Miscellaneous Intelligence [stub]

1867 The Musical Times and Singing Class Circular  
Known as the Early Journal Content, this set of works include research articles, news, letters, and other writings published in more than 200 of the oldest leading academic journals. The works date from the mid--seventeenth to the early twentieth centuries. We encourage people to read and share the Early Journal Content openly and to tell others that this resource exists. People may post this content online or redistribute in any way for non--commercial purposes. Read more about Early Journal
more » ... ntent at http://about.jstor.org/participate--jstor/individuals/early-journal--content. JSTOR is a digital library of academic journals, books, and primary source objects. JSTOR helps people discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content through a powerful research and teaching platform, and preserves this content for future generations. JSTOR is part of ITHAKA, a not--for--profit organization that also includes Ithaka S+R and Portico. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org. the days of our last Tudor and our first Stuart althoughplaced so far abovehim in position, were so rulers, which have the same vestiture of whiteness, immeasurably below him in intellect. It may reasonhow impllre soever they tnay be at tlle cole. Can it be ably be ima,ined that the public, having enjoyed the that they conceive this practice of making the breve privilege of communil;lg with the minds of such men instead of the semibreve the standard for measuring in their holiday moments, would scarcely rest con the divisions of a bar, though never till now peculiar tented until something more was known of the lll&ny to Church writers, has been or is unexceptionably other popular composers who had hitherto spoken to followedinChurchmusic? If yes, how grosslydo theworldonlythroughtheirworks. Theindefatigable they ignore the countless appropriations from Ludwig Nohl has once more set himself the task of oratorios and other works for anthems, and the supplying this want; and Lady Wallace has, with orignal compositions of Eandel for the Church; not equal zeal, translated the correspondence thus coltosay the anthemsthemselves hacTewritten, many of lected into English. The result is an agreeable which stand in the llotation that is familiar to every volume, called " Letters of Distinguished Musicians," musical eye, and is proportionably facile of compre-recently published by Messrs. Longmans, a firm to hension. Can it be that they wish to associate with which the thanks of all English artists are assuredly the Church Service for ever, the idea of the trium-due, not only for the collections of letters by phantly bemadrigalled nrgin, in whose reign round Mendelssohn, Beethoven, and Alozart, but for that notes and the Church of England both were estab-delightful autobiography of Spohr, a work which lished? If yes, they should recollect that her cannotbetoohighlyestimatedasamentalphotograph Majesty of pious memory danced to galliard tunes, of that accomplished composer. The volume before written in this notation, to display her Tvell-formed us contains letters by Glack, Haydn, Carl Philipp legs to the French Ambassadors, who were thereby Emanuel Bach, ANeber, and Mendelssohn. Of these sorely scandalized. Can it be that they would undoubtedly the most interesting, as having any commemorate the initiation of religious Reform by direct bearing upon art, are those of the great represervilla to the Church the musical notation proper former Gluck, whilst to those who love to linger over to its era ? If yes, they should consistently hold by the correspondence of such cultivated musicians as the diamond and lozenve notes, and by the staff of Haydn, Weber, and Mendelssohn, the letters here four lines that were then in use; sillce the round given (most of which are addressed to their notes, white and black, belong to a laterstage of the intimate frietlds), will prove of inestimable valuc. Church' and the Art's development. In sober Ihe autobiography of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach earnest, I can find no reasonable justification of this will be also read with much pleasure by the admirers apparelltly pragmatical tenacity to a poillt compara-of this earnest and enthu,siastic pianist. t*ely immaterial; of which, its misleading incon-We can make but few extracts from this volume; venience is the thing most noticeable, since even the but a quotation frole a letter in which Gluck unfolds permanence in the Church of this method of writing hi. theory of the principles which should regulate the music is not without exception, Handel having in composition of operatic music (written in Italian to his Services employed quavers and semiquavers, and the Grand Duke Leopold, of Tuscany,) is too valuable the first published chants being noted in characters to be passed over: of half the length of those llOW used for the same When I undertook (he says) to compor.e muF.ic for Alreste, I pro-pleCeS. posed entirely to abolish all thos.e abus.es introduced by the inju-(To be continued.) dicious vanity of singers, or by the excessive complaisance of masters, which have so long dis.figured the Italian opera, and instead of the most splendid and beautiful of all entertainments thtl.rendering it the mo3t ridiculous and tiresome. My purpose THE publlcatlon of " Mendelssohn's Letters has was to restrict music to its true office-that of ministering to the undoubtedly thrown an additional interest around his e2cPreSsion of the poetry and to the situations of the plot, without musicJ In luany of his compositions those pure and olllamepntatgion ICtthoungh°trthhaitlliitnsgotulbdaccUPerpliUsO hantdbnleleidlnecy genial thoughts so v*idly expressed in his colsresponof colour and a skilfully adapted colltra8.t of light and 8.hade eSect for dence are clearly traceable; andwe can often picture a correct and well-desiglled drawing, by animating the figure8 without dlstorting their contours. I wished, therefore, to avoid to ourselves, by the clate ot a letter, tne preclse state arresting an actor in the most excited moment of his dialogue bn of mind which influenced him in the creation of a causillg him towait for a tiresome ritogrrzelle, or, in the midst of _. f ffi half uttered words, to detain him oll a favourable note, either for
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