticed as a peculiarity of foreign uncivilized -nations throughout their sculptures. The men have sandals, the women a -sort of boot reaching to the ankle, both which were worn by many -Asiatic people. The lyre is rude, and differs in form from those -generally used in Egypt.” In the engraving the lyre-player, another -man, and some strange animals from this group, are represented. - -THE TAMBOURA.――_Minnim_, _machalath_, and _nevel_ are usually supposed -to be the names of instruments of the lute or guitar kind. _Minnim_, -however, appears more likely to imply stringed instruments in general -than any particular instrument. - -THE SINGLE PIPE.――_Chalil_ and _nekeb_ were the names of the Hebrew -pipes or flutes. - -THE DOUBLE PIPE.――Probably the _mishrokitha_ mentioned in Daniel. The -_mishrokitha_ is represented in the drawings of our histories of music -as a small organ, consisting of seven pipes placed in a box with a -mouthpiece for blowing. But the shape of the pipes and of the box as -well as the row of keys for the fingers exhibited in the -representation of the _mishrokitha_ have too much of the European type -not to suggest that they are probably a product of the imagination. -Respecting the illustrations of Hebrew instruments which usually -accompany historical treatises on music and commentaries on the Bible, -it ought to be borne in mind that most of them are merely the -offspring of conjectures founded on some obscure hints in the Bible, -or vague accounts by the Rabbins. - -THE SYRINX OR PANDEAN PIPE.――Probably the _ugab_, which in the English -authorised version of the Bible is rendered “organ.” - -THE BAGPIPE.――The word _sumphonia_, which occurs in the book of -Daniel, is, by Forkel and others, supposed to denote a bagpipe. It is -remarkable that at the present day the bagpipe is called by the -Italian peasantry Zampogna. Another Hebrew instrument, the _magrepha_, -generally described as an organ, was more likely only a kind of -bagpipe. The _magrepha_ is not mentioned in the Bible but is described -in the Talmud. In tract Erachin it is recorded to have been a powerful -organ which stood in the temple at Jerusalem, and consisted of a case -or wind-chest, with ten holes, containing ten pipes. Each pipe was -capable of emitting ten different sounds, by means of finger-holes or -some similar contrivance: thus one hundred different sounds could be -produced on this instrument. Further, the _magrepha_ is said to have -been provided with two pairs of bellows and with ten keys, by means of -which it was played with the fingers. Its tone was, according to the -Rabbinic accounts, so loud that it could be heard at an incredibly -long distance from the temple. Authorities so widely differ that we -must leave it uncertain whether the much-lauded _magrepha_ was a -bagpipe, an organ, or a kettle-drum. - -THE TRUMPET.――Three kinds are mentioned in the Bible, viz., the -_keren_, the _shophar_, and the _chatzozerah_. The first two were more -or less curved and might properly be considered as horns. Most -commentators are of opinion that the _keren_――made of ram’s horn――was -almost identical with the _shophar_, the only difference being that -the latter was more curved than the former. The _shophar_ is -especially remarkable as being the only Hebrew musical instrument -which has been preserved to the present day in the religious services -of the Jews. It is still blown in the synagogue, as in time of old, at -the Jewish new-year’s festival, according to the command of Moses -(Numb. xxix. 1). The _chatzozerah_ was a straight trumpet, about two -feet in length, and was sometimes made of silver. Two of these -straight trumpets are shown in the famous triumphal procession after -the fall of Jerusalem on the arch of Titus. - -THE DRUM.――There can be no doubt that the Hebrews had several kinds of -drums. We know, however, only of the _toph_, which appears to have -been a tambourine or a small hand-drum like the Egyptian darabuka. In -the English version of the Bible the word is rendered _timbrel_ or -_tabret_. This instrument was especially used in processions on -occasions of rejoicing, and also frequently by females. We find it in -the hands of Miriam, when she was celebrating with the Israelitish -women in songs of joy the destruction of Pharaoh’s host; and in the -hands of Jephtha’s daughter, when she went out to welcome her father. -There exists at the present day in the East a small hand-drum called -_doff_, _diff_, or _adufe_――a name which appears to be synonymous with -the Hebrew _toph_. - -THE SISTRUM.――Winer, Saalschütz, and several other commentators are of -opinion that the _menaaneim_, mentioned in 2 Sam. vi. 5, denotes the -sistrum. In the English Bible the original is translated _cymbals_. - -CYMBALS.――The _tzeltzelim_, _metzilloth_, and _metzilthaim_, appear to -have been cymbals or similar metallic instruments of percussion, -differing in shape and sound. - -BELLS.――The little bells on the vestments of the high-priest were -called _phaamon_. Small golden bells were attached to the lower part -of the robes of the high-priest in his sacred ministrations. The Jews -have, at the present day, in their synagogues small bells fastened to -the rolls of the Law containing the Pentateuch: a kind of -ornamentation which is supposed to have been in use from time -immemorial. - -Besides the names of Hebrew instruments already given there occur -several others in the Old Testament, upon the real meaning of which -much diversity of opinion prevails. _Jobel_ is by some commentators -classed with the trumpets, but it is by others believed to designate a -loud and cheerful blast of the trumpet, used on particular occasions. -If _Jobel_ (from which _jubilare_ is supposed to be derived) is -identical with the name _Jubal_, the inventor of musical instruments, -it would appear that the Hebrews appreciated pre-eminently the -exhilarating power of music. _Shalisbim_ is supposed to denote a -triangle. _Nechiloth_, _gittith_, and _machalath_, which occur in the -headings of some psalms, are also by commentators supposed to be -musical instruments. _Nechiloth_ is said to have been a flute, and -_gittith_ and _machalath_ to have been stringed instruments, and -_machol_ a kind of flute. Again, others maintain that the words denote -peculiar modes of performance or certain favourite melodies to which -the psalms were directed to be sung, or chanted. According to the -records of the Rabbins, the Hebrews in the time of David and Solomon -possessed thirty-six different musical instruments. In the Bible only -about half that number are mentioned. - -Most nations of antiquity ascribed the invention of their musical -instruments to their gods, or to certain superhuman beings. The -Hebrews attributed it to man; Jubal is mentioned in Genesis as “the -father of all such as handle the harp and organ” (_i.e._, performers -on stringed instruments and wind instruments). As instruments of -percussion are almost invariably in use long before people are led to -construct stringed and wind instruments it might perhaps be surmised -that Jubal was not regarded as the inventor of all the Hebrew -instruments, but rather as the first professional cultivator of -instrumental music. - - - - -IV. - -GREEK, ETRUSCAN AND ROMAN. - - -THE GREEKS. - -Many musical instruments of the ancient Greeks are known to us by -name; but respecting their exact construction and capabilities there -still prevails almost as much diversity of opinion as is the case with -those of the Hebrews. - -It is generally believed that the Greeks derived their musical system -from the Egyptians. Pythagoras and other philosophers are said to have -studied music in Egypt. It would, however, appear that the Egyptian -influence upon Greece, as far as regards this art, has been overrated. -Not only have the more perfect Egyptian instruments――such as the -larger harps, the tamboura――never been much in favour with the Greeks, -but almost all the stringed instruments which the Greeks possessed are -stated to have been originally derived from Asia. Strabo says: “Those -who regard the whole of Asia, as far as India, as consecrated to -Bacchus, point to that country as the origin of a great portion of the -present music. One author speaks of ‘striking forcibly the Asiatic -kithara,’ another calls the pipes Berecynthian and Phrygian. Some of -the instruments also have foreign names, as Nablas, Sambyke, Barbitos, -Magadis, and many others.” - -We know at present little more of these instruments than that they -were in use in Greece. The Magadis is described as having twenty -strings. The other three are known to have been stringed instruments. -But they cannot have been anything like such universal favourites as -the lyre, because this instrument and perhaps the _trigonon_ are -almost the only stringed instruments represented in the Greek -paintings on pottery and other monumental records. If, as might -perhaps be suggested, their taste for beauty of form induced the -Greeks to represent the elegant lyre in preference to other stringed -instruments, we might at least expect to meet with the harp; an -instrument which equals if it does not surpass the lyre in elegance of -form. - -The representation of a Muse with a harp, depicted on a splendid Greek -vase now in the Munich Museum (_Mun. Vase Cat. No. 805_), may be noted -as an exceptional instance. This valuable relic dates from the end of -the fifth century B.C. The instrument resembles in construction as -well as in shape the Assyrian harp, and has fifteen strings. The Muse -is touching them with both hands, using the right hand for the treble -and the left for the bass. She is seated, holding the instrument in -her lap. The little tuning-pegs, which in number are not in accordance -with the strings, are placed on the sound-board at the upper part of -the frame, exactly as on the Assyrian harp. If we have here the Greek -harp, it was more likely an importation from Asia than from Egypt. In -short, as far as can be ascertained, the most complete of the Greek -instruments appear to be of Asiatic origin. Especially from the -nations who inhabited Asia Minor the Greeks are stated to have adopted -several of the most popular. Thus we may read of the short and -shrill-sounding pipes of the Carians; of the Phrygian pastoral flute; -of the three-stringed _kithara_ of the Lydians; and so on. - -The Greeks had lyres of various kinds, more or less differing in -construction, form, and size, and distinguished by different names; -such as _lyra_, _kithara_, _chelys_, _phorminx_, etc. _Lyra_ appears -to have implied instruments of this class in general, and also the -lyre with a body oval at the base and held in the arms of the -performer; while the _kithara_ had a square base and was held against -the side by a sash around it. The _chelys_ was a small lyre with the -body made of the shell of a tortoise, or of wood in imitation of the -tortoise. The _phorminx_ was a large lyre, and, like the _kithara_, -was used at an early period singly, for accompanying recitations. It -is recorded that the _kithara_ was employed for solo performances as -early as B.C. 700. - - [Illustration: FIG. 6.――A Muse with a HARP, and two others with LYRES. - From a Greek vase in the Munich Museum.] - -The design on the Greek vase at Munich (already alluded to) represents -the nine Muses, of whom three are given in the engraving (Fig. 6), -viz., one with the harp, and two others with lyres. Some of the lyres -were provided with a bridge, while others were without it. The largest -was held probably on or between the knees, or were attached to the -left arm by means of a band, to enable the performer to use his hands -without impediment. The strings, made of catgut or sinew, were more -usually twanged with a _plektron_ than merely with the fingers. The -_plektron_ was a short stem of ivory or metal pointed at both ends. - -A fragment of a Greek lyre which was found in a tomb near Athens is -deposited in the British Museum. The two pieces constituting its frame -are of wood. Their length is about 18 inches, and the length of the -cross-bar at the top is about 9 inches. The instrument is unhappily in -a condition too dilapidated and imperfect to be of any essential use -to the musical inquirer. - -The _trigonon_ consisted originally of an angular frame, to which the -strings were affixed. In the course of time a third bar was added to -resist the tension of the strings, and its triangular frame resembled -in shape the Greek delta. Subsequently it was still further improved, -the upper bar of the frame being made slightly curved, whereby the -instrument obtained greater strength and more elegance of form. - -The _magadis_, also called _pektis_, had twenty strings which were -tuned in octaves, and therefore produced only ten tones. It appears to -have been some sort of dulcimer, but information respecting its -construction is still wanting. There appears to have been also a kind -of bagpipe in use called _magadis_, of which nothing certain is known. -Possibly, the same name may have been applied to two different -instruments. - - [Illustration: FIG. 7.――PAIR OF BRONZE FLUTES, with mouthpiece in - the form of the bust of a Mænad holding a bunch of - grapes. Greek. - British Museum.] - -The _barbitos_ was likewise a stringed instrument of this kind. The -_sambyke_ is traditionally said to have been invented by Ibykos, about -560 B.C. The _simikon_ had thirty-five strings, and derived its name -from its inventor, Simos, who lived about 600 B.C. It was perhaps a -kind of dulcimer. The _nabla_ had ten, or according to Josephus, -twelve strings, and probably resembled the _nevel_ of the Hebrews, of -which but little is known with certainty. The _pandoura_ is supposed -to have been a kind of lute with three strings. Several of the -instruments just noticed were used in Greece, chiefly by musicians who -had immigrated from Asia; they can therefore hardly be considered as -national musical instruments of the Greeks. The _monochord_ had (as -its name implies) only a single string, and was used as a tuning -string. - -The _aulos_, of which there were many varieties, was a highly popular -instrument, and differed in construction from the flutes and pipes of -the ancient Egyptians. Instead of being blown through a hole at the -side near the top it was held like a flageolet, and a vibrating reed -was inserted into the mouth-piece, so that it might be more properly -described as a kind of oboe or clarinet. The Greeks were accustomed to -designate by the name of _aulos_ all wind instruments of the flute and -oboe kind, some of which were constructed like the flageolet or like -our antiquated _flûte à bec_. The single flute was called _monaulos_ -(Fig. 7), and the double one _diaulos_ (Fig. 8). A _diaulos_, which -was found in a tomb at Athens, is in the British Museum. The wood of -which it is made seems to be cedar, and the tubes are fifteen inches -in length. Each tube has a separate mouth-piece and six finger-holes, -five of which are at the upper side and one is underneath. - - [Illustration: FIG. 8.――A Muse playing the DIAULOS.] - -The _syrinx_, or Pandean pipe, had from three to nine tubes, but seven -was the usual number. The straight trumpet, _salpinx_, and the curved -horn, _keras_, made of brass, were used exclusively in war. The small -hand-drum, called _tympanon_, resembled in shape our tambourine, and -was covered with parchment at the back as well as at the front. The -_kymbala_ were made of metal, and resembled our small cymbals. The -_krotala_ were almost identical with our castanets, and were made of -wood or metal. - - -THE ETRUSCANS AND ROMANS. - -The Romans are recorded to have derived some of their most popular -instruments originally from the Etruscans, a people which at an early -period excelled all other Italian nations in the cultivation of the -arts as well as in social refinement, and which possessed musical -instruments similar to those of the Greeks. It must, however, be -remembered that many of the vases and other specimens of art which -have been found in Etruscan tombs, and on which delineations of lyres -and other instruments occur, are supposed to be productions of Greek -artists whose works were obtained from Greece by the Etruscans, or who -were induced to settle in Etruria. - -The flutes of the Etruscans were not unfrequently made of ivory; those -used in religious sacrifices were of box-wood, of a species of the -lotus, of ass’ bone, bronze and silver. A bronze flute, somewhat -resembling our flageolet, has been found in a tomb; likewise a huge -trumpet of bronze. An Etruscan _cornu_ is deposited in the British -Museum, and measures about four feet in length. - -To the Etruscans is also attributed by some the invention of the -hydraulic organ. The Greeks possessed a somewhat similar contrivance -which they called _hydraulis_, _i.e._, water-flute and which probably -was identical with the _organum_ _hydraulicum_ of the Romans. The -instrument ought more properly to be regarded as a pneumatic organ, -for the sound was produced by the current of air through the pipes; -the water applied serving merely to give the necessary pressure to the -bellows and to regulate their action. The pipes were probably caused -to sound by means of stops, perhaps resembling those on our organ, -which were drawn out or pushed in. The construction was evidently but -a primitive contrivance, contained in a case which could be carried by -one or two persons and which was placed on a table. The highest degree -of perfection which the hydraulic organ obtained with the ancients is -perhaps shown in a representation on a coin of the Emperor Nero, in -the British Museum. Only ten pipes are given to it, and there is no -indication of any keyboard, which would probably have been shown had -it existed. The man standing at the side and holding a laurel leaf in -his hand is surmised to represent a victor in the exhibitions of the -circus or the amphitheatre. The hydraulic organ probably was played on -such occasions; and the medal containing an impression of it may have -been bestowed upon the victor. - -During the time of the Republic, and especially subsequently under the -reign of the Emperors, the Romans adopted many new instruments from -Greece, Egypt, and even from western Asia; without essentially -improving any of their importations. - -Their most favourite stringed instrument was the lyre, of which they -had various kinds, called, according to their form and arrangement of -strings, _lyra_, _cithara_, _chelys_, _testudo_, and _fidis_ (or -_fides_). The name _cornu_ was given to the lyre when the sides of the -frame terminated at the top in the shape of two horns. The _barbitos_ -was a kind of lyre with a large body, which gave the instrument -somewhat the shape of the Welsh _crwth_. The _psalterium_ was a kind -of lyre of an oblong square shape. Like most of the Roman lyres, it -was played with a rather large plectrum. The _trigonum_ was the same -as the Greek _trigonon_. It is recorded that a certain musician of the -name of Alexander Alexandrinus was so admirable a performer upon it -that when exhibiting his skill in Rome he created the greatest -_furore_. Less common, and derived from Asia, were the _sambuca_ and -_nablia_, the exact construction of which is unknown. - -The flute, _tibia_, was originally made of the shin bone, and had a -mouth-hole and four finger-holes. Its shape was retained even when, at -a later period, it was constructed of other substances than bone. The -_tibia gingrina_ consisted of a long and thin tube of reed with a -mouth-hole at the side of one end. The _tibia obliqua_ and _tibia -vasca_ were provided with mouth-pieces affixed at a right angle to the -tube; a contrivance somewhat similar to that on our bassoon. The -_tibia longa_ was especially used in religious worship. The _tibia -curva_ was curved at its broadest end. The _tibia ligula_ appears to -have resembled our flageolet. The _calamus_ was nothing more than a -simple pipe cut off the kind of reed which the ancients used as a pen -for writing. - -The Romans had double flutes as well as single flutes. The double -flute consisted of two tubes united, either so as to have a -mouth-piece in common or to have each a separate mouth-piece. If the -tubes were exactly alike the double flute was called _tibiæ pares_; if -they were different from each other, _tibiæ impares_. Little plugs, or -stoppers, were inserted into the finger-holes to regulate the order of -intervals. The _tibia_ was made in various shapes. The _tibia dextra_ -was usually constructed of the upper and thinner part of a reed; and -the _tibia sinistra_, of the lower and broader part. The performers -used also the _capistrum_,――a bandage round the cheeks identical with -the _phorbeia_ of the Greeks. - - [Illustration: FIG. 9.――WALL PAINTING of a youth wearing a myrtle - wreath and playing on the Double Pipes. Restored in - places. Said to have been found in a columbarium in - the Vigna Ammendola on the Appian Way near Rome, - about 1823. - British Museum.] - -The British Museum contains a wall painting (Fig. 9) representing a -Roman youth playing the double pipes, which is stated to have been -disinterred in the year 1823 on the Via Appia. Here the _holmos_ or -mouth-piece, somewhat resembling the reed of our oboe, is distinctly -shown. The finger-holes, probably four, are not indicated, although -they undoubtedly existed on the instrument. - -Furthermore, the Romans had two kinds of Pandean pipes viz., the -_syrinx_ and the _fistula_. The bagpipe, _tibia utricularis_, is said -to have been a favourite instrument of the Emperor Nero. - -The _cornu_ was a large horn of bronze, curved. The performer held it -under his arm with the broad end upwards over his shoulder. It is -represented in the engraving (Fig. 10), with the _tuba_ and the -_lituus_. - - [Illustration: FIG. 10.――TUBA CORNU and LITUUS.] - -The _tuba_ was a straight trumpet. Both the _cornu_ and the _tuba_ -were employed in war to convey signals. The same was the case with the -_buccina_,――originally perhaps a conch shell, and afterwards a simple -horn of an animal,――and the _lituus_, which was bent at the broad end -but otherwise straight. The _tympanum_ resembled the tambourine, and -was beaten like the latter with the hands. Among the Roman instruments -of percussion the _scabellum_, which consisted of two plates combined -by means of a sort of hinge, deserves to be noticed; it was fastened -under the foot and trodden in time, to produce certain rhythmical -effects in musical performances. The _cymbalum_ consisted of two metal -plates similar to our cymbals. The _crotala_ and the _crusmata_ were -kinds of castanets, the former being oblong and of a larger size than -the latter. The Romans had also a _triangulum_, which resembled the -triangle occasionally used in our orchestra. The _sistrum_ they -derived from Egypt with the introduction of the worship of Isis. Metal -bells, arranged according to a regular order of intervals and placed -in a frame, were called _tintinnabula_. The _crepitaculum_ appears to -have been a somewhat similar contrivance on a hoop with a handle. - -Through the Greeks and Romans we have the first well-authenticated -proof of musical instruments having been introduced into Europe from -Asia. The Romans in their conquests undoubtedly made their musical -instruments known, to some extent, also in western Europe. But the -Greeks and Romans are not the only nations which introduced Eastern -instruments into Europe. The Phœnicians at an early period colonized -Sardinia, and traces of them are still to be found on that island. -Among these is a peculiarly constructed double-pipe, called _lionedda_ -or _launedda_. Again, at a much later period the Arabs introduced -several of their instruments into Spain, from which country they -became known in France, Germany, and England. Also the crusaders, -during the eleventh and twelfth centuries, may have helped to -familiarize the western European nations with instruments of the East. - - - - -V. - -ORIENTAL. - - -THE CHINESE. - -Allowing for any exaggeration as to chronology, natural to the lively -imagination of Asiatics, there is no reason to doubt that the Chinese -possessed long before our Christian era musical instruments to which -they attribute a fabulously high antiquity. There is an ancient -tradition, according to which they obtained their musical scale from a -miraculous bird, called _fêng-huang_, which appears to have been a -sort of phœnix. When Confucius, who lived about B.C. 551-479, happened -to hear on a certain occasion some Chinese music, he is said to have -become so greatly enraptured that he could not take any food for three -months afterwards. The sounds which produced this effect were those of -K’uei, the Orpheus of the Chinese, whose performance on the -_ch’ing_――a kind of harmonicon constructed of slabs of sonorous -stone――would draw wild animals around him and make them subservient to -his will. As regards the invention of musical instruments the Chinese -have other traditions. In one of these we are told that the origin of -some of their most popular instruments dates from the period when -China was under the dominion of heavenly spirits, called Ch’i. Another -assigns the invention of several stringed instruments to the great -Fu-hsi who was the founder of the empire and who lived about B.C. -3000, which was long after the dominion of the Ch’i, or spirits. -Again, another tradition holds that the most important instruments and -systematic arrangements of sounds are an invention of Nü-wa, sister -and successor of Fu-hsi. - -According to their records, the Chinese possessed their much-esteemed -_ch’ing_ 2200 years before our Christian era, and employed it for -accompanying songs of praise. It was regarded as a sacred instrument. -During religious observances at the solemn moment when the _ch’ing_ -was sounded sticks of incense were burnt. It was likewise played -before the emperor early in the morning when he awoke. The Chinese -have long since constructed various kinds of the _ch’ing_, by using -different species of stones. Their most famous stone selected for this -purpose is called _yü_. _Yü_ includes the two varieties of jade, -nephrite and jadeite. It is not only very sonorous but also beautiful -in appearance. It is found in mountain streams and crevices of rocks. -The largest known specimens measure from two to three feet in -diameter, but examples of this size rarely occur. The _yü_ is very -hard and heavy. Some European mineralogists, to whom the missionaries -transmitted specimens for examination, pronounce it to be a species of -agate (_ma-nao_). It is found of different colours, and the Chinese -appear to have preferred in different centuries particular colours for -the _ch’ing_. - -The Chinese consider the _yü_ especially valuable for musical -purposes, because it always retains exactly the same pitch. All other -musical instruments, they say, are in this respect doubtful; but the -tone of the _yü_ is influenced neither by cold nor heat, nor by -humidity, nor dryness. - -The stones used for the _ch’ing_ have been cut from time to time in -various grotesque shapes. Some represent animals: as, for instance, a -bat with outstretched wings; or two fishes placed side by side: others -are in the shape of an ancient Chinese bell. The angular shape appears -to be the oldest form and is still retained in the ornamental stones -of the _pien-ch’ing_, which is a more modern instrument than the -_ch’ing_. The tones of the _pien-ch’ing_ are attuned according to the -Chinese intervals called _lü_, of which there are twelve in the -compass of an octave. The same is the case with the other Chinese -instruments of this class. They vary, however, in pitch. The pitch of -the _sung-ch’ing_, for instance, is four intervals lower than that of -the _pien-ch’ing_. - -Sonorous stones have always been used by the Chinese also singly, as -rhythmical instruments. Such a single stone is called _t’ê-ch’ing_. - -The ancient Chinese had several kinds of bells, frequently arranged in -sets so as to constitute a musical scale. The Chinese name for the -bell is _chung_. At an early period they had a somewhat square-shaped -bell called _t’ê-chung_. Like other ancient Chinese bells it was made -of copper alloyed with tin, the proportion being one part of tin to -six of copper. The _t’ê-chung_, which is also known by the name of -_piao_, was principally used to indicate the time and divisions in -musical performances. It had a fixed pitch of sound, and several of -these