Musical Myths and Facts Volume II Part 18

There is no disconnection in the progress of an art, though certain occurrences may appear to the superficial observer as being entirely accidental. A musical "Stream of Time" might exhibit in various colours the natural connection between the several branches of the art of music, and their modifications conspicuous in its history.

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

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

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

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

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

_Second Period._--From the Trojan War until Pythagoras (B.C. 1200-584).

Gradual development of singing a.s.sociated with poetry. Invention and improvement of different Stringed Instruments, Wind Instruments, and Instruments of Percussion. Encouragement given to artists by the bestowal of great honours.

_Third Period._--From Pythagoras until Aristoxenus of Tarentum (B.C.

584-340). Highest development of all the Arts in Greece. The Art of Music founded on fixed rules.

_Fourth Period._--From Aristoxenus until the Birth of Christ (B.C.

340-A.D. 1). New Musical System. Decay of the Arts.

_Fifth Period._--From the Birth of Christ until Hucbald (A.D. 1-900).

Gradual decay of the Ancient Music. Origin of the Christian Church-song.

_Sixth Period._--From Hucbald until Franco of Cologne (A.D. 900-1200).

The first attempts in Polyphonic Harmony. Invention of Musical Notation and Measure of Time.

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

Invention and development of Counterpoint.

_Eighth Period._--From Dufay until Ockeghem, or Ockenheim (A.D.

1380-1450). The elder Netherlandish School. Developed Regular Counterpoint. Musical Notation fixed. Composers according to the new system of Harmony.

_Ninth Period._--From Ockeghem until Josquin des Pres (A.D. 1450-1480).

The newer or second Netherlandish School. Artificial Counterpoint.

Beginning of the reputation of the Netherlandish masters. In Italy and Germany executive artists on the Organ, Clavichord, and other instruments, make their appearance.

_Tenth Period._--From Josquin des Pres until Willaert (A.D. 1480-1520).

Commencement of the flouris.h.i.+ng, state of the Netherlandish masters, and their influence upon all European countries. Masters in Counterpoint arise in Germany. Meritorious teachers in Italy. French musicians attain reputation in other countries besides in France.

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

_Twelfth Period._--From Palestrina until Monteverde (A.D. 1560-1600).

Commencement of the flouris.h.i.+ng state of the Italian musical artists.

Conclusion of the great Netherlandish epoch. Refinement of the stiff Netherlandish style. Romish School. Church Music of a high degree of perfection.

_Thirteenth Period._--From Monteverde until Carissimi (A.D. 1600-1640).

Commencement of Operatic Music. First attempts in the Recitative style, in the melodious song for a single voice (Monody) and in the Concertante style.

_Fourteenth Period._--From Carissimi until Alessandro Scarlatti (A.D.

1640-1680). Improvements in the Recitative and in the Dramatic Melody.

Origin of the Cantata and the Oratorio. Introduction of Concertante Instruments to the song. Neapolitan School.

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

_Sixteenth Period._--From Durante until Gluck (A.D. 1720-1760).

Flouris.h.i.+ng state of the Neapolitan School. Reform in Melody. The highest art in Counterpoint in Germany. Oratorios. German Composers study in Italy, and write Italian Operas.

_Seventeenth Period._--From Gluck until Haydn and Mozart (A.D.

1760-1780). Reform in the style of the Opera. Introduction of the Ensemble pieces and the Finales. Rise of the French Opera. Development of Instrumental Music.

_Eighteenth Period._--From Mozart until Beethoven and Rossini (A.D.

1780-1820). Great improvement of the Orchestra, and of Instrumental Music in general. Development of the German Operatic Style. Tone-artists of the Vienna School. Beginning of the popularity of the Pianoforte.

Beethoven brings Instrumental Music to the highest degree of perfection.

Flouris.h.i.+ng state of the French Opera. With Rossini commences a new and effective epoch in Italian Operatic Music. Numerous Virtuosos on instruments. In the Opera, amalgamation of different styles. In the most recent time, an undecided direction.

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

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

_Second Princ.i.p.al Epoch._--From the commencement of the Opera until the development of Instrumental Music and Chamber Music (A.D. 1600-1700).

Division of the Art of Music into Church Music and Operatic Music. First appearance of some distinguished performers on instruments. 1, Italy (with Spain and Portugal); 2, France (with the Netherlands); 3, England; 4, Germany (with Bohemia, Hungary, Poland, Sweden, and Denmark).

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

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

It is impossible to a.s.sign his proper place in the history of his art to an artist before he is dead.

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

Moreover, if we are exactly acquainted with the political and social conditions of the time in which a distinguished artist lived, we are the better able to appreciate his merits. Unfortunately, Czerny records the musicians under the date of their birth. Thus, many are mentioned in the century previous to that in which they flourished. Take for instance Handel and Sebastian Bach: both were born in the year 1685, and produced their great works during the first half of the eighteenth century. Now, if the plan of recording the musicians under the date of their birth had been throughout adhered to, the student might, as a general rule, surmise the time of their activity to have been about half a century later. But, of several celebrities the date of whose birth is unknown, Czerny gives some year in which they are known to have distinguished themselves, and this deviation from the plan leads to confusion in the chronological arrangement. True, it is impossible to determine exactly the year in which the musician in his lifetime exercised the greatest influence upon his art; but, this can be done as nearly as possible by adopting his fortieth or fiftieth year as that of his best period.

Those who did not attain that age might be noticed under a date referring to the period when they most distinguished themselves, which was generally the case during the last few years of their life.

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

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

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

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

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

[Ill.u.s.tration]

CHRONOLOGY OF THE HISTORY OF MUSIC.