bells attuned to a certain order of intervals were not -unfrequently ranged in a regular succession, thus forming a musical -instrument which was called _pien-chung_. The musical scale of the -sixteen bells which the _pien-chung_ contained was the same as that of -the _ch’ing_ before mentioned. - -The _hsüan-chung_ was, according to popular tradition, included with -the antique instruments at the time of Confucius, and came into -popular use during the Han dynasty (from B.C. 200 until A.D. 200). It -was of a peculiar oval shape and had nearly the same quaint -ornamentation as the _t’ê-chung_; this consisted of symbolical -figures, in four divisions, each containing nine mammals. The mouth -was crescent-shaped. Every figure had a deep meaning referring to the -seasons and to the mysteries of the Buddhist religion. The largest -_hsüan-chung_ was about twenty inches in length; and, like the -_t’ê-chung_, was sounded by means of a small wooden mallet with an -oval knob. None of the bells of this description had a clapper. It -would, however, appear that the Chinese had at an early period some -kind of bell provided with a wooden tongue: this was used for military -purposes as well as for calling the people together when an imperial -messenger promulgated his sovereign’s commands. An expression of -Confucius is recorded to the effect that he wished to be “A -wooden-tongued bell of Heaven,” _i.e._, a herald of heaven to proclaim -the divine purposes to the multitude. - -The _fang-hsiang_ was a kind of wood-harmonicon. It contained sixteen -wooden slabs of an oblong square shape, suspended in a wooden frame -elegantly decorated. The slabs were arranged in two tiers, one above -the other, and were all of equal length and breadth but differed in -thickness. The _ch’un-tu_ consisted of twelve slips of bamboo, and was -used for beating time and for rhythmical purposes. The slips being -banded together at one end could be expanded somewhat like a fan. The -Chinese state that they used the _ch’un-tu_ for writing upon before -they invented paper. - -The _yü_, likewise an ancient Chinese instrument of percussion and -still in use, is made of wood in the shape of a crouching tiger. It is -hollow, and along its back are about twenty small pieces of metal, -pointed, and in appearance not unlike the teeth of a saw. The -performer strikes them with a sort of plectrum resembling a brush, or -with a small stick called _chên_. Occasionally the _yü_ is made with -pieces of metal shaped like reeds. - -The ancient _yü_ was constructed with only six tones which were -attuned thus――_f_, _g_, _a_, _c_, _d_, _f_. The instrument appears to -have deteriorated in the course of time; for, although it has -gradually acquired as many as twenty-seven pieces of metal, it -evidently serves at the present day more for the production of -rhythmical noise than for the execution of any melody. The modern _yü_ -is made of a species of wood called _k’iu_ or _ch’iu_; and the tiger -rests generally on a hollow wooden pedestal about three feet six -inches long, which serves as a sound-board. - -The _chu_, likewise an instrument of percussion, was made of the wood -of a tree called _ch’iu-mu_, the stem of which resembles that of the -pine and whose foliage is much like that of the cypress. It was -constructed of boards about three-quarters of an inch in thickness. In -the middle of one of the sides was an aperture into which the hand was -passed for the purpose of holding the handle of a wooden hammer, the -end of which entered into a hole situated in the bottom of the _chu_. -The handle was kept in its place by means of a wooden pin, on which it -moved right and left when the instrument was struck with a hammer. The -Chinese ascribe to the _chu_ a very high antiquity, as they almost -invariably do with any of their inventions when the date of its origin -is unknown to them. - -The _po-fu_ was a drum, about one foot four inches in length, and -seven inches in diameter. It had a parchment at each end, which was -prepared in a peculiar way by being boiled in water. The _po-fu_ used -to be partly filled with a preparation made from the husk of rice, in -order to mellow the sound. The Chinese name for the drum is _ku_. - -The _chin-ku_, a large drum fixed on a pedestal which raises it above -six feet from the ground, is embellished with symbolical designs. A -similar drum on which natural phenomena are depicted is called -_lei-ku_; and another of the kind, with figures of certain birds and -beasts which are regarded as symbols of long life, is called -_ying-ku_, and also _tsu-ku_. - -The flutes, _ti_, _yüeh_, and _ch’ih_ were generally made of bamboo. -The _kuan-tzŭ_ was a Pandean pipe containing twelve tubes of bamboo. -The _hsiao_, likewise a Pandean pipe, contained sixteen tubes. The -_p’ai-hsiao_ differed from the _hsiao_ inasmuch as the tubes were -inserted into an oddly-shaped case highly ornamented with grotesque -designs and silken appendages. - -The Chinese are known to have constructed at an early period a curious -wind-instrument, called _hsüan_ (the “Chinese ocarina”) (Fig. 11). It -was made of baked clay and had five finger-holes, three of which were -placed on one side and two on the opposite side, as in the cut. Its -tones were in conformity with the pentatonic scale. The reader -unacquainted with the pentatonic scale may ascertain its character by -playing on the pianoforte the scale of C major with the omission of -_f_ and _b_ (the _fourth_ and _seventh_); or by striking the black -keys in regular succession from _f_-sharp to the next _f_-sharp above -or below. - - [Illustration: FIG. 11.――HSÜAN.] - -The _shêng_ (Fig. 12_b_) is one of the oldest instruments of the -Chinese still in use, and may be regarded as the most ancient species -of organ with which we are exactly acquainted. Formerly it had either -thirteen, nineteen, or twenty-four tubes placed in a calabash; and a -long curved tube served as a mouth-piece. A similarly-constructed -instrument, though different in outward appearance, is the _ken_ of -Siam and Burmah. The Siamese call the _ken_ “The Laos organ,” and it -is principally used by the inhabitants of the Laos states. Moreover, -there deserves to be noticed another Chinese instrument of this kind, -simple in construction, which probably represents the _shêng_ in its -most primitive condition. It is to be found among the Miao-tsze, or -mountaineers, who are supposed to be the aboriginal inhabitants of -China. They call it _sang_. This species has no bowl, or air-chest; it -rather resembles the Panpipe, but is sounded by means of a common -mouthpiece consisting of a tube, which is placed at a right angle -across the pipes. The Chinese assert that the _shêng_ was used in -olden time in the religious rites performed in honour of Confucius. -Tradescant Lay, in his account of the Chinese, calls it “Jubal’s -organ,” and remarks, “this seems to be the embryo of our multiform and -magnificent organ.” - - [Illustration: FIG. 12.――_a._ CH’IN (a species of Lute). Modern - Chinese. No. 9-’70. L. 38½ in., W. 8½ in. - _b._ SHÊNG (Mouth Organ). Chinese, 19th century. - No. 977-’72. L. 17 in., W. 4¼ in. - _c._ YUEH-CH’IN (Moon Guitar). Chinese. 19th Century. - No. 256-’82. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - -The ancient stringed instruments, the _ch’in_ (Fig. 12_a_) and _sê_, -were of the dulcimer kind, they are still in use, and specimens of -them are in the Museum. - -The _yueh-ch’in_ (Fig. 12_c_) is a favourite instrument of the -Chinese. The Canton pronunciation of _yueh-ch’in_ is _yuet-kum_, and -this may be the reason why some European travellers in China have -called the instrument _gut-komm_. The wood of which it is made is -called by the Chinese _shwan-che_. The strings are twanged with a -plectrum, or with the nails, which, it will be remembered, are grown -by the Chinese to an extravagant length. - -The Buddhists introduced from Tibet into China their god of music, who -is represented as a rather jovial-looking man with a moustache and an -imperial, playing the _p’i-p’a_, a kind of lute with four silken -strings. Perhaps some interesting information respecting the ancient -Chinese musical instruments may be gathered from the famous ruins of -the Buddhist temples _Angcor-Wat_ and _Angcor-Thom_, in Cambodia. -These splendid ruins are supposed to be above two thousand years old: -and, at any rate, the circumstance of their age not being known to the -Cambodians suggests a high antiquity. On the bas-reliefs with which -the temples were enriched are figured musical instruments, which -European travellers describe as “flutes, organs, trumpets, and drums, -resembling those of the Chinese.” Faithful sketches of these -representations, might, very likely, afford valuable hints to the -student of musical history. - - -THE JAPANESE. - -The Japanese musical instruments are in the main derived from those of -China, and their names consequently represent the Japanese -pronunciation of the Chinese sounds. - -The _biwa_ (Fig. 13_b_) is almost identical with the Chinese -_p’i-p’a_. The example illustrated is of wood, lacquered black and -ornamented with a band of Japanese design in gold lacquer. It has four -silken strings, and two very small sound holes. - -The _samisen_ (the Chinese _san-hsien_ or “three-stringed guitar”) is -played especially by the Japanese ladies, and is as great a favourite -with them as the lute was formerly with us. An example in the Museum -(Fig. 13_c_) has three strings of silk. Both the _biwa_ and the -_samisen_ are played with a wooden plectrum. The _ko-kiū_ is the -Japanese violin, and resembles a small _samisen_, but has four -strings. It is held head upwards and played with a loose-strung bow. - -The Japanese have several instruments of the dulcimer class, called -_koto_ (the Chinese _ch’in_) (Fig. 13_a_). Some species of the _koto_ -are played with _plectra_ affixed to the fingers; and there are -different successions of intervals adopted in the tuning of the -several species. - - [Illustration: FIG. 13.――_a._ KOTO (a species of Lute). Japanese. - 19th century. L. 75⅜ in., W. 9½ in. No. 439-’91. - _b._ BIWA (a species of Guitar). Modern Japanese. - H. 32½ in., diam. 11 in. No. 838-’6c. - _c._ SAMISEN. Japanese. L. 37½ in. No. 229-’82. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - -The _ikuta-goto_ is provided with thirteen movable bridges, by means -of which the pitch of the strings is regulated. The bridges are of -wood, and about 2½ inches in height. The _ikuta-goto_ is learnt -chiefly by Japanese ladies moving in the upper circles of society. It -is a rather expensive instrument, and requires much practice. The -performer places it on the floor, and, sitting in the usual Japanese -attitude, bends over it and twangs the strings with her fingers, the -tips of which are encased in _plectra_, resembling thimbles, which -terminate in a little projecting piece of ivory in size and form like -the finger nail. - -Of wind instruments the Japanese use three principal kinds:――(1) The -_fuye_, like our flute, with six or seven finger-holes; (2) the -_hichiriki_, a reed-flageolet, with seven finger-holes and two -thumb-holes; (3) the _shakuhachi_, a bamboo pipe 20 inches high. - -The _shêng_ (described on p. 42) is also popular in Japan. The -Japanese name for it is _shō_. The general name in Japanese for the -drum is _taiko_ (= Chinese _ta ku_, “large drum”). The Japanese have a -great variety of drums, some of which are used at religious ceremonies -in the temples. The _shime-daiko_ is a shallow drum hung obliquely -before the player in a low wooden frame. It is beaten with two plain -sticks, and is used to accompany singers. The _tsudzumi_ is a small -hand-drum with hour-glass-shaped body. - -The Japanese have different kinds of gongs (_dora_ = Chinese -_t’ung-lo_, “copper gong”), which are used in the service of the -temple, in processions, at funerals, and on several other solemn -occasions. The _dōhachi_ (= Chinese _t’ung po_, “copper bowl”) -resembles a copper basin. Another consists of two metal basins -suspended by cords on a frame composed of a pole and two cross-sticks. - -The Japanese, as well as the Chinese, possess superbly ornamented -gongs (_kei_) raised on a stand. Those of the former are perhaps the -more magnificent. - -The Japanese employ large bells (_kane_ or _tsuri-gane_ = Chinese -_chung_) in their Buddhist worship. There is a famous bell, richly -decorated, near the Daibutsu at Kiōto, which is struck, at different -hours of the day, with a heavy wooden mallet; and its sound is said to -be particularly sonorous, mellow, and far-reaching. Another celebrated -Japanese bell is placed on a high hill near the town of Nara. It is -suspended in a wooden shed, close to the Tōdaiji Temple. A thick pole, -affixed to the rafters, is drawn backwards, and then, by being let -loose, is made to rebound so as to hit the bell sideways in the usual -manner. This bell is admired throughout the country, and pictures -representing it are sold on the spot to the visitors, who have to -ascend a long flight of narrow steps before they reach its station on -the summit of the hill. Small bells (_rin_) are used by the Buddhist -priests in Japan while officiating in the temple, just as is the case -in China, Thibet and other districts of the Asiatic continent. - - -THE HINDUS. - -In the Brahmin mythology of the Hindus the demi-god Nareda is the -inventor of the _vina_, the principal national instrument of -Hindustan. His mother, Saraswati, the consort of Brahma, may be -regarded as the Minerva of the Hindus. She is the goddess of music as -well as of speech. To her is attributed the invention of the -systematic arrangement of the sounds into a musical scale. She is -represented seated on a peacock and playing either on the southern -_vina_ or the _bîn_, stringed instruments of the lute kind. Brahma -himself we occasionally find depicted as a vigorous man with four -handsome heads, beating with his hands upon a small drum; and Vishnu, -in his incarnation as Krishna, is represented as a beautiful youth -playing upon a flute. The Hindus construct a peculiar kind of flute, -the _bansi_, which they consider as the favourite instrument of -Krishna. - -The _sankha_, or conch-shell trumpet of victory, one of the important -attributes of Vishnu the preserver, and his consort Lakshmi, is -occasionally represented in the possession of Siva, and other deities. -Siva the destroyer, and his consort Parvati, also carry the -_budbudika_, or _damaru_, a rattle-drum shaped like an hour-glass. - -It is a suggestive fact that we find among several nations in -different parts of the world an ancient tradition, according to which -their most popular stringed instrument was originally derived from the -water. Thus with Nareda and the _vina_, the latter has also the name -_kach’-hapi_, signifying a tortoise (_testudo_), whilst _nara_ denotes -in Sanskrit water, and _narada_, or _nareda_, the giver of water. Like -Nareda, Nereus and his fifty daughters, the Nereïdes, were much -renowned for their musical accomplishments; and Hermes (it will be -remembered) made his lyre, the _chelys_, of a tortoise-shell. The -Scandinavian god Odin, the originator of magic songs, is mentioned as -the ruler of the sea, and as such he had the name of _Nikarr_. In the -depth of the sea he played the harp with his subordinate spirits, who -occasionally came up to the surface of the water to teach some -favoured human being their wonderful instrument. Wäinämöinen, the -divine player on the Finnish _kantele_ (according to the Kalewala, the -old national epic of the Finns) constructed his instrument of -fish-bones. The frame he made out of the bones of the pike; and the -teeth of the pike he used for the tuning-pegs. - -Jacob Grimm in his work on German mythology points out an old -tradition, preserved in Swedish and Scotch national ballads, of a -skilful harper who constructs his instrument out of the bones of a -young girl drowned by a wicked woman. Her fingers he uses for the -tuning screws, and her golden hair for the strings. The harper plays, -and his music kills the murderess. A similar story is told in the old -Icelandic national songs; and the same tradition has been preserved in -the Faroe islands, as well as in Norway and Denmark. - -May not the agreeable impression produced by the rhythmical flow of -the waves and the soothing murmur of running water have led various -nations, independently of each other, to the widespread conception -that they obtained their favourite instrument of music from the water? -Or is the notion traceable to a common source dating from a -pre-historic age, perhaps from the early period when the Aryan race is -surmised to have diffused its lore through various countries? Or did -it originate in the old belief that the world, with all its charms and -delights, arose from a chaos in which water constituted the -predominant element? - -Howbeit, Nareda, the giver of water, was the offspring of Brahma the -creator; and Odin had his throne in the skies. Indeed, many of the -musical water-spirits appear to have been originally considered as -rain deities. Their music may, therefore, be regarded as derived from -the clouds rather than from the sea. In short, the traditions -respecting spirits and water are not in contradiction to the opinion -of the ancient Hindus that music is of heavenly origin, but rather -tend to support it. - -The earliest musical instruments of the Hindus on record have, almost -all of them, remained in popular use until the present day scarcely -altered. Besides these, the Hindus possess several Arabic and Persian -instruments which are of comparatively modern date in Hindustan: -evidently having been introduced into that country scarcely 1,000 -years ago, at the time of the Muhammadan irruption. There are several -treatises on music extant, written in Sanskrit, which contain -descriptions of the ancient instruments. - - [Illustration: FIG. 14.――_a._ SÂRINDA AND BOW. Indian (Bengal). - 19th century. L. 25 in.; bow 15¾ in. No. 180. 180ᵃ-’82. - _b._ RUDRA VINA. Southern Indian (Madras). 19th century. - L. 45 in. No. 02130. I.S. - _c._ SÂRANGI AND BOW. Southern Indian. 19th century. - L. 22 in. No. 02118. I.S. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - -Of these the Bhârata Nâtya S’astra by Bhârata Muni (period: B.C. 200 -to A.D. 100), and the Sangita Ratnâkara, are probably the oldest and -most valuable. The latter, according to information supplied by the -late Major C. R. Day, is an exhaustive work, consisting of seven -ādhyayas, compiled by Sarnga Deva, son of Sotala Deva, King of -Karnata, and grandson of Bhaskara, a Kashmirian (period: so far -undetermined). - -The _vina_ is undoubtedly of high antiquity. It has seven wire -strings, and movable frets which are generally fastened with wax. -Gourds, often tastefully ornamented, are affixed for the purpose of -increasing the sonorousness. There are several kinds of the _vina_ in -different districts. - -Concerning the two principal present-day derivations from the ancient -vina, the following abbreviated descriptions of the _rudra vina_ of -Southern India and the _bîn_ or _mahati vina_ of Northern India, are -obtained from “The Music and Musical Instruments of Southern India,” -by the late Major C. R. Day (London, 1891). - -The _rudra vina_ (_see_ Fig. 14_b_) is composed of a pear-shaped body -of thin wood, hollowed out of the solid; wooden belly; four principal -metal strings passing over twenty-four frets and three shorter wires -placed at the side of the finger-board; also a single detachable -_burra_, or hollow gourd, fastened to the under-side of the neck, near -the head, to increase the volume of sound. In the method of playing it -differs from that of other Indian musical instruments, the left hand -being employed to stop the strings on the frets, whilst the fingers, -or rather the finger-nails, of the right hand are used, without -plectra, for striking. The _bîn_, or _mahali vina_, differs from the -_rudra vina_ in shape and in method of playing. Two large -gourd-resonators replace the wooden body with its small _burra_; the -side strings are placed two on the left side and one upon the right; -the frets vary from nineteen to twenty-two in number; and in playing, -the two first fingers of the right hand are armed with wire plectra. - -The _sârangi_, or the common fiddle of Southern India (Fig. 14_c_) has -a wooden body hollowed out of a single block, a parchment belly, three -strings of thick gut, and usually fifteen sympathetic strings of wire, -tuned chromatically. Sometimes a fourth principal string of wire, -called _luruj_, is added. It is played with a bow, the instrument -being held vertically, head uppermost; the tone resembling that of the -viola. The _sârangi_ of Northern India, usually carved with a -conventional swan-shaped head, has a rounded body, and possesses a -lesser number of sympathetic wires. - -The _sârinda_, or Bengal fiddle (Fig. 14_a_), another of the few bowed -instruments of India, consists of a hollow wooden body, usually -decorated with carving, a curious parchment belly covering only the -lower half of the body, and three strings either of gut or silk. - -The Hindus divided their musical scale into several intervals smaller -than our modern semitones. They adopted twenty-two intervals called -_s’ruti_ in the compass of an octave, which may therefore be compared -to our chromatic intervals. As the frets of the _vina_ are movable the -performer can easily regulate them according to the scale, or mode, -which he requires for his music. - -The harp has long been obsolete. If some Hindu drawings of it can be -relied upon, it had at an early time a triangular frame and was in -construction as well as in shape and size almost identical with the -Assyrian harp. - -The Hindus claim to have invented the violin bow. They maintain that -the _ravanastra_, one of their old instruments played with the bow, -was invented about 5,000 years ago by Ravana, a mighty king of Ceylon. -However this may be, there is a great probability that the fiddle-bow -originated in Hindustan; because Sanskrit scholars inform us that -there are names for it in works which cannot be less than from 1,500 -to 2,000 years old. The non-occurrence of any instrument played with a -bow on the monuments of the nations of antiquity is by no means so -sure a proof as has generally been supposed, that the bow was unknown. -The fiddle in its primitive condition must have been a poor -contrivance. It probably was despised by players who could produce -better tones with greater facility by twanging the strings with their -fingers, or with a plectrum. Thus it may have remained through many -centuries without experiencing any material improvement. It must also -be borne in mind that the monuments transmitted to us chiefly -represent historical events, religious ceremonies, and royal -entertainments. On such occasions instruments of a certain kind only -were used, and these we find represented; while others, which may have -been even more common, never occur. In 2,000 years’ time people will -possibly maintain that some highly perfected instrument popular with -them was entirely unknown to us, because it is at present in so -primitive a condition that no one hardly notices it. - -“What the _ravanastra_, or _râbanastra_, was like is rather doubtful, -but at the present time there exists in Ceylon a primitive instrument -played with a bow, called _vinavah_, which has two strings of -different kinds, one made of a species of flax, and the other of -horsehair, which is the material also of the string of the bow…. The -hollow part of this instrument is half a cocoa-nut shell polished, -covered with the dried skin of a lizard, and perforated below.” (Day, -p. 102.) - -This instrument again is almost identical with the Chinese fiddle -called _ur-heen_, which also has two strings, and a body consisting of -a small block of wood, hollowed out and covered with the skin of a -serpent. The _ur-heen_ has not been mentioned among the most ancient -instruments of the Chinese, since there is no evidence of its having -been known in China before the introduction of the Buddhist religion -into that country. From indications, which to point out would lead too -far here, it would appear that several instruments found in China -originated in Hindustan. They seem to have been gradually diffused -from Hindustan and Thibet, more or less altered in the course of time, -through the East as far as Japan. - -Another curious Hindu instrument, probably of very high antiquity, is -the _pungi_, or _jinagovi_, also called _toumrie_ and _magoudi_. It -consists of a gourd or of the _cuddos_ nut, hollowed, into which two -reed-pipes are inserted. The _pungi_ therefore, somewhat resembles in -appearance a bagpipe. It is generally used by the _saperá_ or -snake-charmer, who plays upon it when exhibiting the antics of the -cobra. The name _magoudi_, given in certain districts to this -instrument, rather tends to corroborate the opinion of some musical -historians that the _magadis_ of the ancient Greeks was a sort of -double-pipe, or bagpipe. - -Many instruments of Hindustan are known by different names in -different districts, and there are many varieties. On the whole, the -Hindus possess about fifty instruments. To describe them properly -would fill a volume. Some, which are in the Museum, will be found well -described and illustrated in the previously mentioned work by the late -Major C. R. Day, which, in addition to affording much valuable -information to the student and collector, contains a lengthy -bibliography of Indian music and musical instruments. - - -THE PERSIANS AND ARABS. - -Of the musical instruments of the ancient Persians, before the -Christian era, scarcely anything is known. It may be surmised that -they closely resembled those of the Assyrians, and probably also those -of the Hebrews. - -The harp, _chang_, in olden time a favourite instrument of the -Persians, has gradually fallen into desuetude. A small harp is -represented in the celebrated sculptures which exist on a stupendous -rock, called Tak-i-Bostan, in the vicinity of the town of Kermanshah. -These sculptures are said to have been executed during the lifetime of -the Persian monarch Chosroes II. (591-628). They form the ornaments of -two lofty arches, and consist of representations of field sports and -aquatic amusements. In one of the boats is seated a man in an -ornamental dress, with a halo round his head, who is receiving an -arrow from one of his attendants; while a female, who is sitting near -him, plays on a Trigonon. Towards the top of the bas-relief is -represented a stage, on which are performers on small straight -trumpets and little hand drums; six harpers; and four other musicians, -apparently females――the first of whom plays a flute; the second, a -sort of Pandean pipe; the third, an instrument which is too much -defaced to be recognisable; and the fourth, a bagpipe. Two harps of a -peculiar shape were copied by Sir Gore Ousely from Persian manuscripts -about four hundred years old, resembling, in the principle on which -they are constructed, all other oriental harps. There existed -evidently various kinds of the _chang_. It may be remarked here that -the instrument _tschenk_ (or _chang_) in use at the present day in -Persia, is more like a dulcimer than a harp. The Arabs adopted the -harp from the Persians, and called it _junk_. - -The Persians appear to have adopted, at an early period, smaller -musical intervals than semitones. When the Arabs conquered Persia -(A.D. 641) the Persians had already attained a higher degree of -civilisation than their conquerors. The latter found in Persia the -cultivation of music considerably in advance of their own, and the -musical instruments superior also. They soon adopted the Persian -instruments, and there can be no doubt that the musical system -exhibited by the earliest Arab writers whose works on the theory of -music have been preserved was based upon an older system of the -Persians. In these works the octave is divided in seventeen -_one-third-tones_――intervals which are still made use of in the East. -Some of the Arabian instruments are constructed so as to enable the -performer to produce the intervals with exactness. The frets on the -lute and tamboura, for instance, are regulated with a view to this -object. - -The Arabs had to some extent become acquainted with many of the -Persian instruments before the time of their conquest of Persia. An -Arab musician of the name of Nadr Ben el-Hares Ben Kelde is recorded -as having been sent to the Persian King Chosroes II., in the sixth -century, for the purpose of learning Persian singing and performing on -the lute. Through him, it is said, the lute was brought to Mekka. Saib -Chatir, the son of a Persian, is spoken of as the first performer on -the lute in Medina, A.D. 682; and of an Arab lutist, Ebn Soreidsch -from Mekka, A.D. 683, it is especially mentioned that he played in the -Persian style; evidently the superior one. The lute, _el-ood_, had -before the tenth century only four strings, or four pairs producing -four tones, each tone having two strings tuned in unison. About the -tenth century a string for a fifth tone was added. The strings were -made of silk neatly twisted. The neck of the instrument was provided -with frets of string, which were carefully regulated according to the -system of seventeen intervals in the compass of an octave before -mentioned. Other favourite stringed instruments were the _tamboura_, a -kind of lute with a long neck, and the _quanūn_, a kind of dulcimer -strung with lamb’s gut strings (generally three in unison for each -tone) and played upon with two little plectra which the performer had -fastened to his fingers. The _quanūn_ is likewise still in use in -countries inhabited by Muhammadans. The Persian _santir_, the -prototype of our dulcimer, is mounted with wire strings and played -with two slightly curved sticks. The musician depicted in the -left-hand corner of Fig. 15_c_ is playing a _santir_. - - [Illustration: FIG. 15.――_a._ KEMÁNGEII, SITÂRA OR FIDDLE. - Persian. About 1800. No. 939-’73. L. 36½ in.; - diam. 8 in. - _b._ NUY (Flute). Persian. 19th century. L. 17⅜ in. - No. 959-’86. - _c._ SANTIR (Dulcimer) CASE. Persian. L. 33 in.; - W. 11½ in. No. 779-’76. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - -Al-Farabi, one of the earliest Arabian musical theorists known, who -lived in the beginning of the tenth century, does not allude to the -fiddle-bow. This is noteworthy inasmuch as it seems in some measure to -support the opinion maintained by some historians that the bow -originated in England or Wales. Unfortunately we possess no exact -descriptions of the Persian and Arabian instruments between the tenth -and fourteenth centuries, otherwise we should probably have earlier -accounts of some instrument of the violin kind in Persia. -Ash-shakandi, who lived in Spain about A.D. 1200, mentions the -_rabôb_, which may have been in use for centuries without having been -thought worthy of notice on account of its rudeness. Persian writers -of the fourteenth century speak of two instruments of the violin -class, viz., the _rabôb_ and the _kemángeh_. As regards the -_kemángeh_, the Arabs themselves assert that they obtained it from -Persia, and their statement appears all the more worthy of belief from -the fact that both names, _rabôb_ and _kemángeh_, are originally -Persian. - -The _nuy_, a flute (Fig. 15_b_), and the _surnai_, a species of oboe, -are still popular in the East. - -The _sitâra_ is a Persian three stringed instrument with a wooden body -and a parchment belly (Fig. 15_a_). - -The Arabs must have been indefatigable constructors of musical -instruments. Kiesewetter gives a list of above two hundred names of -Arabian instruments, and this does not include many known to us -through Spanish historians. A careful investigation of the musical -instruments of the Arabs during their sojourn in Spain is particularly -interesting to the student of mediæval music, inasmuch as it reveals -the Eastern origin of many instruments which are generally regarded as -European inventions. Introduced into Spain by the Saracens and the -Moors they were gradually diffused towards northern Europe. The -English, for instance, adopted not only the Moorish dance (morris -dance) but also the _kuitra_ (gittern), the _el-ood_ (lute), the -_rabôb_ (rebec), the _naḳḳárah_ (naker), and several others. In -an old Cornish sacred drama, supposed to date from the fourteenth -century, we have in an enumeration of musical instruments the -_nakrys_, designating “kettle-drums.” It must be remembered that the -Cornish language, which has now become obsolete, was nearly akin to -the Welsh. Indeed, names of musical instruments derived from the Moors -in Spain occur in almost every European language. - -Not a few fanciful stories are traditionally preserved among the Arabs -testifying to the wonderful effects they ascribed to the power of -their instrumental performances. One example will suffice. Al-Farabi -had acquired his proficiency in Spain, in one of the schools at -Cordova which flourished as early as towards the end of the ninth -century, and his reputation became so great that ultimately it -extended to Asia. The mighty Caliph of Bagdad himself desired to hear -the celebrated musician, and sent messengers to Spain with -instructions to offer rich presents to him and to convey him to the -court. But Al-Farabi feared that if he went he should be retained in -Asia, and should never again see the home to which he felt deeply -attached. At last he resolved to disguise himself, and ventured to -undertake the journey which promised him a rich harvest. Dressed in a -mean costume, he made his appearance at the court just at the time -when the caliph was being entertained with his daily concert. -Al-Farabi, unknown to everyone, was permitted to exhibit his skill on -the lute. Scarcely had he commenced his performance in a certain -musical mode when he set all his audience laughing aloud, -notwithstanding the efforts of the courtiers to suppress so unbecoming -an exhibition of mirth in the royal presence. In truth, even the -caliph himself was compelled to burst out into a fit of laughter. -Presently the performer changed to another mode, and the effect was -that immediately all his hearers began to sigh, and soon tears of -sadness replaced the previous tears of mirth. Again he played in -another mode, which excited his audience to such a rage that they -would have fought each other if he, seeing the danger, had not -directly gone over to an appeasing mode. After this wonderful -exhibition of his skill Al-Farabi concluded in a mode which had the -effect of making his listeners fall into a profound sleep, during -which he took his departure. - -It will be seen that this incident is almost identical with one -recorded as having happened about twelve hundred years earlier at the -court of Alexander the Great, and which forms the subject of Dryden’s -“Alexander’s Feast.” The distinguished flutist Timotheus successively -aroused and subdued different passions by changing the musical modes -during his performance, exactly in the same way as did Al-Farabi. - - - - -VI. - -AMERICAN INDIAN. - - -If the preserved antiquities of the American Indians, dating from a -period anterior to our discovery of the western hemisphere, possess an -extraordinary interest because they afford trustworthy evidence of the -degree of progress which the aborigines had attained in the -cultivation of the arts and in their social condition before they came -in contact with Europeans, it must be admitted that the ancient -musical instruments of the American Indians are also worthy of -examination. Several of them are constructed in a manner which, in -some degree, reveals the characteristics of the musical system -prevalent among the people who used the instruments. And although most -of these interesting relics, which have been obtained from tombs and -other hiding-places, may not be of great antiquity, it has been -satisfactorily ascertained that they are genuine contrivances of the -Indians before they were influenced by European civilisation. - -Some account of these relics is therefore likely to prove of interest -also to the ethnologist, especially as several facts may perhaps be -found of assistance in elucidating the still unsolved problem as to -the probable original connection of the American with Asiatic races. - -Among the instruments of the Aztecs in Mexico and of the Peruvians -none have been found so frequently, and have been preserved in their -former condition so unaltered, as pipes and flutes. They are generally -made of pottery or of bone, substances which are unsuitable for the -construction of most other instruments, but which are remarkably well -qualified to withstand the decaying influence of time. There is, -therefore, no reason to conclude from the frequent occurrence of such -instruments that they were more common than other kinds of which -specimens have rarely been discovered. - - [Illustration: FIG. 16.――POTTERY WHISTLES. Ancient Mexican. - British Museum.] - -The Mexicans possessed a small whistle formed of baked clay, a -considerable number of which have been found. Some specimens (Fig. 16) -are singularly grotesque in shape, representing caricatures of the -human face and figure, birds, beasts, and flowers. Some were provided -at the top with a finger-hole which, when closed, altered the pitch of -the sound, so that two different tones were producible on the -instrument. Others had a little ball of baked clay lying loose inside -the air-chamber. When the instrument was blown the current of air set -the ball in a vibrating motion, thereby causing a shrill and whirring -sound. A similar contrivance is sometimes made use of by Englishmen -for conveying signals. The Mexican whistle most likely served -principally the same purpose, but it may possibly have been used also -in musical entertainments. In the Russian horn band each musician is -restricted to a single tone; and similar combinations of -performers――only, of course, much more rude――have been witnessed by -travellers among some tribes in Africa and America. - -Rather more complete than the above specimens are some of the whistles -and small pipes which have been found in graves of the Indians of -Chiriqui in Central America. - -The pipe of the Aztecs, which is called by the Mexican Spaniards -_pito_, somewhat resembled our flageolet: the material was a reddish -pottery, and it was provided with four linger holes. Although among -about half a dozen specimens which the writer has examined some are -considerably larger than others, they all have, singularly enough, the -same pitch of sound. The smallest is about six inches in length, and -the largest about nine inches. Several _pitos_ have been found in a -remarkably well-preserved condition. They are easy to blow, and their -order of intervals is in conformity with the pentatonic scale, thus: -[Music: treble clef, quarter notes A B C# E F#] The usual shape of the -_pito_ is that here represented (Fig. 17_a_ & _c_). A specimen of a -less common shape, is given in Fig. 17_b_. They are all in the British -Museum. Indications suggestive of the popular estimation in which the -flute (or perhaps, more strictly speaking, the pipe) was held by the -Aztecs are not wanting. It was played in religious observances, and we -find it referred to allegorically in orations delivered on solemn -occasions. For instance, at the religious festival which was held in -honour of Tezcatlepoca――a divinity depicted as a handsome youth, and -considered second only to the supreme being――a young man was -sacrificed who, in preparation for the ceremony, had been instructed -in the art of playing the flute. Twenty days before his death four -young girls, named after the principal goddesses, were given to him as -companions; and when the hour arrived in which he was to be sacrificed -he observed the established symbolical rite of breaking a flute on -each of the steps, as he ascended the temple. - - [Illustration: FIG. 17.――PITOS (flageolets of pottery). _a._ and - _c._ Ancient Mexican. - _b._ From the Island of Sacrificios. - British Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 18.――BONE FLUTES. Ancient Peruvian. - _a._ and _b._ Truxillo. _c._ Lima. - British Museum.] - -Again, at the public ceremonies which took place on the accession of a -prince to the throne the new monarch addressed a prayer to the god, in -which occurred the following allegorical expression:――“I am thy flute; -reveal to me thy will; breathe into me thy breath like into a flute, -as thou hast done to my predecessors on the throne. As thou hast -opened their eyes, their ears, and their mouth to utter what is good, -so likewise do to me. I resign myself entirely to thy guidance.” -Similar sentences occur in the orations addressed to the monarch. In -reading them one can hardly fail to be reminded of Hamlet’s -reflections addressed to Guildenstern, when the servile courtier -expresses his inability to “govern the ventages” of the pipe and to -make the instrument “discourse most eloquent music,” which the prince -bids him to do. - -M. de Castelnau, in his “Expédition dans l’Amérique,” gives among the -illustrations of objects discovered in ancient Peruvian tombs a flute -made of a human bone. It has four finger holes at its upper surface -and appears to have been blown into at one end. Two bone flutes (Figs. -18_b_ & _c_), in appearance similar to the engraving given by M. de -Castelnau, which have been disinterred at Truxillo, are deposited in -the British Museum. They are about six inches in length, and each is -provided with five finger holes. One of these has all the holes at its -upper side, and one of the holes is considerably smaller than the -rest. The specimen which we illustrate (Fig. 18_a_) is ornamented with -some simple designs in black. - -The other has four holes at its upper side and one underneath, the -latter being placed near to the end at which the instrument evidently -was blown. In the aperture of this end some remains of a hardened -paste, or resinous substance, are still preserved. This substance -probably was inserted for the purpose of narrowing the end of the -tube, in order to facilitate the producing of the sounds. The same -contrivance is still resorted to in the construction of the bone -flutes by some Indian tribes in Guiana. The bones of slain enemies -appear to have been considered especially appropriate for such flutes. -The Araucanians having killed a prisoner, made flutes of his bones, -and danced and “thundered out their dreadful war songs, accompanied by -the mournful sounds of these horrid instruments.” Alonso de Ovalle -says of the Indians in Chili: “Their flutes, which they play upon in -their dances, are made of the bones of the Spaniards and other enemies -whom they have overcome in war. This they do by way of triumph and -glory for their victory. They make them likewise of bones of animals; -but the warriors dance only to the flutes made of their enemies.” The -Mexicans and Peruvians obviously possessed a great variety of pipes -and flutes, some of which are still in use among certain Indian -tribes. Those which were found in the famous ruins at Palenque are -deposited in the museum in Mexico. They are:――The _cuyvi_, a pipe on -which only five tones were producible; the _huayllaca_, a sort of -flageolet; the _pincullu_, a flute; and the _chayna_, which is -described as “a flute whose lugubrious and melancholy tones filled the -heart with indescribable sadness, and brought involuntary tears into -the eyes.” It was perhaps a kind of oboe. - -The Peruvians had the syrinx, which they called _huayra-puhura_. Some -clue to the proper meaning of this name may perhaps be gathered from -the word _huayra_, which signifies “air.” The _huayra-puhura_ was made -of cane, and also of stone. Sometimes an embroidery of needlework was -attached to it as an ornament. One specimen which has been disinterred -is adorned with twelve figures precisely resembling Maltese crosses. -The cross is a figure which may readily be supposed to suggest itself -very naturally; and it is therefore not so surprising, as it may -appear at a first glance, that the American Indians used it not -unfrequently in designs and sculptures before they came in contact -with Christians. - -The British Museum possesses a _huayra-puhura_ consisting of fourteen -reed pipes of a brownish colour, tied together in two rows by means of -thread, so as to form a double set of seven reeds. Both sets are -almost exactly of the same dimensions and are placed side by side. The -shortest of these reeds measure three inches, and the longest six and -a half. In one set they are open at the bottom, and in the other they -are closed. Consequently octaves are produced. The reader is probably -aware that the closing of a pipe at the end raises its pitch an -octave. Thus, in our organ, the so-called stopped diapason, a set of -closed pipes, requires tubes of only half the length of those which -constitute the open diapason, although both these stops produce tones -in the same pitch; the only difference between them being the quality -of sound, which in the former is less bright than in the latter. - -The tones yielded by the _huayra-puhura_ in question are as follows: -[Music: Treble clef, ascending quarter note octaves: A C D E G A -C] The highest octave is indistinct, owing to some injury done to -the shortest tubes; but sufficient evidence remains to show that -the intervals were purposely arranged according to the pentatonic -scale. This interesting relic was brought to light from a tomb at -Arica. - -Another _huayra-puhura_ (Fig. 19), likewise still yielding sounds, was -discovered placed over a corpse in a Peruvian tomb, and was procured -by the French general, Paroissien. This instrument is made of -soapstone, and contains eight pipes. It now belongs to the Rev. Canon -J. H. Rawdon.[4] In the Museum may be seen a good plaster cast taken -from this curious relic. The height is five and three-quarter inches, -and its width six and a quarter inches. Four of the tubes have small -lateral finger-holes, which, when closed, lower the pitch a semitone. -These holes are on the second, fourth, six, and seventh pipe, as shown -in the engraving. When the holes are open, the tones are: [Music: -Treble clef, quarter notes F# A C# F♮] and when they are closed: -[Music: Treble clef, quarter notes F♮ A♭ C♮ E] The other tubes have -unalterable tones. The following notation exhibits all the tones -producible on the instrument: [Music: Treble clef, quarter notes E F -F# G G# A C C# D E F A] - - [Illustration: FIG. 19.――HUAYRA-PUHURA, discovered in a Peruvian - tomb. - The property of the Rev. Canon Rawdon.] - -The musician is likely to speculate what could have induced the -Peruvians to adopt so strange a series of intervals: it seems rather -arbitrary than premeditated. - -If (and this seems not to be improbable) the Peruvians considered -those tones which are produced by closing the lateral holes as -additional intervals only, a variety of scales or kinds of _modes_ may -have been contrived by the admission of one or other of these tones -among the essential ones. If we may conjecture from some remarks of -Garcilasso de la Vega, and other historians, the Peruvians appear to -have used different orders of intervals for different kinds of tunes, -in a way similar to what we find to be the case with certain Asiatic -nations. We are told, for instance, “Each poem, or song, had its -appropriate tune, and they could not put two different songs to one -tune; and this was why the enamoured gallant, making music at night on -his flute, with the tune which belonged to it, told the lady and all -the world the joy or sorrow of his soul, the favour or ill-will which -he possessed; so that it might be said that he spoke by the flute.” -Thus also the Hindus have certain tunes for certain seasons and fixed -occasions, and likewise a number of different modes or scales used for -particular kinds of songs. - - [Illustration: FIG. 20. WOODEN TRUMPET, used by Indians near the - Orinoco.] - -Trumpets are often mentioned by writers who have recorded the manners -and customs of the Indians at the time of the discovery of America. -There are, however, scarcely any illustrations to be relied on of -these instruments transmitted to us. The Conch was frequently used as -a trumpet for conveying signals in war. - - [Illustration: FIG. 21.――JURUPARIS, with and without cover, used by - Indians on the Rio Haupés. - In the Museum at Kew Gardens.] - -Fig. 20 represents a kind of trumpet made of wood, and nearly seven -feet in length, which Gumilla found among the Indians in the vicinity -of the Orinoco. It somewhat resembles the _juruparis_ (Fig. 21), a -mysterious instrument of the Indians on the Rio Haupés, a tributary of -the Rio Negro, South America. The _juruparis_ is regarded as an object -of great veneration. Women are never permitted to see it. So stringent -is this law that any woman obtaining a sight of it is put to -death――usually by poison. No youths are allowed to see it until they -have been subjected to a series of initiatory fastings and scourgings. -The _juruparis_ is usually kept hidden in the bed of some stream, deep -in the forest; and no one dares to drink out of that sanctified -stream, or to bathe in its water. At feasts the _juruparis_ is brought -out during the night, and is blown outside the houses of -entertainment. The inner portion of the instrument consists of a tube -made of slips of the Paxiaba palm (_Triartea exorrhiza_). When the -Indians are about to use the instrument they nearly close the upper -end of the tube with clay, and also tie above the oblong square hole -(shown in the engraving) a portion of the leaf of the Uaruma, one of -the arrow-root family. Round the tube are wrapped long strips of the -tough bark of the Jébaru (_Parivoa grandiflora_). This covering -descends in folds below the tube. The length of the instrument is from -four to five feet. The illustration (Fig. 21), which exhibits the -_juruparis_ with its cover and without it, has been taken from a -specimen in the museum at Kew gardens. The mysteries connected with -this trumpet are evidently founded on an old tradition from -prehistoric Indian ancestors. _Jurupari_ means “demon”; and with -several Indian tribes on the Amazon customs and ceremonies still -prevail in honour of Jurupari. - -The Caroados, an Indian tribe in Brazil, have a war trumpet which -closely resembles the _juruparis_. With this people it is the custom -for the chief to give on his war trumpet the signal for battle, and to -continue blowing as long as he wishes the battle to last. The trumpet -is made of wood, and its sound is described by travellers as very deep -but rather pleasant. The sound is easily produced, and its continuance -does not require much exertion; but a peculiar vibration of the lips -is necessary which requires practice. Another trumpet, the _turé_, is -common with many Indian tribes on the Amazon who use it chiefly in -war. It is made of a long and thick bamboo, and there is a split reed -in the mouthpiece. It therefore partakes rather of the character of an -oboe or clarinet. Its tone is described as loud and harsh. The _turé_ -is especially used by the sentinels of predatory hordes, who, mounted -on a lofty tree, give the signal of attack to their comrades. - -Again, the aborigines in Mexico had a curious contrivance of this -kind, the _acocotl_, now more usually called _clarin_. The former word -is its old Indian name, and the latter appears to have been first -given to the instrument by the Spaniards. The _acocotl_ consists of a -very thin tube from eight to ten feet in length, and generally not -quite straight but with some irregular curves. This tube, which is -often not thicker than a couple of inches in diameter, terminates at -one end in a sort of bell, and has at the other end a small mouthpiece -resembling in shape that of a clarinet. The tube is made of the dry -stalk of a plant which is common in Mexico, and which likewise the -Indians call _acocotl_. The most singular characteristic of the -instrument is that the performer does not blow into it, but inhales -the air through it; or rather, he produces the sound by sucking the -mouthpiece. It is said to require strong lungs to perform on the -_acocotl_ effectively according to Indian notions of taste. - - [Illustration: FIG. 22.――BOTUTO, used by Indians near the Orinoco.] - -The _botuto_, which Gumilla saw used by some tribes near the river -Orinoco (Fig. 22), was evidently an ancient Indian contrivance, but -appears to have fallen almost into oblivion during the last two -centuries. It was made of baked clay and was commonly from three to -four feet long; but some trumpets of this kind were of enormous size. -The _botuto_ with two bellies was usually made thicker than that with -three bellies and emitted a deeper sound, which is described as having -been really terrific. These trumpets were used on occasions of -mourning and funeral dances. Alexander von Humboldt saw the _botuto_ -among some Indian tribes near the river Orinoco. - -Besides those which have been noticed, other antique wind instruments -of the Indians are mentioned by historians; but the descriptions given -of them are too superficial to convey a distinct notion as to their -form and purport. Several of these barbarous contrivances scarcely -deserve to be classed with musical instruments. This may, for -instance, be said of certain musical jars or earthen vessels producing -sounds, which the Peruvians constructed for their amusement. These -vessels were made double; and the sounds imitated the cries of animals -or birds. A similar contrivance of the Indians in Chili, preserved in -the museum at Santiago, is described by the traveller S. S. Hill as -follows:――“It consists of two earthen vessels in the form of our -india-rubber bottles, but somewhat larger, with a flat tube from four -to six inches in length, uniting their necks near the top and slightly -curved upwards, and with a small hole on the upper side one third of -the length of the tube from one side of the necks. To produce the -sounds the bottles were filled with water and suspended to the bough -of a tree, or to a beam, by a string attached to the middle of the -curved tube, and then swung backwards and forwards in such a manner as -to cause each end to be alternately the highest and lowest, so that -the water might pass backwards and forwards from one bottle to the -other through the tube between them. By this means soothing sounds -were produced which, it is said, were employed to lull to repose the -drowsy chiefs who usually slept away the hottest hours of the day. In -the meantime, as the bottles were porous, the water within them -diminished by evaporation, and the sound died gradually away.” - -As regards instruments of percussion, a kind of drum deserves special -notice on account of the ingenuity evinced in its construction. The -Mexicans called it _teponaztli_. They generally made it of a single -block of very hard wood, somewhat oblong square in shape, which they -hollowed, leaving at each end a solid piece about three or four inches -in thickness, and at its upper side a kind of sound-board about a -quarter of an inch in thickness. In this sound-board, if it may be -called so, they made three incisions; namely, two running parallel -some distance lengthwise of the drum, and a third running across from -one of these to the other just in the centre. By this means they -obtained two vibrating tongues of wood which, when beaten with a -stick, produced sounds as clearly defined as are those of our kettle -drums. By making one of the tongues thinner than the other they -ensured two different sounds, the pitch of which they were enabled to -regulate by shaving off more or less of the wood. The bottom of the -drum they cut almost entirely open. The traveller, M. Nebel, was told -by archæologists in Mexico that these instruments always contained the -interval of a third, but on examining several specimens which he saw -in museums he found some in which the two sounds stood towards each -other in the relation of a fourth; while in others they constituted a -fifth, in others a sixth, and in some even an octave. This is -noteworthy in so far as it points to a conformity with our diatonic -series of intervals, excepting the seventh. - -The _teponaztli_ was generally carved with various fanciful and -ingenious designs. It was beaten with two drumsticks covered at the -end with an elastic gum, called _ule_, which was obtained from the -milky juice extracted from the ule-tree. Some of these drums were -small enough to be carried on a string or strap suspended round the -neck of the player; others, again, measured upwards of 5 feet in -length, and their sound was so powerful that it could be heard at a -distance of three miles. In some rare instances a specimen of the -_teponaztli_ is still preserved by the Indians in Mexico, especially -among tribes who have been comparatively but little affected by -intercourse with their European aggressors. Herr Heller saw such an -instrument in the hands of the Indians of Huatusco――a village near -Mirador in the Tierra Templada, or temperate region, occupying the -slopes of the Cordilleras. Its sound is described as so very loud as -to be distinctly audible at an incredibly great distance. This -circumstance, which has been noticed by several travellers, may -perhaps be owing in some measure to the condition of the atmosphere in -Mexico. - -Instruments of percussion constructed on a principle more or less -similar to the _teponaztli_ were in use in several other parts of -America, as well as in Mexico. - -The largest kind of Mexican _teponaztli_ appears to have been -generally of a cylindrical shape. Clavigero gives a drawing of such an -instrument. Drums, also constructed of skin or parchment in -combination with wood were not unknown to the Indians. Of this -description was, for instance, the _huehuetl_ of the Aztecs in Mexico, -which consisted, according to Clavigero, of a wooden cylinder somewhat -above 3 feet in height, curiously carved and painted and covered at -the top with carefully prepared deer-skin. And, what appears the most -remarkable, the parchment (we are told) could be tightened or -slackened by means of cords in nearly the same way as with our own -drum. The _huehuetl_ was not beaten with drumsticks but merely struck -with the fingers, and much dexterity was required to strike it in the -proper manner. Oviedo states that the Indians in Cuba had drums which -were stretched with human skin. And Bernal Diaz relates that when he -was with Cortés in Mexico they ascended together the _Teocalli_ -(“House of God”), a large temple in which human sacrifices were -offered by the aborigines; and there the Spanish visitors saw a large -drum which was made, Diaz tells us, with skins of great serpents. This -“hellish instrument,” as he calls it, produced, when struck, a doleful -sound which was so loud that it could be heard at a distance of two -leagues. - -The name of the Peruvian drum was _huanca_; they had also an -instrument of percussion, called _chhilchiles_, which appears to have -been a sort of tambourine. - -The rattle was likewise popular with the Indians before the discovery -of America. The Mexicans called it _ajacaxtli_. In construction it was -similar to the rattle at the present day commonly used by the Indians. -It was oval or round in shape, and appears to have been usually made -of a gourd into which holes were pierced, and to which a wooden handle -was affixed. A number of little pebbles were enclosed in the hollowed -gourd. They were also made of pottery. The little balls in the -_ajacaxtli_ of pottery, enclosed as they are, may at a first glance -appear a puzzle. Probably, when the rattle was being formed they were -attached to the inside as slightly as possible; and after the clay had -been baked they were detached by means of an implement passed through -the holes. - -The Tezcucans (or Acolhuans) belonged to the same race as the Aztecs, -whom they greatly surpassed in knowledge and social refinement. -Nezahualcoyotl, a wise monarch of the Tezcucans, abhorred human -sacrifices, and erected a large temple which he dedicated to “The -unknown god, the cause of causes.” This edifice had a tower nine -storeys high, on the top of which were placed a number of musical -instruments of various kinds which were used to summon the worshippers -to prayer. Respecting these instruments especial mention is made of a -sonorous metal which was struck with a mallet. This is stated in a -historical essay written by Ixtlilxochitl, a native of Mexico and of -royal descent, who lived in the beginning of the seventeenth century, -and who may be supposed to have been familiar with the musical -practices of his countrymen. But whether the sonorous metal alluded to -was a gong or a bell is not clear from the vague record transmitted to -us. That the bell was known to the Peruvians appears to be no longer -doubtful, since a small copper specimen has been found in one of the -old Peruvian tombs. This interesting relic is now deposited in the -museum at Lima. M. de Castelnau has published a drawing of it. The -Peruvians called their bells _chanrares_; but it remains questionable -whether this name did not designate rather the so-called horse bells, -which were certainly known to the Mexicans, who called them _yotl_. It -is noteworthy that these _yotl_ are found figured in the -picture-writings representing the various objects which the Aztecs -used to pay as tribute to their sovereigns. The collection of Mexican -antiquities in the British Museum contains a cluster of yotl-bells. -Being nearly round, they closely resemble the _Schellen_ which the -Germans are in the habit of affixing to their horses, particularly in -the winter when they are driving their noiseless sledges. - -Again, in South America sonorous stones are not unknown, and were used -in olden time for musical purposes. The traveller G. T. Vigne saw -among the Indian antiquities preserved in the town of Cuzco, in Peru, -“a musical instrument of green sonorous stone, about a foot long, and -an inch and a half wide, flat-sided, pointed at both ends, and arched -at the back, where it was about a quarter of an inch thick, whence it -diminished to an edge, like the blade of a knife…. In the middle of -the back was a small hole, through which a piece of string was passed; -and when suspended and struck by any hard substance a singularly -musical note was produced.” Humboldt mentions the Amazon-stone, which -on being struck by a hard substance yields a metallic sound. It was -formerly cut by the American Indians into very thin plates, perforated -in the centre and suspended by a string. These plates were remarkably -sonorous. This kind of stone is not, as might be conjectured from its -name, found exclusively near the Amazon. The name was given to it as -well as to the river by the first European visitors to America, in -allusion to the female warriors respecting whom strange stories are -told. The natives pretending, according to an ancient tradition, that -the stone came from the country of “Women without husbands,” or “Women -living alone.” - -As regards the ancient stringed instruments of the American Indians -our information is indeed but scanty. Clavigero says that the Mexicans -were entirely unacquainted with stringed instruments; a statement the -correctness of which is questionable, considering the stage of -civilisation to which these people had attained. At any rate, we -generally find one or other kind of such instruments with nations -whose intellectual progress and social condition are decidedly -inferior. The Aztecs had many claims to the character of a civilised -community and (as before said) the Tezcucans were even more advanced -in the cultivation of the arts and sciences than the Aztecs. “The best -histories,” Prescott observes, “the best poems, the best code of laws, -the purest dialect, were all allowed to be Tezcucan. The Aztecs -rivalled their neighbours in splendour of living, and even in the -magnificence of their structures. They displayed a pomp and -ostentatious pageantry, truly Asiatic.” Unfortunately historians are -sometimes not sufficiently discerning in their communications -respecting musical questions. J. Ranking, in describing the grandeur -of the establishment maintained by Montezuma, says that during the -repasts of this monarch “there was music of fiddle, flute, -snail-shell, a kettle-drum, and other strange instruments.” But as -this waiter does not indicate the source whence he drew his -information respecting Montezuma’s orchestra including the fiddle, the -assertion deserves scarcely a passing notice. - -The Peruvians possessed a stringed instrument, called _tinya_, which -was provided with five or seven strings. To conjecture from the -unsatisfactory account of it transmitted to us, the _tinya_ appears to -have been a kind of guitar. Considering the fragility of the materials -of which such instruments are generally constructed, it is perhaps not -surprising that we do not meet with any specimens of them in the -museums of American antiquities. - -A few remarks will not be out of place here referring to the musical -performances of the ancient Indians, since an acquaintance with the -nature of the performances is likely to afford additional assistance -in appreciating the characteristics of the instruments. In Peru, where -the military system was carefully organised, each division of the army -had its trumpeters, called _cqueppacamayo_, and its drummers, called -_huancarcamayo_. When the Inca returned with his troops victorious -from battle his first act was to repair to the temple of the Sun in -order to offer up thanksgiving; and after the conclusion of this -ceremony the people celebrated the event with festivities, of which -music and dancing constituted a principal part. Musical performances -appear to have been considered indispensable on occasions of public -celebrations; and frequent mention is made of them by historians who -have described the festivals annually observed by the Peruvians. - -About the month of October the Peruvians celebrated a solemn feast in -honour of the dead, at which ceremony they executed lugubrious songs -and plaintive instrumental music. Compositions of a similar character -were performed on occasion of the decease of a monarch. As soon as it -was made known to the people that their Inca had been “called home to -the mansions of his father the sun” they prepared to celebrate his -obsequies with becoming solemnity. Prescott, in his graphic -description of these observances, says: “At stated intervals, for a -year, the people assembled to renew the expressions of their sorrow; -processions were made displaying the banner of the departed monarch; -bards and minstrels were appointed to chronicle his achievements, and -their songs continued to be rehearsed at high festivals in the -presence of the reigning monarch――thus stimulating the living by the -glorious example of the dead.” The Peruvians had also particular -agricultural songs, which they were in the habit of singing while -engaged in tilling the lands of the Inca; a duty which devolved upon -the whole nation. The subject of these songs, or rather hymns, -referred especially to the noble deeds and glorious achievements of -the Inca and his dynasty. While thus singing, the labourers regulated -their work to the rhythm of the music, thereby ensuring a pleasant -excitement and a stimulant in their occupation, like soldiers -regulating their steps to the music of the military band. These hymns -pleased the Spanish invaders so greatly that they not only adopted -several of them but also composed some in a similar form and style. -This appears, however, to have been the case rather with the poetry -than with the music. - -The name of the Peruvian elegiac songs was _haravi_. Some tunes of -these songs, pronounced to be genuine specimens, have been published -in recent works; but their genuineness is questionable. At all events -they must have been much tampered with, as they exhibit exactly the -form of the Spanish _bolero_. Even allowing that the melodies of these -compositions have been derived from Peruvian _harivaris_, it is -impossible to determine with any degree of certainty how much in them -has been retained of the original tunes, and how much has been -supplied besides the harmony, which is entirely an addition of the -European arranger. The Peruvians had minstrels, called _haravecs_ -(_i.e._, “inventors”), whose occupation it was to compose and to -recite the _haravis_. - -The Mexicans possessed a class of songs which served as a record of -historical events. Furthermore they had war-songs, love-songs, and -other secular vocal compositions, as well as sacred chants, in the -practice of which boys were instructed by the priests in order that -they might assist in the musical performances of the temple. It -appertained to the office of the priests to burn incense, and to -perform music in the temple at stated times of the day. The -commencement of the religious observances which took place regularly -at sunrise, at mid-day, at sunset, and at midnight, was announced by -signals blown on trumpets and pipes. Persons of high position retained -in their service professional musicians whose duty it was to compose -ballads, and to perform vocal music with instrumental accompaniment. -The nobles themselves, and occasionally even the monarch, not -infrequently delighted in composing ballads and odes. - -Especially to be noticed is the institution termed “Council of music,” -which the wise monarch Nezahualcoyotl founded in Tezcuco. This -institution was not intended exclusively for promoting the cultivation -of music; its aim comprised the advancement of various arts, and of -sciences such as history, astronomy, etc. In fact, it was an academy -for general education. Probably no better evidence could be cited -testifying to the remarkable intellectual attainments of the Mexican -Indians before the discovery of America than this council of music. -Although in some respects it appears to have resembled the board of -music of the Chinese, it was planned on a more enlightened and more -comprehensive principle. The Chinese “board of music,” called _Yoh -Pu_, is an office connected with the _Li Pu_ or “board of rites,” -established by the imperial government at Peking. The principal object -of the board of rites is to regulate the ceremonies on occasions of -sacrifices offered to the gods; of festivals and certain court -solemnities; of military reviews; of presentations, congratulations, -marriages, deaths, burials――in short, concerning almost every possible -event in social and public life. - -The reader is probably aware that in one of the various hypotheses -which have been advanced respecting the Asiatic origin of the American -Indians China is assigned to them as their ancient home. Some -historians suppose them to be emigrants from Mongolia, Thibet, or -Hindustan; others maintain that they are the offspring of Phœnician -colonists who settled in Central America. Even more curious are the -arguments of certain inquirers who have no doubt whatever that the -ancestors of the American Indians were the lost ten tribes of Israel, -of whom since about the time of the Babylonian captivity history is -silent. Whatever may be thought as to which particular one of these -speculations hits the truth, they certainly have all proved useful, in -so far as they have made ethnologists more exactly acquainted with the -habits and predilections of the American aborigines than would -otherwise have been the case. For, as the advocates of each hypothesis -have carefully collected and adduced every evidence they were able to -obtain tending to support their views, the result is that (so to say) -no stone has been left unturned. Nevertheless, any such hints as -suggest themselves from an examination of musical instruments have -hitherto remained unheeded. It may therefore perhaps interest the -reader to have his attention drawn to a few suggestive similarities -occurring between instruments of the American Indians and of certain -nations inhabiting the eastern hemisphere. - -We have seen that the Mexican pipe and the Peruvian syrinx were -purposely constructed so as to produce the intervals of the pentatonic -scale only. There are some additional indications of this scale having -been at one time in use with the American Indians. For instance, the -music of the Peruvian dance _cachua_ is described as having been very -similar to some Scotch national dances; and the most conspicuous -characteristics of the Scotch tunes are occasioned by the frequently -exclusive employment of intervals appertaining to the pentatonic -scale. We find precisely the same series of intervals adopted on -certain Chinese instruments, and evidences are not wanting of the -pentatonic scale having been popular among various races in Asia at a -remote period. The series of intervals appertaining to the Chiriqui -pipe, mentioned on p. 60, consisted of a semitone and two whole tones, -like the _tetrachord_ of the ancient Greeks. - -In the Peruvian _huayra-puhura_ made of soapstone some of the pipes -possess lateral holes. This contrivance, which is rather unusual, -occurs on the Chinese _shêng_. The _chayna_, mentioned on p. 62, seems -to have been provided with a reed, like the oboe: and in Hindustan we -find a species of oboe called _shehna_. The _turé_ of the Indian -tribes on the Amazon, mentioned on p. 67, reminds us of the trumpets -_turi_, or _tuturi_, of the Hindus. The name appears to have been -known also to the Arabs; but there is no indication whatever of its -having been transmitted to the peninsula by the Moors, and afterwards -to South America by the Portuguese and Spaniards. - -The wooden tongues in the drum _teponaztli_ may be considered as a -contrivance exclusively of the ancient American Indians. Nevertheless -a construction nearly akin to it may be observed in certain drums of -the Tonga and Fiji islanders, and of the natives of some islands in -Torres Strait. Likewise some negro tribes in Western and Central -Africa have certain instruments of percussion which are constructed on -a principle somewhat reminding us of the _teponaztli_. The method of -bracing the drum by means of cords, as exhibited in the _huehuetl_ of -the Mexican Indians, is evidently of very high antiquity in the East. -It was known to the ancient Egyptians. - -Rattles, Pandean pipes made of reed, and conch trumpets, are found -almost all over the world, wherever the materials of which they are -constructed are easily obtainable. Still, it may be noteworthy that -the Mexicans employed the conch trumpet in their religious observances -apparently in much the same way as it is used in the Buddhist worship -of the Tibetans and Kalmuks. - -As regards the sonorous metal in the great temple at Tezcuco some -inquirers are sure that it was a gong: but it must be borne in mind -that these inquirers detect everywhere traces proving an invasion of -the Mongols, which they maintain to have happened about six hundred -years ago. Had they been acquainted with the little Peruvian bell they -would have had more tangible musical evidence in support of their -theory than the supposed gong; for this bell certainly bears a -suggestive resemblance to the little hand-bell which the Buddhists use -in their religious ceremonies. - -The Peruvians interpolated certain songs, especially those which they -were in the habit of singing while cultivating the fields, with the -word _hailli_ which signified “Triumph.” As the subject of these -compositions was principally the glorification of the Inca, the burden -_hailli_ is perhaps all the more likely to remind Europeans of the -Hebrew _hallelujah_. Moreover, Adair, who lived among the Indians of -North America during a period of about forty years, speaks of some -other words which he found used as burdens in hymns sung on solemn -occasions, and which appeared to him to correspond with certain Hebrew -words of a sacred import. - -As regards the musical accomplishments of the Indian tribes at the -present day they are far below the standard which we have found among -their ancestors. A period of three hundred years of oppression has -evidently had the effect of subduing the melodious expressions of -happiness and contentedness which in former times appear to have been -quite as prevalent with the Indians as they generally are with -independent and flourishing nations. The innate talent for music -evinced by those of the North American Indians who were converted to -Christianity soon after the emigration of the Puritans to New England -is very favourably commented on by some old writers. In the year 1661 -John Elliot published a translation of the psalms into Indian verse. -The singing of these metrical psalms by the Indian converts in their -places of worship appears to have been actually superior to the sacred -vocal performances of their Christian brethren from Europe; for we -find it described by several witnesses as “excellent” and “most -ravishing.” - -In other parts of America the priests from Spain did not neglect to -turn to account the susceptibility of the Indians for music. Thus, in -central America the Dominicans composed as early as in the middle of -the sixteenth century a sacred poem in the Guatemalian dialect -containing a narrative of the most important events recorded in the -Bible. This production they sang to the natives, and to enhance the -effect they accompanied the singing with musical instruments. The -alluring music soon captivated the heart of a powerful cazique, who -was thus induced to adopt the doctrines embodied in the composition, -and to diffuse them among his subjects, who likewise delighted in the -performances. In Peru a similar experiment, resorted to by the priests -who accompanied Pizarro’s expedition, proved equally successful. They -dramatised certain scenes in the life of Christ and represented them -with music, which so greatly fascinated the Indians that many of them -readily embraced the new faith. Nor are these entertainments dispensed -with even at the present day by the Indian Christians, especially in -the village churches of the Sierra in Peru; and as several religious -ceremonies have been retained by these people from their heathen -forefathers, it may be conjectured that their sacred musical -performances also retain much of their ancient heathen character. - -Most of the musical instruments found among the American Indians at -the present day are evidently genuine old Indian contrivances as they -existed long before the discovery of America. Take, for example, the -peculiarly-shaped rattles, drums, flutes, and whistles of the North -American Indians, of which some specimens in the Museum are described -in the large catalogue. A few African instruments, introduced by the -negro slaves, are now occasionally found in the hands of the Indians, -and have been by some travellers erroneously described as genuine -Indian inventions. This is the case with the African _marimba_, which -has become rather popular with the natives of Guatemala in central -America; but such adaptations are very easily discernible. - - - - -VII. - -EUROPEAN INSTRUMENTS OF THE MIDDLE AGES. - - -Many representations of musical instruments of the middle ages have -been preserved in manuscripts, as well as in sculptures and paintings -forming ornamental portions of churches and other buildings. Valuable -facts and hints are obtainable from these evidences, provided they are -judiciously selected and carefully examined. The subject is, however, -so large that only a few observations on the most interesting -instruments can be offered here. Unfortunately there still prevails -much uncertainty respecting several of the earliest representations as -to the precise century from which they date, and there is reason to -believe that in some instances the archæological zeal of musical -investigators has assigned a higher antiquity to such discoveries than -can be satisfactorily proved. - -It appears certain that the most ancient European instruments known to -us were in form and construction more like the Asiatic than was the -case with later ones. Before a nation has attained to a fairly high -degree of civilisation its progress in the cultivation of music, as an -art, is very slow indeed. The instruments found at the present day in -Asia are scarcely superior to those which were in use among oriental -nations about three thousand years ago. It is, therefore, perhaps not -surprising that no material improvement is perceptible in the -construction of the instruments of European countries during the lapse -of nearly a thousand years. True, evidences to be relied on referring -to the first five or six centuries of the Christian era are but -scanty; although indications are not wanting which may help the -reflecting musician. - -There are some early monuments of Christian art dating from the fourth -century in which the lyre is represented. In one of them Christ is -depicted as Apollo touching the lyre. This instrument occurs at an -early period in western Europe as used in popular pastimes. In an -Anglo-Saxon manuscript of the ninth century in the British Museum -(Cleopatra C. VIII.) are the figures of two gleemen, one playing the -lyre and the other a double-pipe. M. de Coussemaker has published in -the “Annales Archéologiques” the figure of a crowned personage playing -the lyre, which he found in a manuscript of the ninth or tenth century -in the library at Angers. The player twangs the strings with his -fingers, while the Anglo-Saxon gleeman before mentioned uses a -plectrum. - - [Illustration: FIG. 23.――CITHARA. From a 9th century MS. formerly - in the monastery of St. Blasius in the Black Forest.] - -_Cithara_ was a name applied to several stringed instruments greatly -varying in form, power of sound, and compass. The illustration (Fig. -23) represents a cithara from a manuscript of the ninth century, -formerly in the library of the great monastery of St. Blasius in the -Black Forest. When in the year 1768 the monastery was destroyed by -fire, this valuable book perished in the flames; fortunately the -celebrated Abbot Gerbert possessed tracings of the illustrations, -which were saved from destruction. He published them, in the year -1774, in his work “De cantu et musica sacra.” As the older works on -music were generally written in Latin we do not learn from them the -popular names of the instruments; the writers merely adopted such -Latin names as they thought the most appropriate. Thus, for instance, -a very simple stringed instrument of a triangular shape, and a -somewhat similar one of a square shape (Fig. 24), were designated by -the name of _psalterium_. - - [Illustration: FIG. 24.――PSALTERIUM. From a MS. of the 9th century, - formerly in the monastery of St. Blasius in the - Black Forest.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 25.――CITHARA. From a MS. of the 9th century, - formerly in the monastery of St. Blasius in the Black - Forest.] - -The _cithara_ here illustrated (Fig. 25) is evidently an improvement -upon the triangular psalterium (Fig. 26), because it has a sort of -small sound-board at the top. Scarcely better, with regard to -acoustics, appears to have been the instrument designated as _nablum_, -which is engraved (Fig. 27) from a manuscript of the ninth century at -Angers. - - [Illustration: FIG. 26.――KING PLAYING PSALTERY. After an engraving - in N. X. Willemin’s _Monuments Français Inédits_, - Vol. I., pl. 19, taken from _Hortus Deliciarum_, a - MS. of the 12th century.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 27.――NABLUM. From a 9th century MS. at Angers.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 28.――Female playing a species of CITOLE. From a - 9th century MS. formerly in the monastery of St. - Blasius, in the Black Forest.] - -A small psalterium with strings placed over a sound-board was -apparently the prototype of the _citole_, a kind of dulcimer which was -played with the fingers (Fig. 28). The names were not only often -vaguely applied by the mediæval writers, but they changed also in -almost every century. The psalterium, or psalterion (Italian -_salterio_, English _psaltery_), of the fourteenth century and later -had the trapezium shape of the dulcimer. - - [Illustration: FIG. 29.――HARP. From a 9th century MS. formerly in - the monastery of St. Blasius in the Black Forest.] - -The Anglo-Saxons frequently accompanied their vocal effusions with a -harp, more or less triangular in shape, an instrument which may be -considered rather as constituting the transition of the lyre into the -harp. The harp was especially popular in central and northern Europe, -and was the favourite instrument of the German and Celtic bards and of -the Scandinavian skalds. In the next illustration (Fig. 29) from the -manuscript of the monastery of St. Blasius twelve strings and two -sound-holes are given to it. A harp similar in form and size, but -without the front pillar, was known to the ancient Egyptians. Perhaps -the addition was also non-existent in the earliest specimens -appertaining to European nations; and a sculptured figure of a small -harp constructed like the ancient eastern harp has been discovered in -the old church of Ullard in the county of Kilkenny. This curious -relic, which is said to date from a period anterior to the year 800, -is illustrated in Bunting’s “Ancient Music of Ireland.” As Bunting was -the first who drew attention to this sculpture his account of it may -interest the reader. “The drawing,” he says, “is taken from one of the -ornamental compartments of a sculptured cross, at the old church of -Ullard. From the style of the workmanship, as well as from the worn -condition of the cross, it seems older than the similar monument at -Monasterboice which is known to have been set up before the year 830. -The sculpture is rude; the circular rim which binds the arms of the -cross together is not pierced in the quadrants, and many of the -figures originally in relievo are now wholly abraded. It is difficult -to determine whether the number of strings represented is six or -seven; but, as has been already remarked, accuracy in this respect -cannot be expected either in sculptures or in many picturesque -drawings.” The Finns had a harp (_harpu_, _kantele_) with a similar -frame, devoid of a front pillar, still in use until the commencement -of the last century. - -One of the most interesting stringed instruments of the middle ages is -the _rotta_ (German, _Rotte_; English, _rote_). It was sounded by -twanging the strings, and also by the application of the bow. The -first method was, of course, the elder one. There can hardly be a -doubt that when the bow came into use it was applied to certain -popular instruments which previously had been treated like the -_cithara_ or the _psalterium_. The Hindus at the present day use their -_suroda_ sometimes as a lute and sometimes as a fiddle. In some -measure we do the same with the violin by playing occasionally -_pizzicato_. The rotta from the manuscript of St. Blasius is called in -Gerbert’s work _cithara teutonica_, while the harp is called _cithara -anglica_; from which it would appear that the former was regarded as -pre-eminently a German instrument. Possibly its name may have been -originally _chrotta_ and the continental nations may have adopted it -from the Celtic races of the British isles, dropping the guttural -sound. This hypothesis is, however, one of those which have been -advanced by some musical historians without any satisfactory evidence. - -In the _rotta_ the ancient Asiatic lyre is easily to be recognized. An -illumination of king David playing the _rotta_ forms the frontispiece -of a manuscript of the eighth century preserved in the cathedral -library of Durham; it is musically interesting inasmuch as it -represents a _rotta_ of an oblong square shape like that just noticed -and resembling the Welsh _crwth_. It has only five strings which the -performer twangs with his fingers. Again, a very interesting -representation of the Psalmist with a kind of _rotta_ occurs in a -manuscript of the tenth century, in the British Museum (Vitellius -F.XI.). The manuscript was much injured by a fire in the year 1731; -but Professor Westwood has succeeded, with great care, and with the -aid of a magnifying glass, in making out the lines of the figure. As -it has been ascertained that the psalter is written in the Irish -semiuncial character it is highly probable that the kind of _rotta_ -represents the Irish _cionar cruit_, which was played by twanging the -strings and also by the application of a bow. Unfortunately we possess -no well-authenticated representation of the Welsh _crwth_ of an early -period; otherwise we should in all probability find it played with the -fingers, or with a plectrum. Venantius Fortunatus, an Italian who -lived in the second half of the sixth century, mentions in a poem the -“Chrotta Britanna.” He does not, however, allude to the bow, and there -is no reason to suppose that it existed in England. Howbeit, the Welsh -_crwth_ (Anglo-Saxon, _crudh_; English, _crowd_) is only known as a -species of fiddle closely resembling the _rotta_, but having a -fingerboard in the middle of the open frame and being strung with only -a few strings; while the _rotta_ had sometimes above twenty strings. -As it may interest the reader to examine the form of the modern -_crwth_ we give an illustration of it (Fig. 30). Edward Jones, in his -“Musical and poetical relicks of the Welsh bards,” records that the -Welsh had before this kind of _crwth_ a three-stringed one called -“Crwth Trithant,” which was, he says, “a sort of violin, or more -properly a rebeck.” The three-stringed _crwth_ was chiefly used by the -inferior class of bards; and was probably the Moorish fiddle which is -still the favourite instrument of the itinerant bards of the Bretons -in France, who call it _rébek_. The Bretons, it will be remembered, -are close kinsmen of the Welsh. - -A player on the _crwth_ or _crowd_ (a crowder) from a bas-relief on -the under part of the seats of the choir in Worcester cathedral dates -from the latter part of the fourteenth century.[5] It was probably -identical with the _rotta_ of the same century on the continent. - - [Illustration: FIG. 30.――CRWTH. Welsh. 13th century. L. 22 in., - W. 9½ in. No. 175-’82. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - -An interesting drawing of an Anglo-Saxon fiddle――or _fithele_, as it -was called――is given in a manuscript of the eleventh century in the -British Museum (Cotton, Tiberius, c. 6). The instrument is of a pear -shape, with four strings, and the bridge is not indicated. A German -fiddle of the ninth century, called _lyra_, copied by Gerbert from the -manuscripts of St. Blasius, has only one string. Other records of the -employment of the fiddle-bow in Germany in the twelfth and thirteenth -centuries are not wanting. For instance, in the famous “Nibelungenlied” -Volker is described as wielding the fiddle-bow not less dexterously -than the sword. And in “Chronicon picturatum Brunswicense” of the year -1203, the following miraculous sign is recorded as having occurred in -the village of Ossemer: “On Wednesday in Whitsunweek, while the parson -was fiddling to his peasants who were dancing, there came a flash of -lightning and struck the parson’s arm which held the fiddle-bow, and -killed twenty-four people on the spot.” - -Among the oldest representations of performers on instruments of the -violin kind found in England those deserve to be noticed which are -painted on the interior of the roof of Peterborough Cathedral. They -are said to date from the twelfth century. One of these figures is -particularly interesting on account of the surprising resemblance -which his instrument bears to our present violin. Not only the -incurvations on the sides of the body but also the two sound-holes are -nearly identical in shape with those made at the present day. -Respecting the reliance to be placed on such evidence, it is necessary -to state that the roof, originally constructed between the years 1177 -and 1194, was thoroughly repaired in the year 1835. Although we find -it asserted that “the greatest care was taken to retain every part, or -to restore it to its original state, so that the figures, even where -retouched, are in effect the same as when first painted,” it -nevertheless remains a debatable question whether the restorers have -not admitted some slight alterations, and have thereby somewhat -modernised the appearance of the instruments. A slight touch with the -brush at the sound-holes, the screws, or the curvatures would suffice -to produce modifications which might to the artist appear as being -only a renovation of the original representation, but which to the -musical investigator greatly impair the value of the evidence. -Sculptures are, therefore, more to be relied upon in evidence than -frescoes. - - - - -VIII. - -EUROPEAN INSTRUMENTS OF THE MIDDLE AGES. (_Continued._) - - -The construction of the _organistrum_ (Fig. 31) requires but little -explanation. A glance at the finger-board reveals at once that the -different tones were obtained by raising the keys placed on the neck -under the strings, and that the keys were raised by means of the -handles at the side of the neck. Of the two bridges shown on the body, -the one situated nearest the middle was formed by a wheel in the -inside, which projected through the sound-board. The wheel which -slightly touched the strings vibrated them by friction when turned by -the handle at the end. The order of intervals was _c_, _d_, _e_, _f_, -_g_, _a_, _b-flat_, _b-natural_, _c_, and were obtainable on the -highest string. There is reason to suppose that the other two strings -were generally tuned a fifth and an octave below the highest. The -_organistrum_ may be regarded as the predecessor of the hurdy-gurdy, -and was rather a cumbrous contrivance. Two persons seem to have been -required to sound it, one to turn the handle and the other to manage -the keys. Thus it is generally represented in mediæval concerts. - -The _monochord_ was mounted with a single string stretched over two -bridges which were fixed on an oblong box. The string could be -tightened or slackened by means of a turning screw inserted into one -end of the box. The intervals of the scale were marked on the side, -and were regulated by a sort of movable bridge placed beneath the -string when required. As might be expected, the _monochord_ was -chiefly used by theorists; for any musical performance it was but -little suitable. About a thousand years ago when this monochord was in -use the musical scale was diatonic, with the exception of the interval -of the seventh, which was chromatic inasmuch as both _b-flat_ and -_b-natural_ formed part of the scale. - -This ought to be borne in mind in examining the representations of -musical instruments transmitted to us from that period. - -As regards the wind instruments popular during the Middle Ages, some -were of quaint form as well as of rude construction. - - [Illustration: FIG. 31.――ORGANISTRUM.] - -The _chorus_, or _choron_, had either one or two tubes. There were -several varieties of this instrument; sometimes it was constructed -with a bladder into which the tube is inserted; this kind of _chorus_ -resembled the bagpipe; another kind resembled the _pungi_ of the -Hindus, mentioned on page 52. The name _chorus_ was also applied to -certain stringed instruments. One of these had much the form of the -_cithara_, page 84. It appears, however, probable that _chorus_ or -_choron_ originally designated a horn (Hebrew, _keren_; Greek, -_keras_; Latin, _cornu_). - -The flutes of the Middle Ages were blown at the end, like the -flageolet. Of the _syrinx_ there are extant some illustrations of the -ninth and tenth centuries, which exhibit the instrument with a number -of tubes tied together, just like the Pandean pipe still in use. In -one specimen,[6] from a manuscript of the eleventh century, the tubes -were inserted into a bowl-shaped box. This is probably the _frestele_, -_fretel_, or _fretian_, which in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries -was in favour with the French ménétriers. - -Some large Anglo-Saxon trumpets may be seen in a manuscript of the -eighth century in the British Museum. The largest kind of trumpet was -placed on a stand when blown. Of the _oliphant_, or hunting horn, some -fine specimens are in the Victoria and Albert Museum collection. The -_sackbut_ (Fig. 32), probably made of metal, could be drawn out to -alter the pitch of sound. The sackbut of the ninth century had, -however, a very different shape to that in use about three centuries -ago, and much more resembled the present _trombone_. The name -_sackbut_ is supposed to be a corruption of _sambuca_. The French, -about the fifteenth century, called it _sacqueboute_ and _saquebutte_. - - [Illustration: FIG. 32.――SACKBUT.] - -The most important wind instrument――in fact, the king of all the -musical instruments――is the organ. - - [Illustration: FIG. 33.――ORGAN. From a 12th century psalter in the - Library of Trinity College, Cambridge.] - -The _pneumatic organ_ is sculptured on the base of an obelisk which -was erected in Constantinople under Theodosius the Great towards the -end of the fourth century. The bellows were pressed by men standing on -them. This interesting monument also exhibits performers on the double -flute. The _hydraulic organ_, which is recorded to have been already -known about two hundred years before the Christian era, was according -to some statements occasionally employed in churches during the -earlier centuries of the Middle Ages. Probably it was more frequently -heard in secular entertainments, for which it was more suitable; and -at the beginning of the fourteenth century it appears to have been -entirely supplanted by the pneumatic organ. The earliest organs had -only about a dozen pipes. The largest, which were made about nine -hundred years ago, had only three octaves, in which the chromatic -intervals did not occur. Some progress in the construction of the -organ is shewn in a psalter of Eadwine, in the library of Trinity -College, Cambridge (Fig. 33). The instrument has ten pipes, or perhaps -fourteen, as four of them appear to be double pipes. It required four -men exerting all their power to produce the necessary wind, and two -men to play the instrument. Moreover, both players seem also to be -busily engaged in directing the blowers about the proper supply of -wind. Six men and only fourteen pipes! - -Another illustration is given of an organ of the 14th century (Fig. -34). - - [Illustration: FIG. 34.――ORGAN (Grand Orgue), after an engraving in - N. X. Willemin’s _Monuments Français Inédits_, Vol. - I., pl. 133, taken from a psalter of the 14th - century.] - -The pedal is generally believed to have been invented by Bernhard, a -German, who lived in Venice about the year 1470. There are, however, -indications extant pointing to an earlier date of its invention. -Perhaps Bernhard was the first who, by adopting a more practicable -construction, made the pedal more generally known. On the earliest -organs the keys of the finger-board were of enormous size, compared -with those of the present day; so that a finger-board with only nine -keys had a breadth of from four to five feet. The organist struck the -keys down with his fist, as is done in playing the _carillon_ still in -use on the Continent, of which presently some account will be given. - -Of the little portable organ, known as the _regal_ or _regals_, often -tastefully shaped and embellished, some interesting sculptured -representations are still extant in the old ecclesiastical edifices of -England and Scotland. There is, for instance, in Beverley Minster a -figure of a man playing on a single regal, or a regal provided with -only one set of pipes; and in Melrose Abbey the figure of an angel -holding in his arms a double regal, the pipes of which are in two -sets. The regal generally had keys like those of the organ but -smaller. A painting in the National Gallery, attributed to Melozzo da -Forlì (1438-1494) contains a regal which has keys of a peculiar shape, -rather resembling the pistons of certain brass instruments. (Fig. 1, -_Frontispiece_.) To avoid misapprehension, it is necessary to mention -that the name _regal_ (or _regals_, _rigols_) was also applied to an -instrument of percussion with sonorous slabs of wood. This contrivance -was, in short, a kind of harmonica, resembling in shape as well as in -the principle of its construction the little glass harmonica, a mere -toy, in which slips of glass are arranged according to our musical -scale. In England it appears to have been still known in the beginning -of the eighteenth century. Grassineau describes the “Rigols” as “a -kind of musical instrument consisting of several sticks bound -together, only separated by beads. It makes a tolerable harmony, being -well struck with a ball at the end of a stick.” In the earlier -centuries of the Middle Ages there appear to have been some -instruments of percussion in favour, to which Grassineau’s expression -“a tolerable harmony” would scarcely have been applicable. Drums, of -course, were known; and their rhythmical noise must have been soft -music, compared with the shrill sounds of the _cymbalum_ (a -contrivance consisting of a number of metal plates suspended on cords, -so that they would be clashed together simultaneously) or with the -clangour of the _cymbalum_ constructed with bells instead of plates; -or with the piercing noise of the _bunibulum_, or _bombulom_; an -instrument which consisted of an angular frame to which were loosely -attached metal plates of various shapes and sizes. The lower part of -the frame constituted the handle; and to produce the noise it -evidently was shaken somewhat like the sistrum of the ancient -Egyptians.[7] - -The _triangle_ nearly resembled the instrument of this name in use at -the present day; it was more elegant in shape and had some metal -ornamentation in the middle. - -The _tintinnabulum_ consisted of a number of bells arranged in regular -order and suspended in a frame. - - [Illustration: FIG. 35.――BAS RELIEF, representing a group of - Musicians, formerly at the Abbey of St. Georges de - Boscherville. Late 11th century(?). After an - engraving in N.N. Willemin’s _Monuments Français - Inédits_, Vol. I., pl. 52. - Museum of Rouen.] - - - - -IX. - -EUROPEAN INSTRUMENTS OF THE MIDDLE AGES. (_Continued_). - - -Respecting the orchestras, or musical bands, represented on monuments -of the Middle Ages, there can hardly be a doubt that the artists who -sculptured them were not unfrequently led by their imagination rather -than by an adherence to actual fact. It is, however, not likely that -they introduced into such representations instruments that were never -admitted in the orchestras, and which would have appeared -inappropriate to the contemporaries of the artists. An examination of -one or two of the orchestras may therefore find a place here, -especially as they throw some additional light upon the characteristics -of the instrumental music of mediæval time. - -A very interesting group of music performers, dating, it is said, from -the end of the eleventh century, is preserved in a bas-relief which -formerly ornamented the abbey of St. Georges de Boscherville and which -is now removed to the museum of Rouen (Fig. 35). The orchestra -comprises twelve performers, most of whom wear a crown. The first of -them plays upon a viol, which he holds between his knees as the -violoncello is held. His instrument is scarcely as large as the -smallest viola da gamba. By his side are a royal lady and her -attendant, the former playing on an _organistrum_ of which the latter -is turning the wheel. Next to these is represented a performer on a -_syrinx_; and next to him a performer on a stringed instrument -resembling a lute, which, however, is too much dilapidated to be -recognisable. Then we have a musician with a small stringed instrument -resembling the _nablum_ (_see_ p. 86). The next musician, also -represented as a royal personage, plays on a small species of harp. -Then follows a crowned musician playing the _viol_ which he holds in -almost precisely the same manner as the violin is held. Again, -another, likewise crowned, plays upon a harp, using with the right -hand a plectrum and with the left hand merely his fingers. The last -two performers, apparently a gentleman and a gentlewoman, are engaged -in striking the _tintinnabulum_――a set of bells in a frame. - -In this group of crowned minstrels the sculptor has introduced a -tumbler standing on his head, perhaps the vocalist of the company, as -he has no instrument to play upon. Possibly the sculptor desired to -symbolise the hilarious effects which music is capable of producing, -as well as its elevating influence upon the devotional feelings. - -The two positions in which we find the _viol_ held is worthy of -notice, inasmuch as it refers the inquirer further back than might be -expected for the origin of our peculiar method of holding the violin, -and the violoncello, in playing. There were several kinds of the -_viol_ in use, differing in size and in compass of sound. The most -common number of strings was five, and it was tuned in various ways. -One kind had a string tuned to the note [Music: Bass clef, quarter -note D] running at the side of the finger-board instead of over it; -this string was, therefore, only capable of producing a single tone. -The four other strings were tuned thus: [Music: Bass clef, quarter -notes G (low) G (high) Treble clef, quarter notes D (low) D (low)] Two -other species, on which all the strings were placed over the -finger-board, were tuned: [Music: Bass clef, quarter notes D G (low) G -(high) Treble clef, quarter notes D (low) G] and: [Music: Bass clef, -quarter notes G (low) C G (high) Treble clef, quarter notes D (low) G] -A very beautiful _vielle_ is represented in Fig. 36. It is of French -workmanship of about 1550, with monograms of Henri II., and is -preserved in the Museum. - - [Illustration: FIG. 36.――HURDY-GURDY (Vielle). With arms of France - and crowned monogram of Henry II. on back and front. - Near the handle are monograms of Catherine de - Médicis. About 1550. L. 22½ in., W. 8¼ in. No. - 220-’66. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 37.――TYMPANUM of the Glory Gate of the Cathedral - of Santiago de Compostella. Dated 1188. - From a plaster cast in the Victoria and Albert Museum.] - -The contrivance of placing a string or two at the side of the -finger-board is evidently very old, and was also gradually adopted on -other instruments of the violin class of a somewhat later period than -that of the _vielle_; for instance, on the _lira di braccio_ of the -Italians. It was likewise adopted on the lute, to obtain a fuller -power in the bass; and hence arose the _theorbo_, the _archlute_, and -other varieties of the old lute. - -A grand assemblage of musical performers is represented on the Portico -della Gloria of the famous pilgrimage church of Santiago de -Compostella, in Spain. This triple portal, which is stated by an -inscription on the lintel to have been executed in the year 1188, -consists of a large semi-circular arch with a smaller arch on either -side. The central arch is filled by a tympanum, round which are -twenty-four life-sized seated figures, in high relief, representing -the twenty-four elders seen by St. John in the Apocalypse, each with -an instrument of music. These instruments are carefully represented, -and are of great interest as showing those in use in Spain about the -twelfth century. A cast of this sculpture is in the Museum (Fig. 37). - -In examining the group of musicians on this sculpture the reader will -probably recognise several instruments in their hands which are -identical with those already described in the preceding pages. The -_organistrum_, played by two persons, is placed in the centre of the -group, perhaps owing to its being the largest of the instruments -rather than that it was distinguished by any superiority in sound or -musical effect. Besides the small harp seen in the hands of the eighth -and nineteenth musicians (in form nearly identical with the -Anglo-Saxon harp) we find a small triangular harp, without a -front-pillar, held on the lap by the fifth and eighteenth musicians. -The _salterio_ on the lap of the tenth and seventeenth musicians -resembles the dulcimer, but seems to be played with the fingers -instead of with hammers. The most interesting instrument in this -orchestra is the _vihuela_, or Spanish viol, of the twelfth century. -The first, second, third, sixth, seventh, ninth, twentieth, -twenty-second, twenty-third, and twenty-fourth musicians are depicted -with a _vihuela_ which bears a close resemblance to the _rebec_. The -instrument is represented with three strings, although in one or two -instances five tuning-pegs are indicated. A large species of _vihuela_ -is given to the eleventh, fourteenth, fifteenth, and sixteenth -musicians. This instrument differs from the _rebec_ in so far as its -body is broader and has incurvations at the sides. Also the -sound-holes are different in form and position. The bow does not occur -with any of these viols. But, as will be observed, the musicians are -not represented in the act of playing; they are tuning and preparing -for the performance, and the second of them is adjusting the bridge of -his instrument. - -The minstrel gallery of Exeter Cathedral (Fig. 38) dates from the -fourteenth century. The front is divided into twelve niches, each of -which contains a winged figure or an angel playing on an instrument of -music. There is a cast also of this famous sculpture at South -Kensington. The instruments are so much dilapidated that some of them -cannot be clearly recognised; but, as far as may be ascertained, they -appear to be as follows:――(1) The _lute_ or possibly _cittern_; (2) -the _bagpipe_; (3) the _clarion_ or the _shalm_; (4) the _rebec_; (5) -the _psaltery_ or the _harp_; (6) the _jew’s harp_ (?); (7) the -_sackbut_ or the _clarion_; (8) the _regals_; (9) the _gittern_, a -small guitar strung with catgut; (10) the _shalm_ (?); (11) the -_timbrel_, resembling our present tambourine, with a double row of -gingles; (12) _cymbals_. Most of these instruments have been already -noticed in the preceding pages. The _shalm_, or _shawm_, was a pipe -with a reed in the mouth-hole. The _wait_ was an English wind -instrument of the same construction. If it differed in any respect -from the _shalm_, the difference consisted probably in the size only. -The _wait_ obtained its name from being used principally by watchmen, -or _waights_, to proclaim the time of night. Such were the poor -ancestors of our fine oboe and clarinet. - - [Illustration: FIG 38.――MINSTREL GALLERY, Exeter Cathedral. 14th - century. - From a plaster cast in the Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - - - -X. - -POST-MEDIÆVAL INSTRUMENTS. - - -Attention must now be drawn to some instruments which originated -during the Middle Ages, but which attained their highest popularity at -a somewhat later period. - -About 300 years ago the _lute_ (Fig. 39) was almost as popular as is -the pianoforte at the present day. Originally it had eight thin catgut -strings arranged in four pairs, each pair being tuned in unison; so -that its open strings produced four tones; but in the course of time -more strings were added. Until the sixteenth century twelve was the -largest number, or rather, six pairs. Eleven appears for some -centuries to have been the most usual number of strings; these -produced six tones, since they were arranged in five pairs and a -single string. The latter, called the _chanterelle_, was the highest. -According to Thomas Mace, the English lute in common use during the -seventeenth century had twenty-four strings, arranged in twelve pairs, -of which six pairs ran over the finger-board and the other six by the -side of it. This lute was therefore, more properly speaking, a -theorbo. The neck of the lute, and also of the theorbo, had frets -consisting of catgut strings tightly fastened round it at the proper -distances required for ensuring a chromatic succession of intervals. -The illustration (Fig. 40) represents a lute-player of the late -fifteenth century. The order of tones adopted for the open strings -varied in different centuries and countries; and this was also the -case with the notation of lute music. The most common practice was to -write the music on six lines, the upper line representing the first -string; the second line, the second string, etc., and to mark with -letters on the lines the frets at which the fingers ought to be -placed――_a_ indicating the open string, _b_ the first fret, _c_ the -second fret, and so on. - - [Illustration: FIG. 39.――LUTE. Italian (Venetian). Beginning of 17th - century. L. 32½ in., W. 12 in. No. 1125-’69. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 40.――Angel playing a Lute, after an oil painting - by Ambrogio da Predis. Late 15th century. - National Gallery.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 41.――ARCHLUTE. Inscribed “Rauche in Chandos - Street, London, 1762.” L. 49½ in., W. 14½ in. - No. 9-’71. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - -The lute was made of various sizes, according to the purpose for which -it was intended in performance. The treble-lute was of the smallest -dimensions, and the bass-lute of the largest. The _theorbo_, or -double-necked lute which appears to have come into use during the -sixteenth century, had in addition to the strings situated over the -finger-board a number of others running at the left side of the -finger-board which could not be shortened by the fingers, and which -produced the bass tones. - -The _archlute_ is a large theorbo with a peculiar arrangement of the -strings (Fig. 41). Several of them were doubled, the additional string -being tuned an octave higher than the other. The process of tuning -such instruments was evidently troublesome and tedious. Mattheson, the -quaint contemporary of Handel, in his “Das Neu-eröffnete Orchestre,” -Hamburg, 1713, remarks:――“If a lutenist attains the age of eighty, you -may be sure he has tuned sixty years; and the worst of it is that -among a hundred players, especially of the amateurs, scarcely two are -capable of tuning with accuracy. Now there is something amiss with the -strings; now with the frets; and now again with the screws; so that I -have been told that in Paris it costs as much money to keep a lute as -to keep a horse.” Also Mace, an enthusiastic admirer of the lute, -testifies to the difficulty of keeping the instrument in proper -condition; for his treatise on the lute and theorbo (contained in -“Musick’s Monument,” London, 1676) is replete with rules for -stringing, tuning, cleaning, repairing, etc. And, as regards -preserving the instrument, he gives the advice――“You shall do well, -ever when you lay it by in the day-time, to put it into a bed that is -constantly used, between the rug and blanket.” - -The _chitarrone_ is a theorbo with an extraordinarily long neck, by -which the length of the eight bass strings is considerably increased -(Fig. 42). The largest instruments of this kind were made some -centuries ago, in Rome. They were used in the theatre for accompanying -the voice, before the Clavicembalo, or Harpsichord, was introduced for -this purpose. The finest instruments of the lute kind were made in -Italy, especially at Bologna, Rome, Venice, and Padua. Many of the -manufacturers in Italy were, however, foreigners. Evelyn, in his Diary -(May 21, 1645), speaking of Bologna, says, “This place has also been -celebrated for lutes made by the old masters, Mollen [Maler ?], Hans -Frey, and Nicholas Sconvelt, which were of extraordinary price; the -workmen were chiefly Germans.” One of the earliest and most celebrated -of these makers was Lucas Maler (or “Laux Maler” as he inscribed his -name on his instruments). He lived at Bologna about 1415. - - [Illustration: FIG. 42.――CHITARRONE. Italian. Made by Buchenberg in - Rome, anno 1614. L. 74 in. No. 190-’82. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - -Other celebrated lute-makers[8] were:―― - - Ludwig Porgt, Regensburg, 1525. - Hanns Gerle, Nuremberg, b. about 1505, d. 1599. - Hans Neusedler, Nuremberg, d. 1563. - Sebastian Rauser, Verona, working about 1590 to 1605. - Mattheus Buchenberg, Rome, working about 1592-1619. - Hanns Fichtholdt, Ingoldstadt (?), about 1612; his lutes, the backs - of which are made with narrow strips of wood, in the Italian manner, - were formerly much prized by connoisseurs. - Paolo Belami, Paris, about 1612, probably an Italian. His lutes were - highly valued. - Joachim Tielke, Hamburg, b. 1641, d. 1719. - Antonio Castaro, Rome, about 1615. - Christofilo Rochi, Padua, about 1620. - Sebastian Rochi, Venice, about 1620. - Clays von Pommersbach, Cologne, probably during the sixteenth - century. - Magnus Tieffenbrucker, Venice, latter half of seventeenth century. - Wendelin Tieffenbrucker, Padua, working about 1572-1611, and - Leonhard Tieffenbrucker, Padua (?), during the sixteenth century; - their lutes were rather flat and long in body. - Michael Hartung, Padua, working about 1602 to 1624; he was a pupil - of Leonhard Tieffenbrucker. - Raphael Mest, Füssen, working about 1610 to 1650; said to have been - pupil of Michael Hartung. - Johann Christian Hoffmann, Leipzig, working about 1710 to 1750; his - lutes were exported to Holland and England. - Martin Schott, Prague, latter half of seventeenth century. - Sebastian Rauch, Prague, working about 1700 to 1724. - Matthias Hummel, Nuremberg, end of seventeenth century. - Sebastian Schelle, Nuremberg, working about 1700 to 1745; his lutes - were much valued, not only in Germany, but also in other European - countries. - -There used to be in Italy various kinds of mandolines, of which the -Milanese and the Neapolitan were the most common. The first-named had -usually ten strings, constituting five pairs. The Neapolitan -_mandolino_ had eight strings, constituting four pairs. The strings -were usually twanged with a quill. Mozart, in his “Don Giovanni,” has -made use of the Neapolitan _mandolino_ in the serenade; but, as the -instrument has fallen into disuse, at least in most countries except -Italy, the part written for it by Mozart is now generally played on -the violin, _pizzicato_. The _mandolino_ is now often strung with -catgut strings. It resembles a diminutive lute; but its fingerboard -has metal frets, and its strings are fastened to little ivory pins at -the end of the body, instead of being looped through holes in the -bridge. The convex back of the mandoline is deeper than that of the -lute. It is one of the handsomest musical instruments. - -Besides the mandoline the Italians had various instruments in shape -resembling the lute. Of this description are, for instance, the -_mandora_, _mandorina_, and the _pandurina_. The mandoline differs -from the pandurina chiefly in having a rounder and deeper body, and in -having the tuning-pegs placed at the back of the head; while the -_pandurina_ has a sort of scroll, with the tuning-pegs situated -sideways, similar to the old English cither (Fig. 43). The _mandora_ -had usually for each tone two strings, which were of catgut and wire; -and there were eight pairs of them. The _mandorina_ had four wire -strings. - -The _guitar_ (Fig. 44) is evidently an importation from the East, but -it has undergone various modifications since its adoption by European -nations. It was an instrument of the Moors in Spain, and became known -in France about the 11th century. The French called it formerly -_guiterne_, and the English _gittern_, _ghittern_, and _gythorn_. At -the time of Henry VIII. we find it occasionally called “the Spanish -viol.” At an early period it probably had the oval shape of the -_kuitra_, still in use by the Arab musicians in Tunis and Algiers. In -Spain it had formerly also the name of _vihuela_. - -Instruction books for the old Spanish guitar have been written -by:――Ludovico Milan, Valencia, 1534; Sixtus Kargel, Mayence, 1569; -Joannes Carolus, Lerida, 1626; Pietro Milioni, Rome, 1638; Lucas Ruiz -de Ribayaz, Madrid, 1672, etc. The number of guitar manuals published -during the 18th century is enormous. Germany alone contributed above -fifty. - - [Illustration: FIG. 43.――PANDURINA. On the back is carved a group - consisting of Juno, Minerva and Venus. French. Second - half of 16th century. L. 16½ in., W. 4½ in. No. - 219-’66. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 44.――GUITAR. French (?). 17th century. L. - 40⅜in., W. 11⅞ in. No. 676-’72. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 45.――QUINTERNA, OR CHITERNA. Inscribed “Joachim - Tielke in Hamburg, 1539,” but of later date. L. 25½ - in., W. 9⅜ in. No. 1122-’69. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 46.――CITHER. German. End of 17th century. L. 31½ - in. No. 219-’82. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - -The guitar was a fashionable instrument in England, played by ladies, -in the time of Charles II. On the Continent it generally had ten -catgut strings, of which two were always tuned in unison. At the -present day it has six strings, the two of which are of silk covered -with silver wire, and the others are of catgut. - -A species of guitar is the _quinterna_, or _chiterna_, somewhat -resembling a violin in shape (Fig. 45). It was used about two -centuries ago, especially in Italy, by the lower orders of musicians -and comedians for accompanying their vocal performances. It was played -with the fingers instead of a plectrum. - -The _cithern_, _cittern_, or _cither_ (Fig. 46), which during the -sixteenth and seventeenth centuries was a popular instrument in -England, where it was often played in the barbers’ shops, had four -pairs of wire strings. - -Its top generally terminated in a grotesquely-carved human head. The -cithers made in England during the eighteenth century have generally -at the top some inlaid ornamentation in ivory, mother-of-pearl, or -fancy wood. - -Although not well suited for the performance of harmonious -combinations, since its wire strings are twanged with a quill, and -therefore only such chords can be properly produced as are on strings -following each other in uninterrupted succession, the cither, -nevertheless, possesses considerable charms. - -There are several conjectures as to the derivation of the German name -_zither_ or _zitter_. Some suppose it to be from “_zittern_,” on -account of the peculiarly trembling sound of the instrument. During -the first centuries of the Christian era the word _cythera_ -(_cithara_) implied almost any stringed instrument, especially if the -strings were twanged with a plectrum, or with the fingers. It is also -noteworthy, though perhaps only as a singular coincidence, that the -Persians and Hindus have a three-stringed species of _zither_, which -they call _sitar_, from the Persian word _si_, “three,” and _tar_, “a -string.” The Hindu _sitar_ is, however, now usually mounted with five -strings. - -The _harp-guitar_ and _harp-theorbo_ (Fig. 47) were manufactured in -England with the intention of improving the sound of the guitar and -theorbo by adopting for them the body of the harp. - -There was also another invention of this kind, called the _harp-lute_. - -The _harp-ventura_ (Fig. 48) was invented at the beginning of the last -century by Signor Angelo Benedetto Ventura, professor of music, and -teacher of the guitar and harp-lute to the Princess Charlotte of -Wales. The example given has a back of satin wood, and sides of turtle -shell; the belly and pillar are painted and gilt. It has nineteen -catgut strings, six of which are covered with wire. - -The _banduria_ (Fig. 49) a lyre-shaped guitar, was often strung with -wire instead of catgut, and played with a plectrum generally made of -tortoise-shell. The specimen illustrated is made of various woods, has -three sound-holes, a machine head, and twelve catgut strings tuned in -pairs. - -The Spanish peasants call their rustic guitar _vihuela_; and it -appears probable that the “gittrons that are called Spanish vialls,” -mentioned in the list of musical instruments of Henry VIII. (Harl. -MSS. 1419, p. 202) were small guitars of this description. - -The Irish harp (_clarseth_) illustrated in Fig. 50, belonged formerly -to a celebrated Irish harper. A similar one, which is in the -possession of the Marquess of Kildare, bears the date 1671. - - [Illustration: FIG. 47. HARP THEORBO. Made by Harley. English. About - 1800. L. 36 in. No. 250-’82. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 48.――HARP VENTURA. So-called from the inventor, - Signor Ventura. English. Early 19th century. L. 33 - in. No. 248-’82. - Victoria and Albert Museum] - - [Illustration: FIG. 49.――BANDURIA. English. Early 19th century. L. - 22¼ in. No. 227-’82. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 50.――HARP. Old Irish. H. 52 in., W. 43 in. No. - 616-’72. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - -Considering the scarcity of the old Irish _clarseth_, mention may be -made of a fine specimen formerly in the collection of Irish -antiquities belonging to Thomas Crofton Croker, from which it was -purchased, in the year 1854, at an auction in London, by Thomas -Bateman, Esq. It bears on its front the inscription, _Made by John -Kelly for the Rev. Charles Bunworth Baltdaniel, 1734_. At the -contentions or meetings of the bards of Ireland, between the years -1730 and 1750, which were generally held at Bruree, county Limerick, -the Rev. Charles Bunworth was five times chosen umpire, or president. -Although this harp is not of high antiquity, it is an interesting -example of the ancient form and construction, and likewise of the -ancient manner of ornamenting the instrument. A wood engraving of it, -from a drawing by Maclise, is given in “A Descriptive Catalogue of the -Antiquities and Miscellaneous Objects preserved in the Museum of -Thomas Bateman, at Lomberdale House, Derbyshire,” Bakewell, 1855. An -account of the Irish harps deposited in the Museum of Dublin is to be -found in “A Descriptive Catalogue of the Antiquities in the Museum of -the Royal Irish Academy,” by W. R. Wilde, Dublin, 1863. The -illustrations of the Irish harp in the works of Bunting and similar -writers may be supposed to be known to musicians. - -The number of strings appears to have been greater on the older -specimens recorded than on the later ones. Prætorius, in his “Syntagma -musicum,” etc., vol. ii., Wolfenbüttel, 1619, gives an illustration of -the Irish harp, in which it is represented with forty-three strings. -He describes the instrument as having a pleasant resonance, and being -constructed with a considerable degree of ingenuity. The illustration -exhibits the same shape, with the fore-bar bent outwards, which is -shown in the present specimen. - -Some harps after the model of the old Irish _clarseth_, which are -painted and gilt, were made in Dublin in the beginning of the last -century. - -The small harp of the middle ages of Central and Western Europe, -depicted in old sculptures and paintings, generally exhibits the -front-bar of its frame somewhat bent outwardly, much as is the case -with the Irish _clarseth_. Gradually the number of its strings was -increased; and, likewise the strength of the frame for resisting the -tension of the strings. The front-bar of our harp is straight, or a -front-pillar. Until the seventeenth century only the diatonic series -of intervals was properly obtainable on the instrument. The performer -had, however, a method of producing occasionally a semitone by -pressing the finger against the string towards the end, much in the -same manner in which the Burmese produce chromatic intervals on the -_soung_. Towards the end of the seventeenth century the Tyrolian harp -makers adopted little plates with hooks, which could be moved so as to -press upon the strings, and thereby shorten them, for the production -of the semitones, more rapidly and unerringly than could be done by -the fingers. A French harp of the period of Louis XVI. is illustrated -(Fig. 51). It is carved and gilt in the style of Gouthière, and -decorated with oak foliage and acorns; at the top of the pillar is a -figure of a Cupid. - -Students who examine the old instruments above described will probably -wish to know something about their quality of tone. “How do they -sound? Might they still be made effective in our present state of the -art?” are questions which naturally occur to the musical inquirer -having such instruments brought before him. A few words bearing on -these questions may therefore not be out of place here. - - [Illustration: FIG. 51.――HARP. French. About 1770. H. 63 in., W. 30 - in. No. 4087-’57. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 52.――VIOLIN. Said to have belonged to James I. - English. Early 17th century. L. 23¼ in., W. 8 in. No. - 34-’69. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 53.――Angel playing a Viol, after an oil painting - by Ambrogio da Predis. Late 15th century. - National Gallery.] - -It is generally and justly admitted that in no other branch of the art -of music has greater progress been made during the last century than -in the construction of musical instruments. Nevertheless, there are -people who think that we have also lost something here which might -with advantage be restored. Our various instruments by being more and -more perfected are becoming too much alike in quality of sound, or in -that character of tone which the French call _timbre_, and the Germans -_Klangfarbe_, and which professor Tyndall in his lectures on sound has -translated _clang-tint_. Every musical composer knows how much more -suitable one _clang-tint_ is for the expression of a certain emotion -than another. Our old instruments, imperfect though they were in many -respects, possessed this variety of _clang-tint_ to a high degree. -Neither were they on this account less capable of expression than the -modern ones. That no improvement has been made during the last two -centuries in instruments of the violin class is a well-known fact. As -to lutes and cithers the collection at South Kensington contains -specimens so rich and mellow in tone as to cause musicians to regret -that these instruments have entirely fallen into oblivion. - -As regards beauty of appearance our earlier instruments were certainly -superior to the modern. Indeed, we have now scarcely a musical -instrument which can be called beautiful. The old lutes, cithers, -viols, dulcimers, etc., are not only elegant in shape but are also -often tastefully ornamented with carvings, designs in marquetry, and -painting. - -Of the stringed instruments used in our orchestra, the _violin_ (Fig. -52) is the one which has been longest preserved entirely unaltered. -Its name (Italian, _violino_), a diminutive of _viola_, suggests that -our _tenor_ (_viola di braccio_) is the older instrument of the two. -The _viol_ (Fig. 53, facing p. 104) in use about three centuries ago, -was however somewhat different in shape. As the oldest-known -instruments played with a bow, which in European countries preceded -the violin, may be mentioned:――The _rebec_, which, it appears, was -first popular in Spain; the _crwth_ of the Welsh; the _fidla_ of the -Norwegian, which, in shape somewhat resembled the _crwth_, and which, -with some slight modifications, is still occasionally to be found in -Iceland, where it is called _langspiel_; and the _fithele_ of the -Anglo-Saxons. - -Such were the instruments from which our violin has gradually been -developed, until it attained, in the seventeenth century, that degree -of perfection which has never since been surpassed. The violin makers -whose instruments are still most highly valued are:――Antonio Amati, -whose most flourishing period dates between the years 1592 and 1619; -Nicolo Amati, the nephew of the preceding, 1662-1692; Giuseppe -Guarneri, 1690-1707; Antonio Stradivari, 1700-1725; and Jakob Stainer, -1650-1670. All these celebrated makers, except Jakob Stainer, were -Italians, living at Cremona. Jakob Stainer (or Jacobus Steiner) was a -native of Absam, a village near Innsbruck in the Tyrol. Few musical -instruments have experienced so great an increase in price as the -violins of these celebrated makers. Stainer used himself to carry his -violins to the monasteries situated in the neighbourhood of Absam, -where he lived. He sold them at 40 florins apiece. It was not until -after his death that his workmanship was duly appreciated. - -The _viola da gamba_ (French, _basse de viole_; German, _Kniegeige_) -derives its name from its being held between the knees of the -performer (Figs. 54 and 55). It was the predecessor of the -violoncello, and was made with frets. It was a favourite instrument in -England at the time of Queen Elizabeth, and even ladies played it -occasionally. In England it was called _base viol_, and also -_viol-de-gambo_. Sir Toby Belch, in Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night,” -says of Sir Andrew Aguecheek:―― - -“He plays o’ the viol-de-gamboys, and speaks three or four languages -word for word without book, and hath all the good gifts of nature.” - - [Illustration: FIG. 54.――VIOLA DA GAMBA. Italian. About 1600. H. 48 - in., W. 14 in. No. 7360-’61. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 55.――VIOLA DA GAMBA. Italian. 17th century. L. - 47¼ in. No. 168-’82. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 56.――VIOLA DI BARDONE, OR BARYTON, WITH BOW. - Inscribed “Jaques Sainprae, à Berlin.” German. 17th - century. L. 54 in., W. 16½ in. No. 1444, 1444ᵃ-’70. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - -Among the English public performers on the _viola da gamba_ are -recorded a Mrs. Sarah Ottey, in the year 1723, and a Miss Ford in -1760. Carl Friedrich Abel, a German, who lived in London during the -latter half of the eighteenth century, was the last performer of -celebrity on this instrument. Johann Sebastian Bach has employed it in -his admirable “Passionsmusik des Matthæus”; and there are some fine -“Suites,” still occasionally to be met with, composed for it by M. de -Caix d’Herveloix, published in the year 1710. The tone of the _viola -da gamba_ is rather nasal, but sweet and expressive; indeed, it is to -be regretted that this charming instrument has fallen into disuse. -There is, however, a _gamba_ stop in the organ, which resembles the -famous _vox humana_ stop, and which has recently been much favoured by -organ builders. - -The _violoncello_ came into competition with the _viola da gamba_ at -the beginning of the eighteenth century, and has now entirely -superseded its predecessor. - -A _viola di bardone_ in the Museum (Fig. 56) has a neck of carved and -pierced box-wood, terminating in a figure of Apollo playing the lyre; -the principal finger-board is of ivory, engraved and inlaid with ebony -and tortoiseshell, with figures of Jupiter and Juno, and a lady -playing a lute; the second finger-board is also of pierced and -engraved ivory. The instrument has four catgut and fourteen metal -sympathetic strings, and a double wrest. It was made by Jaques -Sainprae, of Berlin, and is said to have belonged to Quanz, music -master of Frederick the Great. - -The most accomplished performers on the _viola di bardone_ were Anton -Lidl of Vienna (to whom is sometimes erroneously ascribed the -invention of this instrument) and Karl Franz, a musician of the band -of Prince Esterhazy, about the middle of the 18th century. Lidl played -on the _viola di bardone_ in concerts in England during the year 1776. -Joachim Tielke of Hamburg, the manufacturer of a specimen in the -Museum, was an instrument maker whose lutes were much esteemed on -account of their fine tone, and their elegant ornamentation. He made -them of ebony inlaid with ivory, mother-of-pearl, silver, and gold. - -Joseph Haydn wrote sixty-three compositions for the _viola di bardone_ -by order of Prince Esterhazy, who was himself a performer on this -instrument, and who admired it greatly. Its tone is soft and very -expressive, but rather tremulous; owing to this quality, probably, it -was also called _viola di fagotto_. It never became very popular, -since its rather complicated construction offered too many -difficulties in its treatment. In Germany it was generally called -_Baryton_. - -The _viola d’amore_ (Fig. 57) was often strung entirely with wire. It -appears to have been a novelty to Evelyn, for he records in his Diary -of November 20th, 1679, “I dined with Mr. Slingsby, Master of the -Mint, with my wife, invited to hear music, which was exquisitely -performed by four of the most renowned masters: Du Prue, a Frenchman, -on the lute; Signor Bartholomeo, an Italian, on the harpsichord; -Nicholao, on the violin; but above all, for its sweetness and novelty, -the _viol d’amore_ of five wire strings played on with a bow, being -but an ordinary violin played on lyre-way by a German.” Mattheson -(“Das Neu-Eröffnete Orchestre,” Hamburg, 1713) describes the _viola -d’amore_ as being mounted with four wire strings, and with one catgut -string for the highest tone. - - [Illustration: FIG. 57.――VIOLA D’AMORE. Probably English. Late 17th - century. L. 27½ in. No. 154-’82. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 58.――DOUBLE-BASS, WITH BOW. Known as “The - Giant.” Italian. 17th century. L. 103 in., W. 42 in. - No. 487-’72. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - -He praises its sweetness of sound, but does not mention the -sympathetic strings. The transformation of the wire-strung _viola -d’amore_ into the so-called psaltery or sultana, which has no -sympathetic strings, is indicated in the following statement by Sir -John Graham Dalyell (“Musical Memoirs of Scotland,” Edinburgh, 1849), -“The instrument was first introduced in public in London during the -year 1715, when it was heard between the acts of an opera. It was -known in Scotland in the middle of the century, and a taste for it was -probably encouraged by the performance of Passerini, an Italian -resident in Edinburgh, in the year 1752, when it was said to be a new -instrument called _viole d’amour_. Passerini was manager of the -Gentleman’s and St. Cecilia Concert, where he and his wife had a -permanent engagement as skilled musicians. He played solos and -accompanied singing with the instrument. Perhaps the _viole d’amour_ -underwent several modifications, as its name was changed to -_psaltery_, in the belief of its being the ancient instrument so -denominated, which is quite different according to most authorities, -not belonging to the fidicinal tribe. In 1754 a concert for the new -instrument called the _psaltery_ was announced for Signor Carusi’s -benefit concert in Edinburgh, and performed by Pasquali, another -Italian musician, also resident there. From its soft and simple nature -it was eulogised in 1762 as unequalled for delicacy and sweetness. I -knew a lady many years ago in Edinburgh who played melodies with great -delicacy on this instrument, which was strung with wire, and had frets -on the finger-board.” From these accounts it would appear that the -_viola d’amore_ strung entirely with wire was not much used in England -before the year 1700, although it evidently existed in this country in -the seventeenth century. - -The _double-bass_ (Italian, _contrebasso_, _violone_; French, -_contrebasse_; German, _grosse Bassgeige_, _Kontrabass_) is either -four-stringed or three-stringed. A three-stringed example known as -“The Giant” presented by Dragonetti to the Duke of Leinster, and given -by the latter to the Museum, is illustrated in Fig. 58. - -Dragonetti, the celebrated _virtuoso_ on the double-bass, came to -England in the year 1794. His favourite instrument, upon which he -played in public concerts, was a “Gaspar di Salo,” which he obtained -from the Convent of St. Pietro at Vicenza, and which he never could be -induced to part with, although £800, it is said, was offered him for -it by one of his rich and enthusiastic pupils in England. After the -death of Dragonetti this bass, and another valuable one by -Stradivarius, were sent back to Italy, he having bequeathed them in -his will to the town of Venice. Dragonetti died in the year 1846 at -his house in Leicester Square, at the age of eighty-three. A year -before his death he was still able to assist in the public -performances at the Beethoven Festival in Bonn. His friend H. Philipps -mentions in his “Musical Recollections” that the ends of Dragonetti’s -fingers had gradually become quite flat and deformed from playing. - -Some double-basses of extraordinarily large size are known to have -been made in England. William Gardiner (“Music and Friends,” London, -1838, p. 70) mentions such an instrument, made by Martin in Leicester, -which he saw in the year 1786, and which, if his statement may be -relied upon, “was of such height that Mr. Martin was obliged to cut a -hole in the ceiling to let the head through; so that it was tuned by -going upstairs into the room above.” - -A _sordino_ (French, _pochette_; German, _Taschengeige_) is -illustrated in Fig. 59. About 300 years ago the _sordino_ was kept by -gentlemen in a case resembling a pen case, which they put in the -pocket when they went to a singing party; and they used the instrument -for insuring correct intonation while singing madrigals and catches. -Kircher, in his “Musurgia Universalis,” Romæ, 1650, calls it -_linterculus_, no doubt from its resemblance to a small boat. - -Fig. 60 represents a _bûche_ (German, _Scheitholz_) made by Fleurot, -of the Val d’Ajol, in the Vosges Mountains, early in the last century. - - [Illustration: FIG. 59.――SORDINO, OR POCHETTE. Probably German. Late - 17th or early 18th century. L. 17½ in. No. 457-’83.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 60.――BÛCHE, OR SCHEITHOLZ. Made by Fleurot, of - the Val d’Ajol in the Vosges Mountains. Early 19th - century. L. 27½ in. No. 210-’82. - - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 61.――VIRGINAL. Formerly belonging to Queen - Elizabeth. Italian. Second half of 16th century. H. - 8½ in., L. 65 in., D. 23 in. No. 19-’87. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 62.――VIRGINAL. Bears the arms of William, Duke - of Cleves, Berg and Jülich, Count of La Marck and - Ravensberg, and originally also Duke of Guelderland - (b. 1516, d. 1592). Flemish. Second half of 16th - century. H. 16 in., W. 67 in., D. 28 in. No. 447-’96. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - -At the present day the people twang the bûche with a quill; but in -olden time it was played thus:――The performer, having placed the -instrument on a table, twanged the strings with the thumb of his right -hand, while he used his left hand in pressing down, by means of a -little stick, those strings which are placed over the frets, and -which, being tuned in unison, serve for producing the melody. The -other strings, tuned a _fifth_ lower, were occasionally struck as an -accompaniment. - -Primitive in construction, and imperfect for our present musical -performances as the _Scheitholz_ is, it nevertheless is interesting, -not only on account of its popularity three centuries ago, but also -because it is the prototype of the horizontal cither, which has come -somewhat into vogue in the last century. - -The most popular instruments played with a bow, in the seventeenth -century, were the _treble-viol_, the _tenor-viol_, and the -_bass-viol_. It was usual for viol players to have “a chest of viols,” -a case containing four or more viols, of different sizes. Thus, Thomas -Mace in his directions for the use of the viol, “Musick’s Monument” -1676, remarks, “Your best provision, and most complete, will be a good -chest of viols, six in number, viz., two basses, two tenors, and two -trebles, all truly and proportionately suited.” The violist, to be -properly furnished with his requirements, had therefore to supply -himself with a larger stock of instruments than the violinist of the -present day. - -The _virginal_ (Figs. 61 and 62) is said to have obtained its name -from having been intended especially to be played by young ladies. The -statement of some writers that it was called virginal in compliment to -Queen Elizabeth, is refuted by the fact of its being mentioned among -the musical instruments of King Henry VIII., in the beginning of the -sixteenth century. Probably the name was originally given to it in -honour of the Virgin Mary, since the _virginal_ was used by the nuns -for accompanying their hymns addressed to the Holy Virgin. It was made -of various sizes, but generally small in comparison with our square -pianoforte. The Italians, about three hundred years ago, constructed a -small portable instrument of this kind, which they called _ottavino_ -(or _octavina_) because its pitch was an octave higher than that of -the clavicembalo, or harpsichord. - -Queen Elizabeth was a performer on the _virginal_ (_see_ Fig. 61) as -well as on the lute. Sir James Melville, the Scotch ambassador, -records in his memoirs an interview with Queen Elizabeth, in the year -1564, in which he heard her play upon the virginal:――“Then sche asked -wither the Quen (Mary of Scotland) or sche played best. In that I gaif -hir the prayse.” During the Shakesperian age a virginal generally -stood in the barbers’ shops for the amusement of the customers. The -instrument had evidently retained its popularity at the time of the -Great Fire of London; for Pepys (Diary, September 2nd, 1666) -records:――“River full of lighters and boats taking in goods, and good -goods swimming in the water; and only I observed that hardly one -lighter or boat in three that had the goods of a house in, but there -was a pair of virginalls in it.” - -The instrument has metal strings, one for each tone, which are twanged -by means of small portions of quill, attached to slips of wood called -“jacks,” and provided with thin metal springs. Its construction is -therefore similar to that of the spinet and harpischord. Crowquills -were most commonly used in the construction of such instruments; but -other materials, as for instance leather, whalebone, and even elastic -strips of metal, were occasionally adopted instead. - - [Illustration: FIG. 63.――SPINET. Made by Annibale dei Rossi of - Milan. Italian. Dated 1577. H. 11¼ in., L. 58¼ in., - W. 22¼ in. No. 809-’69. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 64.――SPINET. Signed “Johannes Player fecit.” - English. About 1700. L. 59 in., W. 22½ in. No. - 466-’82. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 65.――CLAVICHORD. Inscribed “Barthold Fritz fecit, - Braunschweig, anno 1751.” German. 18th century. - H. 31 in., L. 70½ in., W. 22½ in. No. 339-’82. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - -There evidently prevailed, some centuries ago, much vagueness in the -designation of certain stringed instruments with a key-board. The term -_clavichord_ seems to have not unfrequently been applied to any -stringed instrument with a key-board, no matter what its interior -construction might be. Johann Walther, in his “Musicalisches Lexicon,” -Leipzig, 1732, describes the _virginal_ (or “Virginale,” as he calls -it), in these words:-“Ein Clavier vors Frauenzimmer” (_a clavichord -for ladies_). The following brief explanation of the difference -between the spinet and the clavichord may therefore be of interest to -some inquirers. - -The _spinet_ (Italian, _spinetta_ or _spinetto_; French, _épinette_) -is said to have derived its name from the little quill (_spina_) used -in its mechanism, which is the same as that of the harpsichord and the -virginal, described before. - -The more commonly-known spinet (Figs. 63 and 64) resembles in shape -the harpsichord and the grand piano. It is, however, smaller than the -harpsichord, and its key-board is placed in a somewhat oblique -direction. The tone of the spinet was generally a _fifth_ higher than -that of the harpsichord. - -The _clavichord_ (Italian, _clavicordo_; German, _Clavier_, or -_Klavier_), differs from the spinet inasmuch as it is of an -oblong-square shape (Fig. 65), and especially in its being constructed -with so-called _tangents_, _i.e._, metal pins which press under the -strings when the keys are struck. The strings are of thin brass wire. -The oldest specimens of the clavichord still extant are from three to -four feet in length, and about two feet in width. The lower keys are -black, and the upper ones are white. There is only a single string for -each tone and its upper semitone; thus, there is but one string for -_C_ and _C-sharp_, and likewise for _D_ and _D-sharp_, and so on. The -semitone is produced by a second tangent, which touches the string at -a place a little distant from that at which it is touched by the -tangent producing the whole-tone. On being pressed under the string, -the tangent divides it into two vibrating parts, one of which is -considerably longer than the other and gives the sound. The other part -is too short to be distinctly audible, and therefore does not very -perceptibly interfere with the clearness of the sound. Moreover, its -vibration is checked by a strip of cloth interlaced with the strings. -It will easily be understood that of the two tangents, the one which -most shortens the sounding part of the string, must produce a tone of -a higher pitch than the other. - -Such was the construction of the _clavichord_ until about the year -1700, when it was improved in so far as that each key was supplied -with a separate string. The clavichord is pre-eminently a German -instrument. Although now almost entirely supplanted by the pianoforte, -it is still occasionally to be met with in the house of the German -village schoolmaster and of the country parson. Though but weak in -sound, it admits of much expression; and most of the German classical -composers who lived before the invention of the pianoforte preferred -the clavichord to the harpsichord. In England it has never become -popular. Considering the simplicity of its construction, it might be -surmised that the price of a clavichord was generally very moderate. -In the latter half of the eighteenth century the prices charged for -such instruments by some of the best manufacturers were as -follows:――Carl Lemme, in Brunswick, made clavichords of various -qualities, which fetched from three to twelve Louis d’ors a-piece; he -also made, for exportation to Batavia, clavichords with a compressed -sounding-board, invented by his father in the year 1771; Krämer, in -Göttingen, charged from four to fourteen Louis d’ors, according to -size and finish; and Wilhelmi, in Cassel, charged from twenty to fifty -thalers,――from about £3 to £7 10s. - - [Illustration: FIG. 66.――CLAVICEMBALO. Signed “Joanes Antonius - Baffo, Venetus.” Italian. Dated 1574. H. 9½ in., L. - 83 in., W. 36 in. No. 6007-’59. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - -The _clavicembalo_ (often designated merely _cembalo_) is called in -German “Flügel,” on account of its shape somewhat resembling the wing -of a bird. _Clavicembali_ formerly in use generally had a compass of -five octaves. The instrument was usually supplied with some stops by -means of which the quality of sound could in some measure be modified. -Furthermore, it was frequently made with two keyboards, one for the -loud and another for the soft tones. The harpsichord made in England -was precisely of the same construction. In fact, the best harpsichord -makers in England were emigrants from the continent, and the founders -of some of the great pianoforte manufactories still flourishing in -London. Burkhardt Tschudi, for instance, a harpsichord maker from -Switzerland, was the founder of Broadwood’s celebrated manufactory, -which dates from the year 1732. Kirkman, a German (who, before he -established himself in England, wrote his name Kirchmann) sold his -harpsichords in London, according to the German Musical Almanac for -the year 1782, at the price of from 60_l._ to 90_l._ apiece. In the -beginning of the eighteenth century many of the harpsichords made in -England had, according to Grassineau (Musical Dictionary, London, -1740), a compass of only four octaves. - -However, already as early as in the sixteenth and seventeenth -centuries, harpsichords or clavicembali, of a superior quality, -manufactured by Hans Ruckers and his sons Jean and Andreas, were -imported into England. The instruments of these celebrated Antwerp -manufacturers were tastefully embellished, and the best Dutch painters -not infrequently enriched them with devices. The consequence has been -that after the invention of the pianoforte, many of these old -harpsichords were taken to pieces in order to preserve the valuable -panels. The price of a fine harpsichord by Ruckers about 1770, was -£120. - -The old _clavicembalo_ by Antonio Baffo, of Venice (Fig. 66), has -slips of prepared leather instead of the usual crowquills, which, if -original, would show that the statement of some writers as to Pascal -Taskin in Paris being the first to use leather is erroneous. Taskin, -in constructing in the year 1768 the _Clavecin à peau de buffle_, may -have revived an old invention, which, however, he seems to have much -improved. He made a _clavecin_ with three keyboards, two of which were -connected with actions constructed of crowquills, and the third with -an action of leather. The modification in quality of sound thereby -obtained was greatly admired. - -The illustration (Fig. 67) represents a clavecin made by Pascal Taskin -in the year 1786. The case is highly ornamented with Japanese figures -and gilding. - -The invention of the _clavicembalo_ as well as of the _clavicordo_, is -by some old writers ascribed to Guido Aretinus (or Guido d’Arezzo), -the famous monk who is recorded to have invented, in the year 1025, -the Solmisation, and also to have first conceived the idea of -employing lines and dots in the notation of musical sounds. -Unauthentic though the tradition may be which assigns to Guido the -invention of the stringed instruments with a keyboard, it appears very -probable that some rude kind of clavichord was first constructed about -his time, or soon after. - -The _claviorganum_, or organ-harpsichord, consists of an organ and a -harpsichord (or a spinet) combined. Either can be played separately or -with the other together. The separation and the union are effected by -means of a stop or a pedal. The claviorganum was, some centuries ago, -not uncommon. It enables the performer to sustain the sound at -pleasure, which on the harpsichord is as little possible as on the -pianoforte. A _claviorganum_ from Ightham Mote, near Sevenoaks, -illustrated in Fig. 68, affords evidence of a higher antiquity of -instruments of this kind than might perhaps be expected. It bears the -inscription, _Lodowicus Theewes me fecit_, 1579. There is scarcely -more remaining of this interesting relic than the outer case; but this -is so elaborately finished that, if the mechanism was constructed with -equal care and success, it must have been a superior instrument. The -maker is unknown in musical history. Perhaps he belonged to the family -of Treu (also written Trew), musicians of repute in Anspach about the -year 1600. - - [Illustration: FIG. 67.――CLAVECIN. Made by Pascal Taskin of Paris. - French. Dated 1786. H. 32¾ in., W. of keyboard, 30 - in., L. 72 in. No. 1121-’69. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 68.――ORGAN-HARPSICHORD OR CLAVIORGANUM. Formerly - in the chapel of Ightham Mote, near Sevenoaks, Kent. - Probably English. Harpsichord, H. 9 in., L. 84 in., - W. 35½ in. Organ case, H. 41 in., L. 91 in., W. 40 - in. No. 125 125ᵃ-’90. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 69.――TRIPLE FLAGEOLET. Italian. About 1820. - L. 20½ in. No. 295-’82. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 70.――FLAUTO DOLCE OR FLUTE. Ivory. Inscribed - “Anciuti a Milan, 1740." L. 18½ in. No. 7469-’61. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - -The pianoforte, which now has entirely superseded the harpsichord, was -first constructed at the beginning of the eighteenth century, in Italy -and Germany. About the year 1767 it was from Germany introduced into -England; but the English musicians for a considerable period objected -to it, and preferred to retain the harpsichord. - -That there was, in the time of Shakespeare, a species of flageolet, -called _recorder_, is undoubtedly known to most readers from the stage -direction in Hamlet: _Re-enter players with recorders_. The recorder -is also mentioned by Milton, and described by Bacon, who states that -“the figures of recorders, flutes and pipes are straight; but the -recorder hath a less bore, and a greater above and below.” An -illustration of this old instrument, which has now become very scarce, -is given in “The Genteel Companion; Being exact Directions for the -Recorder: etc.” London, 1683. - -The _flauto dolce_ (French, _flûte douce_, and _flûte à bec_), much in -use some centuries ago, was made of various lengths (Fig. 70). The -Germans called it _Pflockflöte_, _i.e._, a flute with a plug in the -mouth-hole. The most common _flûte à bec_ was made with six -finger-holes, and its compass embraced somewhat more than two octaves. -Several of the finger-holes required to be only partly covered in -order to produce the desired tone. There was often a key on this -instrument in addition to the finger-holes. This flute was much in -favour in England; hence it was called in France “Flûte d’Angleterre.” -It has gradually been supplanted by the “Flûte traversière,” or -“German Flute.” - -The _flageolet_ (Fig. 71), the smallest _flûte à bec_, was formerly -played in England even by ladies. Pepys, in his Diary (March 1st, -1666), records:――“Being returned home, I find Greeting, the -flageolet-master, come, and teaching my wife; and I do think my wife -will take pleasure in it, and it will be easy for her, and pleasant.” - -The flageolet was made of various sizes. Pepys (Diary, January 20th, -1667) records:――“To Drumbleby’s, the pipemaker, there to advise about -the making of a flageolet to go low and soft; and he do show me a way -which do, and also a fashion of having two pipes of the same note -fastened together, so as I can play on one and then echo it upon the -other, which is mighty pretty.” - -The _double flageolet_ was invented by Bainbridge about the year 1800. -The _triple flageolet_ (Fig. 69) is less common but equally useless -for musical performances of the present day. The “Harmonicon,” London, -1830, records:――“Within these few years Mr. Bainbridge has added a -bass joint to his double flageolet and the tone resembles the lower -notes on a German flute. The effect produced by the combination of -three notes is very good and mellifluous. The bass joint is fixed at -the back of the double flageolet, and the breath is conveyed by means -of a tube; and by the introduction of what are termed stop-keys, a -solo, duet, or trio may be instantaneously performed. The bass notes -are produced by keys pressed with the thumb of the left hand.” The -writer remarks that “this instrument being purely English, I consider -it deserving of being recorded as a very ingenious invention.” - -The _hautboy_ or _oboe_ (Fig. 72) came into more general use about the -year 1720. - - [Illustration: FIG. 71.――FLAGEOLET. Italian. Middle of 18th century. - L. 20 in., Diam. of mouth, 1⅞ in. No. 1124-’69. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 72.――OBOE. Made by Anciuti of Milan; formerly in - the possession of the composer Rossini. Latter half - of 18th century. L. 21½ in., Diam. of mouth, 2½ in. - No. 1127-69 - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - -The most noteworthy kinds of the hautboy of the time of Handel and -Sebastian Bach are,――the _oboe da caccia_, which is identical with the -_corno inglese_ (_English horn_, _cor anglais_), a large hautboy still -occasionally employed in the orchestra, and the _oboe d’amore_, or -_oboe lungo_, whch has fallen into oblivion. The pitch of the _oboe -d’amore_ was a minor third lower than that of the common hautboy, or -_oboe piccolo_; and its sound, owing to the narrowness of the bore at -its further end, was rather weak, but particularly sweet. - -The precursor of the hautboy was evidently the _bombardino_, or -_chalumeau_. The _bombardino_, also called in Italian _bombardo -piccolo_, was a small _bombardo_, an instrument of the hautboy kind, -about three centuries ago much in use on the Continent. - -The Germans called the _bombardo_ “Pommer,” which appears to be a -corruption of the Italian name. The _bombardo_ was made of various -sizes, and with a greater or smaller number of finger-holes and keys. -That which produced the bass tones was sometimes of an enormous -length, and was blown through a bent tube, like the bassoon, the -invention of which it is said to have suggested. - -The smallest instrument, called _chalumeau_ (from _calamus_, “a reed”) -is still occasionally to be found among the peasantry in the Tyrol and -some other parts of the Continent. The Germans call it _Schalmei_, and -the Italians _piffero pastorale_. In England it was formerly called -_shawm_ or _shalm_. - -The _clarinet_, likewise an instrument of this class, is said to have -been invented by Denner, in Nürnberg, about the year 1700. The -clarinet has only a single vibrating reed in the mouth-piece; the -hautboy has a double one. - -The invention of the _bassoon_ (Italian, _fagotto_; French _basson_; -German, _Fagott_) is ascribed to Afranio, a canon of Ferrara, who -constructed the first in the year 1539. The instrument was, however, -an improved _bombardo_ rather than a new invention. As early as the -year 1550, the celebrated wind-instrument maker Schnitzer, in -Nürnberg, manufactured bassoons which were considered as very -complete. Fig. 73 illustrates a species of bassoon bound with brass -with brass keys, and complete with mouth-piece and reed. - -Various bassoons of small dimensions in use about two centuries ago, -and earlier (the _dolciano_, _Quartfagott_, _Quintfagott_, -_tenor-bassoon_, _corthol_, etc.), are now antiquated. - -In the list of musical instruments of Sir Thomas Kytson, of Hengrave -Hall, about the year 1600, recorded in the “History and Antiquities of -Hengrave, Suffolk,” by John Gage, London, 1822, is mentioned “A -Curtall,” which was probably the _corthol_ or French _courtaut_, an -early kind of bassoon, a specimen of which, dating from the fifteenth -century, is preserved in the Conservatoire de Musique at Paris. -According to Prætorius (anno 1619) the _fagotto piccolo_, a small -species of bassoon, was called in England _single corthol_. - -The invention of the _serpent_ (Fig. 74) is attributed to Edme -Guillaume, a canon of Auxerre in France, anno 1590. It was, however, -no new invention, properly speaking, but merely an improvement upon -the old _Basszinken_, the management of which was rendered more -convenient by giving a serpentine winding to the tube. This instrument -subsequently became rather popular. It was used in military bands and -in processions until about the middle of the last century. The French -made use of it also in church to support the voices. Towards the end -of the eighteenth century it appears to have still been a common -substitute for the organ in France. Dr. Burney, in his “Journal,” -London, 1773, states that he frequently met with it in the churches of -that country, and he expresses a more favourable opinion of its -suitableness for promoting edification than might have been expected -from a refined musician:――“It gives the tone in chanting, and plays -the bass when they sing in parts. It is often ill-played, but if -judiciously used would have a good effect. It is, however, in general -overblown, and too powerful for the voices it accompanies; otherwise, -it mixes with them better than the organ, as it can augment or -diminish a sound with more delicacy, and is less likely to overpower -or destroy, by a bad temperament, that perfect one of which the voice -only is capable.” - - [Illustration: FIG. 73.――BASSOON, species of. English. Late 18th or - early 19th century. L. 48¼ in. No. 637-’72. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 74.――THE SERPENT. Made by Gerock Wolf, in - London. English. Early 19th century. L. 28 in. No. - 286-’82. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 75.――SERINETTE OR BIRD ORGAN. French. Period of - Louis XIV. H. 8⅛, L. 11⅛ in., W. 9 in. No. 629-’68. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - [Illustration: FIG. 76.――ORGAN (Positive). Bears the arms of John - George I., Elector of Saxony (b. 1585, d. 1656). - German. Dated 1627. H. 45½ in., W. 27½ in. No. 2-’67. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - -The _serinette_, or bird organ (Fig. 75), was formerly used in France -by ladies to teach airs to little singing birds, especially to a kind -of siskin or canary, called in French _serin_; hence the name of the -instrument. - -The _organ positive_ (Fig. 76) is distinguished from the _organ -portative_ in so far that the former was a larger instrument, -generally placed on a table and blown by an attendant, while the -latter was carried about by the performer in religious processions and -on such-like occasions. - -In England some rude species of organ is said to have been used in -public worship as early as about the middle of the seventh century. It -was, however, on the Continent, principally in Germany, that almost -all the important improvements originated which gradually brought the -organ to its present high degree of perfection. Many old organs of -fine workmanship are still extant in the churches of Germany. During -the 18th century especially several large organs of deserved celebrity -were built in that country; suffice it to instance those of the -brothers Andreas and Gottfried Silbermann. In England the important -inventions of the continental builders were not readily adopted. -Recently, however, several huge organs of very fine workmanship have -been constructed in England, chiefly for use in concert rooms, or -public halls. - -The _regal_, often mentioned in English literature of the time of -Shakespeare, and earlier (_see also_ p. 96), was a small _organ -portative_. There was till about the end of the 18th century a “Tuner -of the Regals,” in the Chapel Royal St. James’s, with a salary of -56_l._ The name _regal_ is supposed to have been derived from -_rigabello_, a musical instrument of which scarcely more is known than -that it was played in the churches of Italy before the introduction of -the organ. - -The expression “a payre of regalls,” used by writers some centuries -ago, evidently implies only a single instrument. Thus also the -virginal is not unfrequently mentioned as “a payre of virginalls.” -Moreover, it appears that the regal was occasionally made with two -sets of pipes, so as to constitute a double organ of its kind. - -In the following lines from Sir W. Leighton’s “Teares or Lamentations -of a Sorrowful Soule,” London, 1613, this little organ is mentioned in -combination with other curious instruments now antiquated, most of -which will be found in the present collection:―― - - “Praise him upon the claricoales, - The lute and simfonie: - With the dulsemers and the regalls, - Sweete sittrons melody.” - -The _bagpipe_ (Fig. 77) appears to have been from time immemorial a -special favourite instrument with the Celtic races; but it was perhaps -quite as much admired by the Slavonic nations. In Poland, and in the -Ukraine, it used to be made of the whole skin of the goat in which the -shape of the animal, whenever the bagpipe was expanded with air, -appeared fully retained exhibiting even the head with the horns; hence -the bagpipe was called _kosà_, which signifies a goat. - -The bagpipe is of high antiquity in Ireland, and is alluded to in -Irish poetry and prose said to date from the tenth century. A pig -gravely engaged in playing the bagpipe is represented in an -illuminated Irish manuscript, of the year 1300. - - [Illustration: FIG. 77.――BAGPIPES. English. 18th century. L. 30 in. - No. 1197-’03. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - -The _bell_ has always been so much in popular favour in England that -some account of it must not be omitted. Paul Hentzner, a German, who -visited England in the year 1598, records in his journal: “The people -are vastly fond of great noises that fill the ear, such as firing of -cannon, drums, and the ringing of bells; so that in London it is -common for a number of them that have got a glass in their heads to go -up into some belfry, and ring the bells for hours together for the -sake of exercise.” This may be exaggeration,――not unusual with -travellers. It is, however, a fact that bell-ringing has been a -favourite amusement with Englishmen for centuries. - -The way in which church bells are suspended and fastened, so as to -permit of their being made to vibrate in the most effective manner -without damaging by their vibration the building in which they are -placed, is in some countries very peculiar. The Italian _campanile_, -or bell tower, is not unfrequently separated from the church itself. -In Servia the church bells are often hung in a frame-work of timber -built near the west end of the church. In Zante and other islands of -Greece the belfry is usually separate from the church. The reason -assigned by the Greeks for having adopted this plan is that in case of -an earthquake the bells are likely to fall and, were they placed in a -tower, would destroy the roof of the church and might cause the -destruction of the whole building. Also in Russia a special edifice -for the bells is generally separate from the church. In the Russian -villages the bells are not unfrequently hung in the branches of an -oak-tree near the church. In Iceland the bell is usually placed in the -lych-gate leading to the graveyard. - -The idea of forming of a number of bells a musical instrument such as -the _carillon_ is said by some to have suggested itself first to the -English and Dutch; but what we have seen in Asiatic countries -sufficiently refutes this. Moreover, not only the Romans employed -variously arranged and attuned bells, but also among the Etruscan -antiquities an instrument has been discovered which is constructed of -a number of bronze vessels placed in a row on a metal rod. Numerous -bells, varying in size and tone, have also been found in Etruscan -tombs. Among the later contrivances of this kind in European countries -the sets of bells suspended in a wooden frame, which we find in -mediæval illuminations, deserve notice. In the British Museum is a -manuscript of the fourteenth century in which King David is depicted -holding in each hand a hammer with which he strikes upon bells of -different dimensions, suspended on a wooden stand. - -It may be supposed that the device of playing tunes by means of bells -merely swung by the hand is also of ancient date. In Lancashire each -of the ringers manages two bells, holding one in either hand. Thus, an -assemblage of seven ringers insures fourteen different tones; and as -each ringer may change his two notes by substituting two other Dells -if required, even compositions with various modulations, and of a -somewhat intricate character, may be executed,――provided the ringers -are good timeists; for each has, of course, to take care to fall in -with his note, just as a member of the Russian horn band contributes -his single note whenever it occurs. - -Peal-ringing is another pastime of the kind which may be regarded as -pre-eminently national to England. The bells constituting a peal are -frequently of the number of eight, attuned to the diatonic scale. Also -peals of ten bells, and even of twelve, are occasionally formed. A -peculiar feature of peal-ringing is that the bells, which are provided -with clappers, are generally swung so forcibly as to raise the mouth -completely upwards. The largest peal, and one of the finest, is at -Exeter Cathedral: another celebrated one is that of St. Margaret’s, -Leicester, which consists of ten bells. Peal-ringing is of an early -date in England; Egelric, abbot of Croyland, is recorded to have cast -about the year 960 a set of six bells. - -The _carillon_ is especially popular in the Netherlands and Belgium, -but is also found in Germany, Italy, and some other European -countries. It is generally placed in the church tower, and also -sometimes in other public edifices. The statement repeated by several -writers that the first carillon was invented in the year 1481 in the -town of Alost is not to be trusted, for the town of Bruges claims to -have possessed similar chimes in the year 1300. There are two kinds of -carillons in use on the Continent, viz.: clock chimes, which are moved -by machinery, like a self-acting barrel-organ; and such as are -provided with a set of keys, by means of which the tunes are played by -a musician. The carillon in the “Parochial-Kirche” at Berlin, which is -one of the finest in Germany, contains thirty-seven bells; and is -provided with a key-board for the hands and with a pedal, which -together place at the disposal of the performer a compass of rather -more than three octaves. The keys of the manual are metal rods -somewhat above a foot in length, and are pressed down with the palms -of the hand. The keys of the pedal are of wood; the instrument -requires not only great dexterity, but also a considerable physical -power. It is astonishing how rapidly passages can be executed upon it -by the player, who is generally the organist of the church in which he -acts as _carillonneur_. When engaged in the last-named capacity he -usually wears leathern gloves to protect his fingers, as they are -otherwise apt to become ill fit for the more delicate treatment of the -organ. - -The want of a contrivance in the _carillon_ for stopping the vibration -has the effect of making rapid passages, if heard near, sound as a -confused noise; only at some distance are they tolerable. It must be -remembered that the _carillon_ is intended especially to be heard from -a distance. Successions of tones which form a consonant chord, and -which have some duration, are evidently the most suitable for this -instrument. - -Indeed, every musical instrument possesses certain characteristics -which render it especially suitable for the production of some -particular effects. The invention of a new instrument of music has, -therefore, not unfrequently led to the adoption of new effects in -compositions. Take the pianoforte, which was invented in the beginning -of the eighteenth century, and which has now obtained so great a -popularity; its characteristics inspired our great composers to the -invention of effects, or expressions, which cannot be properly -rendered on any other instrument, however superior in some respects it -may be to the pianoforte. Thus also the improvements which have been -made during the present century in the construction of our brass -instruments, and the invention of several new brass instruments, have -evidently been not without influence upon the conceptions displayed in -our modern orchestral works. - -Imperfect though this essay may be it will probably have convinced the -reader that a reference to the history of the music of different -nations elucidates many facts illustrative of our own musical -instruments, which to the unprepared observer must appear misty and -impenetrable. In truth, it is with this study as with any other -scientific pursuit. The unassisted eye sees only faint nebulæ, where -with the aid of the telescope bright stars are revealed. - - [Illustration: FIG. 78.――HANDEL’S HARPSICHORD. Made by Andreas - Ruckers, of Antwerp, 1651. H. 36 in., L. of top 80 - in., W. 36 in. No. 1079-’68. - Victoria and Albert Museum.] - - - - -APPENDIX. - -HANDEL’S HARPSICHORD. - - -The following documentary evidence of this instrument’s authenticity -as Handel’s harpsichord (Fig. 78) has been transmitted by Messrs. -Broadwood:―― - - 33, Great Pulteney Street, London, - _November 18th, 1868_. - - Handel’s harpsichord was bought by us of Mr. Hooper, a - pianoforte tuner at Winchester, in 1852. He had obtained it - from Dr. Chard, the Cathedral organist of that city, who had - taken pains to prove it to be the same instrument which - Handel had left by will to his friend and amanuensis, - Christopher Smith. In Handel’s will, dated June, 1750, was - the bequest:――‘I give and bequeath to Christopher Smith my - large harpsichord, my little house-organ, my music books, - and 500_l._ sterling;’ and in a codicil, dated 6th of - August, 1756: ‘I give to Christopher Smith 1,500_l._ - additional to the legacy already given to him in my will.’ - Dr. Chard wrote to the Rev. George Coxe, of Twyford (Rector - of St. Michael’s, Winchester), to obtain his testimony to - the identity of this harpsichord with the ‘_Large - Harpsichord_’ of the will. Mr. Coxe was nearly related to - Smith, and had frequently heard him play upon it. On the - 13th of May, 1842, and in the presence of witnesses, Mr. - Coxe confirmed this. Dr. Chard states in the document signed - by Mr. Coxe, that this harpsichord was left with a large - collection of Handel’s MSS. by Christopher Smith to his - step-daughter, the Dowager Lady Rivers, who parted with it - to Mr. Wickham, a surgeon, who, in his turn, parted with it - to the Rev. Mr. Hawtrey, Prebendary of Winchester, after - whose death it came into the possession of Dr. Chard. - - This interesting relic of Handel is also worthy of notice - from having been one of the best-constructed instruments of - the celebrated harpsichord makers, the Ruckers family of - Antwerp. It is not remarkable for any beauty of decoration - beyond the conventional ornamentation of the period; but the - structure shows great skill in the manufacture, and that the - harpsichord had become nearly perfected in the middle of the - seventeenth century. - - The two key-boards were used for variety of tone. The lower - key-board, the _jacks_ of which acted upon two sets of - strings in unison, and one set an octave higher, was the - louder in tone; the upper key-board, acting on one set of - strings only, was the softer. But the lower key-board could - be made to act upon one set of strings only, by means of - stops drawn out by the hand of the performer. In touching - the keys, a distinctive quality of tone may still be - recognised, particularly in the higher notes, a reedy but - soft and delicate _timbre_ testifying to the former beauty - of the instrument. It may be assumed as certain that the - keys are not of Handel’s time. We do not know when the - present key-boards were put, or by whom, but the style of - the white and black keys is undoubtedly modern. Neither can - it be doubted that there were originally keys in keeping - with the fashion of the harpsichord, which we may suppose to - have been worn out, to account for the substitution of those - existing. The case of deal, black japanned, the brass - hinges, the ornamentation, and the mottoes are original. - Inside the top is inscribed:―― - - _Sic transit Gloria Mundi_; - - on the flap or folding of the top―― - - _Musica Donum Dei_; - - and on the slip of wood above the upper keys―― - - _Andreas Ruckers me fecit, Antwerpiæ, 1651_. - - There is a date on the sounding-board “1651,” and in the - ornamental sound-hole are the initials “A. R.” Among the - flowers represented on the sounding-board may be seen a - concert of monkeys, one beating time, another playing the - viol da gamba, etc. A third motto existed until about - fifteen years ago――_Acta Virum Probant_. This was rubbed off - by a workman engaged in mending the lock-board (upon which - this motto was), which had been split. - - As a musical instrument, this harpsichord has lived its - life. It is not now capable of being tuned, and any attempt - to improve the accord of it might prove disastrous by the - sounding-board giving way altogether. It is, therefore, of - consequence to the preservation of the woodwork that tuning - should not be attempted. - - JOHN BROADWOOD & SONS. - -Letter to the Rev. G. Coxe, Twyford, Rector of St. Michael’s, -Winchester:―― - - MY DEAR SIR,――Will you oblige me by certifying (if I am - correct) the following:―― - - The celebrated Mr. Smith (or Schmidt) was Handel’s private - friend, and amanuensis. This said Mr. Smith was presented by - Handel with his favourite fine double-keyed harpsichord, - made by the best makers of the day, Andreas Ruckers of - Antwerpia, 1651. This said instrument you have heard - repeatedly Mr. Smith play on. Mr. Smith was father-in-law to - you as well as your sister, the late Dowager Lady Rivers; - and at his death, the said harpsichord, together with a - large collection of Handel’s oratorios, etc., etc., MSS., - came into the hands of the Dowager Lady Rivers. This - instrument was parted with to a Mr. Wickham, surgeon, who - parted with it to the Rev. W. Hawtrey, Prebendary of - Winchester Cathedral, upon the death of whom I purchased it - at the sale of his effects; and in my possession it still - remains. Is not this the identical instrument now spoken of? - Your early answer to these queries, as the only living - witness, will oblige. - - Dear Sir, - Yours faithfully, - G. W. CHARD. - - _P.S._――Will you oblige me by certifying on this sheet of - paper, and returning it? - - _Answer._ - - I certify that the above statement is correct, as far as my - knowledge goes. - - GEORGE COXE. - - Twyford, _May 13th, 1842_. - Witness to the above signature, - SUSANNA GREGG. - JAMES HARRIS. - - - - - [1] Figured and described in Lartet & Christy’s _Reliquiæ - Aquitanicæ_, London, 1865-75, Pl. B. v., p. 48. - - [2] The best instance is to be found in Lepsius’ - _Denkmäler_, III. 106a., where a music-school of the - Akhenaten period (about 1400 B.C.) is depicted. - - [3] For coloured plate after this painting see Wilkinson’s - _Ancient Egyptians_, Vol. I., Pl. xii. (facing page 480). - - [4] See _Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh_, - Vol. xx., Part I (1850). - - [5] _See_ E. Aldis, _Carvings and Sculptures of Worcester - Cathedral_ (IV). - - [6] _See_ illustration in _Ann. Arch._, IV., p. 37. - - [7] _See_ illustration in _Ann. Arch._, iv., p. 98. - - [8] For a more complete list of lute-makers see Von - Lütgendorff, _Die Geigen- und Lautenmacher vom Mittelalter - bis zur Gegenwart_, Frankfort, 1904. - - - - - INDEX - - Abyssinian instruments, 20. - Acocotl, 67. - Adair, quoted, 81. - Adufe, 25. - Æolian harp, 4. - African instruments in America, 82. - Ajacaxtli, 72. - Al-Farabi, lutist, 55-57. - American Indian instruments, 58 _seq._ - American Indians, metrical psalms of, 81. - American Indians, musical performances of, 75. - American Indians, North, musical talent of, 81. - Anglo-Saxon instruments, 84, 86, 90, 94. - Arab instruments, 3, 36, 48, 53 _seq._, 108. - Arabs in Spain, 36, 56. - Archlute, 101, 105. - Ashantee, trumpet from, 2. - Ash-shakandi, 55. - Asor, 20. - Assyrian instruments, 16 _seq._ - Aulos, 31. - Aztecs, instruments of the, 58, 59. - - Bach, 115. - Bacon, quoted, 125. - Bagpipe, Celtic, 130. - ” Greek, 130. - ” Hebrew, 23. - ” Irish, 130. - ” mediæval, 102. - ” Persian, 53. - ” Polish, 130. - ” Roman, 35. - Bainbridge, inventor, 126. - Banduria, 110. - Bansi, 47. - Barbitos, 27, 30, 33. - Baryton, 116. - Bassoon, 127, 128. - Bass-viol, 114, 119. - Basszinken, 128. - Bells, Assyrian, 18. - ” Buddhist, 80. - ” Chinese, 39, 40. - ” Egyptian, 14, 15. - ” English, 131. - ” Etruscan, 132. - ” Hebrew, 25. - ” Japanese, 46. - ” Mexican, 73. - ” Peruvian, 73, 80. - ” Roman, 36, 132. - ” hanging of, 131. - ” ringing of, 131, 132. - Bene, 11. - Beni Hassan, painting at, 21. - Bernhard, inventor of the pedal, 96. - Beverley Minster, sculpture at, 97. - Bîn, 49. - Bird Organ, 129. - Biwa, 44. - Blasius, St., manuscript at, 89, 90. - Bombardino, 127. - Bombardo, 127. - Bombulom, 97. - Bone instruments, 58. - Boscherville, St. Georges de, sculpture from, 99. - Botuto, 68. - Bow, 50, 55, 88, 90, 113, 119. - Bridges, movable, 44. - Bruce, his discovery of harps on frescoes, 11. - Buccina, 35. - Bûche, 118, 119. - Budbudika, 47. - Buddhism, 39, 43, 52. - Buddhist Temples, bas-reliefs on, 43, 44. - Bunibulum, 97. - Bunting, quoted, 88. - Burmese instruments, 2, 3, 42. - Burney, Dr., quoted, 128. - - Cachua, Peruvian dance, 79. - Calamus, 34. - Cambodia, temples in, 43. - Capistrum, 34. - Carians, pipes of the, 28. - Carillon, 131, 133. - Caroados, trumpet of the, 67. - Castanets, Egyptian, 14. - ” Greek, 32. - ” Roman, 36. - Cembalo, 122. - Ceylon, instruments of, 51. - Chalil, 23. - Chalumeau, 127. - Chang, 53. - Chanrares, 73. - Chatzozerah, 24. - Chayna, 62, 79. - Chelys, 28, 29, 33, 47. - Chên, 40. - Cheng, 6. - Chhilchiles, 72. - Ch’ih, 42. - Chimes, 133. - Ch’in, 43, 44. - Chinese “Board of Music,” 78. - ” instruments, 2, 3, 4, 6, 37 _seq._, 43. - Ch’ing, 37, 38, 39. - Chin-ku, 41. - Chiriqui Indians, pipe of, 60, 79. - Chiterna, 109. - Chitarrone, 106. - Ch’iu (wood), 41. - Ch’un-tu, 40. - Chorus, or choron, 93. - Chu, 41. - Chung, 39. - Cionar cruit, 89. - Cithara, 33, 84, 85, 94. - ” Anglica, 89. - ” Teutonica, 89. - Cither, 109, 119. - Cithern, or cittern, 102, 109. - Citole, 86. - Cittern, 102, 109. - Clarin, 67. - Clarinet, 127. - Clarion, mediæval, 102. - Clarseth, 110-112. - Clavecin, 124. - Clavicembalo, 6, 122, 124. - Clavichords, 121. - ” makers of, 122. - ” prices of, 122. - Clavicordo, 124. - Claviorganum, 124. - Conch trumpets, Hindu, 47. - ” ” Mexican, 80. - Confucius, 37, 39, 40, 43. - Congo, instrument of the, 2. - Constantinople, obelisk at, 95. - Cor anglais, 127. - Corno inglese, 127. - Cornu, Etruscan, 32. - ” Roman, 33, 35. - Corthol, 128. - Courtaut, 128. - “Chronicon picturatum Brunswicense,” quoted, 91. - Crotala, 36. - Crowd, _see_ Crwth. - Crusaders, 36. - Crusmata, 36. - Crwth, 89, 90, 113. - Cuddos nut, instrument made of, 52. - “Curtail,” A, 128. - Cymbals, Assyrian, 18. - ” Egyptian, 14, 15. - ” Greek, 32. - ” Hebrew, 25. - ” mediæval, 103. - ” Roman, 36. - Cymbalum, 36, 97. - Cythera (cithara), 109. - - Dalyell, Sir J. G., quoted, 116. - Damaras, 6. - Damaru, 47. - Darabuka, 14, 24. - Darius, 19. - David, King, 19. - Day, Major C. R., 49, 52. - Diaulos, 31. - Diff, 25. - Doff, 25. - Dōhachi, 45. - Dolciano, 128. - Dora, 45. - Dordogne, 9. - Double-bass, 117. - ” flageolet, 126. - ” pipe, in Anglo-Saxon MS., 84. - Double-pipe, Egyptian, 13. - ” ” Greek, 31. - ” ” Phœnician, 36. - ” ” Roman 34, 35. - Dragonetti, Signor, 117, 118. - Drums, American Indian, 82. - ” Assyrian, 17, 18. - ” Chinese, 41. - ” Egyptian, 14. - ” Fiji, 80. - ” Greek, 32. - ” Hebrew, 24. - ” Hindu, 47. - ” Japanese, 45. - ” mediæval, 56, 97. - ” Mexican, 70. - ” New Guinea, 2. - ” Persian, 53. - ” Peruvian, 72. - ” of Tonga, 80. - ” of Torres Strait Islands, 80. - Dublin Museum, harps in, 111. - Dulcimer, 6. - ” Anglo-Saxon, 86. - ” Assyrian, 17. - ” Greek, 30. - ” Hebrew, 19. - ” Persian, 54, 55. - - Egyptian instruments, 8, 10 _seq._, 27, 98. - Elizabeth, Queen, 119, 120. - El-ood, 54, 56. - English instruments, 104. - Etruscan ” , 32 _seq._ - Europe, introduction of instruments in, 36. - European instruments, 83 _seq._ - Evelyn, quoted, 106, 116. - Exeter Cathedral, minstrel gallery in, 102. - - Fagott, 127. - Fagotto piccolo, 128. - Fang-hsiang, 40. - Fiddle, Anglo-Saxon, 90. - ” Bengalese, 50. - ” Chinese, 51. - ” German, 90. - ” Hindu and Indian, 50, 88. - ” Moorish, 90. - Fidis or Fides, 33. - Fidla, 113. - Finnish instrument, 47, 88. - Fistula, 35. - Fithele (fiddle), 114. - Flageolet, English, 125, 126. - ” Japanese, 45. - Flauto dolce, 125. - Flutes, American Indian, 82. - ” Arab, 55. - ” Aztec, 60. - ” Chinese, 42. - ” Egyptian, 12. - Flutes, Etruscan, 32. - ” German, 126. - ” Greek, 31. - ” of Guiana Indians, 62. - ” Hebrew, 23, 26. - ” Hindu, 47. - ” Japanese, 45. - ” Mexican, 58 _seq._ - ” Peruvian, 58 _seq._ - ” Phrygian, 28. - ” Roman, 34. - Flûte à bec, 125. - ” d’Angleterre, 125, 126. - ” traversière, 126. - Forkel, quoted, 23. - Fortunatus, quoted, 89, 90. - Franz, Karl, 115. - Free reed, 5. - French instruments, 112, 125, 126, 128, 129. - Frestele, Fretel or Fretiau, 94. - Fuye, 45. - - Gage, John, quoted, 128. - Gaspard di Salo, 118. - Gerbert, Abbot, mentioned, 84, 89, 90. - Gittern, 56, 102, 108. - Gittith, 25, 26. - Gizeh, 13. - Gongs, Chinese, 45. - ” Egyptian, 14. - ” Japanese, 45. - ” Mexican, 80. - ” Tezcucan, 73. - Greek instruments, 27 _seq._ - Guatemala, instrument of, 82. - Guitar, instruction books for, 108, 109. - Guitar, Japanese, 44. - ” mediæval, 102. - ” post-mediæval, 108, 109. - ” Spanish, 110. - Gut-komm, 43. - Gythorn, 108. - - Handel’s harpsichord, 135. - Harmonica, 97. - Harmonicon, Chinese, 2, 37, 40. - - _Harmonicon, The_, quoted, 126. - Harps, Anglo-Saxon, 87. - ” Arabian, 53. - ” Assyrian, 16, 28. - ” Burmese, 16. - ” Celtic, 87. - ” Egyptian, 11. - ” Finnish, 88. - ” French, 112. - ” German, 87. - ” Greek, 28, 29. - ” Hebrew, 19. - ” Hindu, 50. - ” Irish, 88, 110-112. - ” mediæval, 89, 100-102. - ” Persian, 53. - ” Scandinavian, 87. - Harp-guitar, 110. - ” lute, 110. - Harpsichord, 116, 121, 123. - ” Handel’s, authenticity of, 135 _seq._ - Harpsichord-makers, 123, 136. - Harp-theorbo, 110. - Harpu, 88. - Harp-ventura, 110. - Hautboy, 126. - Haydn, 116. - Hebrew instruments, 19 _seq._ - Hentzner, Paul, quoted, 131. - Hichiriki, 45. - Hindu instruments, 3, 46, 52, 88, 89, 93. - Hindus, musical scale of, 50. - Holmos or mouth-piece, 35. - Horn, English, 127. - ” Greek, 32. - ” Hebrew, 24. - Hsiao, 42. - Hsüan, 42. - Hsüan-chung, 39. - Huanca, 72. - Huayllaca, 62. - Huayra-puhura, 63, 79. - Huehuetl, 71, 80. - Hydraulis, 32. - - Icelandic instrument, 114. - Ikuta-goto, 44, 45. - Instrument makers, 106, 111, 114-116, 118, 122-126, 128, 129, 136, - 137. - Instruments, decoration of, 2, 8, 11, 16, 39, 41, 42, 109, 112, 113, - 115, 116, 123, 136. - Intervals, diatonic, 112. - ” in American Indian instruments, 79. - Intervals in Chinese instruments, 39. - Intervals in Persian instruments, 53. - Irish bards, meetings of, 111. - ” instruments, 89. - Isis, worship of, 36. - Italian instruments, 106-109, 113, 120, 123, 130. - - Japanese instruments, 3, 4, 44 _seq._ - Jars, musical, 69. - Javanese instruments, 2, 3. - Jerusalem, Temple of, 19, 23. - Jew’s harp, 102. - Jinagovi, 52. - Jobel, 25. - Jones, Edward, quoted, 90. - Junk, 53. - Juruparis, 66. - - Kach’-hapi, 47. - Kalmuks, trumpet of the, 80. - Kane, 46. - Kantele, 47, 88. - Kei, 45. - Kemángeh, 55. - Ken, 42. - Keras, 32. - Keren, 24. - Keyboards, instruments with, 120-125. - Khorsabad, 16. - Kinnor, 20. - Kiōto, bell at, 46. - Kithara, Asiatic, 27. - ” Greek, 28, 29. - K’iu (wood), 41. - Ko-kiū, 44. - Kosà, 130. - Koto, 44. - Kouyunjik, 16. - Kratzenstein, 6. - Krotala, 32. - Ku, 41. - Kuan-tzŭ, 42. - K’uei, musician, 37. - Kuitra, 56, 108. - Kymbala, 32. - - Langspiel, 114. - Laos, instruments of, 4, 42. - Launedda, 36. - Lay, T., quoted, 43. - Lei-ku, 41. - Leighton, Sir W., quoted, 130. - Lidl, Anton, 115. - Lionedda, 36. - Lira di braccio, 101. - Lituus, 35. - Lombrive, 10. - Lute, 104, 105, 116. - ” Arab, 54. - ” Hindu, 89. - ” Japanese, 44. - ” mediæval, 102. - ” Moorish, 56. - ” Tibetan, 43. - Lute-makers, principal, 106, 116. - Lutists, Arabian, 54, 55, 56. - Lydians, Kithara of, 28. - Lyra, German, 90. - ” Greek, 28. - ” Roman, 33. - Lyre, 84. - ” Assyrian, 18. - ” Greek, 27 _seq._ - ” Hebrew, 20. - ” Roman, 33. - - Mace, Thomas, quoted, 104, 105, 119. - Machalath, 22, 25, 26. - Machol, 26. - Magadis, 27, 30, 52. - Magoudi, 52. - Magrepha, 23, 24. - Mam, 13. - Mandoline, 107, 108. - Mandora, 108. - Mandorina, 108. - Marimba, 82. - Martin, instrument-maker, 118. - Mattheson, quoted, 105. - Melozzo da Forlì, painting by, 97. - Melrose Abbey, sculpture at, 97. - Melville, Sir James, quoted, 120. - Menaaneim, 25. - Metzilloth, 25. - Metzilthaim, 25. - Mexican instruments, 59, 80 _seq._ - Miao-tsze, 43. - Middle Ages, instruments of the, 83. - Minnim, 22, 23. - Miriam, 25. - Mishrokitha, 23. - Monaulos, 31. - Monochord, 31, 92. - Moorish instruments, 56, 108. - Mosul, bas-relief from, 16. - Mozart, 107. - Munich Museum, vase in, 28. - Music, ancient books on, 48, 84. - ” supposed origin of, 47. - - Nabla, 30. - Nablas, 27. - Nablia, 34. - Nablum, 86, 100. - Naker, 56. - Naḳḳárah, 56. - Nakrys, 56. - Nara, bell near, 46. - Nebuchadnezzar, 18. - Nechiloth, 25, 26. - Nefer, 12. - Nekeb, 23. - Nevel, 19, 22, 30. - New Guinea, instruments of, 2. - New Zealand, instruments of, 2. - “Nibelungenlied,” The, 90. - Nimroud, 16, 18. - Nineveh, 16. - Nootka Sound, instrument of, 2. - Norwegian instruments, 113. - Nuy, 55. - - Oboe da caccia, 127. - ” d’amore, 127. - ” Hindu, 79. - ” lungo, 127. - ” Persian, 55. - ” piccolo, 127. - Ocarina, Chinese, 42. - Octave, Arabian, 54. - ” Chinese, 39. - Octavina (Ottavino), 120. - Oliphant, 94. - Organ, Burmese, 42. - ” Chinese, 42. - ” English, 129. - ” French, 129. - ” Gamba stop in, 115. - ” German, 129. - ” Hebrew, 24. - ” hydraulic, 32. - ” pneumatic, 94. - ” portative, 129, 130. - ” positive, 129. - ” Siamese, 42. - Organ-builders, German, 129. - Organ-harpsichord, 124. - Organistrum, 92, 99, 101. - Orchestras, mediæval, 99. - Orpheus, Chinese, 37. - Ottavino, or Octavina, 120. - Ovalle, Alonso de, quoted, 62. - - P’ai-hsiao, 42. - Palenque, instruments from, 62. - Pandean pipes, 23, 31, 35, 42, 53, 80. - Pandoura, 30. - Pandurina, 108. - Pasquali, Signor, 117. - Passerini, Signor, 117. - Pedal, invention of, 96. - ” in harpsichord, 124. - Pektis, 30. - Pepys, quoted, 120, 126. - Persian instruments, 3, 48, 52 _seq._ - Peruvian instruments, 58, 59. - Peruvians, songs of the, 80, 81. - Phaamon, 25. - Phœnicians, 36. - Phorbeia, 34. - Phorminx, 28, 29. - Pianoforte, 123, 125, 134. - Piao, 39. - Pien-ch’ing, 38, 39. - Pien-chung, 39. - Piffero pastorale, 127. - Pincullu, 62. - P’i-p’a, 43, 44. - Pipe of the Aztecs, 60. - ” Berecynthian, 27. - ” Carian, 28. - ” of Chiriqui Indians, 60, 79. - ” Egyptian, 12. - ” Greek, 31. - ” Hebrew, 23. - ” Japanese, 45. - ” Mexican, 58 _seq._ - ” Peruvian, 58 _seq._ - ” Phrygian, 27. - Pitch of Chinese instruments, 39. - ” the oboe, 127. - ” the ottavino, 120. - ” whistle sounds, 59. - Pito, 60. - Plectrum, 30, 40, 44, 45, 109, 110. - Plektron, _see_ Plectrum. - Po-fu, 41. - Poitiers, 10. - Post-mediæval instruments, 104 _seq._ - Pottery, instruments of, 58 _seq._ - Prætorius, quoted, 111. - Pre-historic relics, 9. - Psalms, musical directions in, 26. - Psalterion, 20. - Psalterium, 33, 85, 86. - Psaltery, 102, 116, 117. - Psanterin, 20. - Pungi, 52, 93. - - Quanūn, 54, 55. - Quartfagott, 128. - Quills for twanging strings, 107, 109, 119. - Quills in virginal, 120. - Quinterna, 109. - Quintfagott, 128. - Quyvi, 62. - - Rabôb, 55, 56. - Ranking, J., quoted, 75. - Rattles, 80. - ” American Indian, 72, 82. - ” Indian, 2. - Ravanastra, 50. - Rebec, 56, 102, 113. - Rébek, 90. - Recorder, 125. - Regal, or regals, 96, 102, 129. - Rigabello, 130. - Rin, 46. - Roman instruments, 32 _seq._ - Rote, 88. - Rotta, 88, 89. - - Sârangi, 50. - Sackbut, 94, 102. - Sainprae, Jaques, 115. - Salpinx, 32. - Salterio, 102. - Sambuca, 34, 94. - Sambyke, 27, 30. - Samisen, 44. - Sang, 43. - San-hsien, 44. - Sankha, 47. - Santiago de Compostella, sculpture at, 101. - Santir, 6, 20, 55. - Sardinia, 36. - Sârinda, 50. - Scabellum, 35. - Scale, Chinese, 37, 39. - ” diatonic, 132. - ” pentatonic, 42, 79. - Scandinavian harp, 87. - Schalmei, 127. - Scheitholz, 118, 119. - Schnitzer, instrument maker, 128. - Sê, 43. - Sebȧ, 12. - Serinette, 129. - Serpent, 128. - Seshesh, 15. - Shakespeare, quoted, 114. - Shakuhachi, 45. - Shalisbim, 25. - Shalm, or shawm, 102, 103, 127. - Shehna, 79. - Shêng, 42, 43, 45. - Shime-daiko, 45. - Shō, 45. - Shophar, 24. - Shwan-che, 43. - Siam, instruments used in, 3, 4, 42. - Simikon, 30. - Sistrum, Egyptian, 14, 98. - ” Hebrew, 25. - ” Roman, 36. - Sitar, 110. - Sitâra, 55. - Solomon, 19. - Sordino, 118. - Spain, Arabs in, 36, 56. - Spanish instruments, 36, 110. - Spinet, 121. - Stones, sonorous, 39, 73. - Stops of the clavicembalo, 123. - Stop in organ-harpsichord, 124. - Strabo, quoted, 27. - Stradivarius, 118. - Strings, catgut, 1, 30, 108-110, 115. - Strings, silk, 1, 43, 44, 54, 109. - Strings, sympathetic, 115, 116. - ” wire, 55, 108-110, 115-117, 120, 121. - Sultana, 116. - Sumphonia, 23. - Sung-ch’ing, 39. - Surnai, 55. - Suroda, 88, 89. - Syrinx, Greek, 31. - ” Hebrew, 23. - ” mediæval, 94, 99. - ” Peruvian, 63. - ” Roman, 35. - - Tabret, 24. - Taiko, 45. - Talmud, The, 23. - Tamboura, Arabian, 54. - ” Egyptian, 27. - ” Hebrew, 22. - Tambourine, Assyrian, 18. - ” Egyptian, 14. - ” Hebrew, 24. - ” Peruvian, 72. - ” Roman, 35. - Tangents in the clavichord, 121. - T’ê-ch’ing, 39. - T’ê-chung, 39, 40. - Tenor (violin), 113. - Tenor-bassoon, 128. - Tenor-viol, 119. - Teponaztli, 70, 80. - Testudo, 33. - Tezcucans, instruments of the, 73. - Thebes, 11, 12, 14. - Theorbo, 101, 104, 105. - Ti, 42. - Tibetan instruments, 43, 80. - Tibia, 34. - ” curva, 34. - ” dextra, 34. - ” gingrina, 34. - ” ligula, 34. - ” longa, 34. - ” obliqua, 34. - ” sinistra, 34. - ” utricularis, 34. - ” vasca, 35. - Tibiæ impares, 34. - ” pares, 34. - Timbrel, 24, 102. - Timotheus, flutist, 57. - Tintinnabula, 36. - Tintinnabulum, 100. - Tinya, 75. - Titus, arch of, 24. - Tone of instruments, 112, 113. - Toph, 24, 25. - Toumrie, 52. - Treble-viol, 119. - Triangle, Hebrew, 25. - Triangle, Roman, 36. - Triangulum, 36. - Trigonon, 17, 28, 30, 53. - Trigonum, 34. - Triple Flageolet, 126. - Trombone, 94. - Trumpets of South American Indians, 65. - Trumpets, Anglo-Saxon, 94. - ” Ashantee, 2. - ” Assyrian, 18. - ” of the Caroados, 67. - ” Egyptian, 14. - ” Greek, 32. - ” Hebrew, 24 _seq._ - ” Hindu, 47, 79. - ” of the Kalmuks, 80. - ” Mexican, 80. - ” New Zealand, 2. - ” Persian, 53. - ” Thibetan, 80. - Tschenk (Chang), 53. - Tsu-ku, 41. - Tsudzumi, 45. - Tsuri-gane, 46. - Tuba, 35. - Tuckey, Captain, 2. - Turé, 67, 79. - “Tuner of the Regals,” 130. - Tuning of the spinet, 121. - Tympanon, 32. - Tympanum, 35. - Tyrolean harp-makers, 112. - Tzeltzelim, 25. - - Ugab, 23. - Ur-heen, 51, 52. - - Ventura, Signor, 110. - Vielle, 101. - Vihuela, 102, 110. - Vina, 46, 47, 49. - ” mahati, 49. - ” rudra, 49. - Vinavah, 51. - Viol, mediæval, 99, 100. - ” post-mediæval, 113, 119. - ” Spanish, 102, 118. - Viola da gamba, 114, 115. - ” d’amore, 116. - ” di bardone, 115. - Violin, 91, 113, 114, 116. - ” Japanese, 44. - ” Persian, 55. - Violoncello, 114, 115. - Virginal, 119-121, 130. - - Wait, the instrument, 103. - Walther, quoted, 121. - Welsh instruments, 89, 90. - Whistles, American Indian, 82. - ” Mexican, 59, 60. - Wilkinson, Sir G., quoted, 21. - - Ying-ku, 41. - Yotl, 73. - Yü, 40, 41. - ” stone made into the ch’ing, 38. - Yüeh, 42. - Yüeh-ch’in, 43. - - Zampogna, 23. - Zante, belfries in, 131. - Zither, or Zitter, 109. - - - - -Transcriber’s Note - -Words and phrases in italics are surrounded by underscores, _like -this_. Footnotes were renumbered sequentially and were moved to the -end of the book, preceding the Index. Dialect, obsolete and -alternative spellings were left unchanged. Inconsistent hyphenation -was not changed. Misspelled words were not changed. Descriptions of -snippets of music were added to illustrations identified as [Music:]. - -Obvious printing errors, such as partially printed letters, were -corrected. Final stops missing at the end of sentences and -abbreviations were added. Duplicate words and syllables at line -endings or page breaks were removed. 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