Music: An Art and a Language Part 2

As music, unlike the other arts, lacks any model in the realm of nature, it has had to work out its own laws, and its spontaneity and directness are the result. It has not become imitative, utilitarian or bound by arbitrary conventions. As Berlioz says in the _Grotesques de la Musique_: "Music exists by itself; it has no need of poetry, and if every human language were to perish, it would be none the less the most poetic, the grandest and the freest of all the arts." When we reach the centuries in which definite records are available, we find a wealth of folk-songs from the Continental nations: Irish, Scotch, English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Russian, etc.[23] In these we can trace the transition from the old modes to our modern major and minor scales; the principles of tonality and of rudimentary modulation, the dividing of the musical thought into periodic lengths by means of cadential endings, the instinct for contrast and for the unity gained by restatement. No better definition of Folk-songs can be given than that of Parry in his _Evolution of the Art of Music_ where he calls them "the first essays made by man in distributing his notes so as to express his feelings in terms of design." In folk-tunes this design has been dominated by the metrical phraseology of the poetic stanzas with which they were a.s.sociated; for between the structure of melody and that of poetry there is always a close correspondence. In Folk-songs, therefore, we find a growing instinct for balanced musical expression and, above all, an application of the principle of Restatement after Contrast. The following example drawn from Irish Folk-music[24]--which, for emotional depth, is justly considered the finest in the world--will make the point clear.

[Music: THE FLIGHT OF THE EARLS]

[Footnote 23: The same statement is true of the Oriental nations, the Arabians, Persians and Greeks, who are left out of the enumeration only because their development in many respects has been along different lines from ours. For suggestive speculations as to early music among all nations see _Primitive Music_ by Richard Wallaschek.]

[Footnote 24: For illuminating comments on the Folk-music of all the English-speaking peoples see Chapter XII of Ernest Walker's _History of Music in England_. The famous Petrie collection of Irish Folk-tunes should also be consulted.]

The statement is sometimes made that the principles of our modern system of tonality and of modulation are derived from Folk-music. This is only partially true, for pure Folk-songs always developed under the influence of the old medieval modes, long before the establishment of our fixed major and minor scales. Furthermore, as these were single unaccompanied melodies, they showed slight connection with modulation or change of key in the modern sense of the term--which implies a system of harmonization in several voices. It is true that there was an instinctive and growing recognition of the importance of the three chief tonal centres: the Tonic or Keynote, the Dominant (a perfect fifth _above_) and the Subdominant (a perfect fifth _below_) and at times the relative minor. All these changes are ill.u.s.trated in the melody just cited; _e.g._, in the fourth measure[25] there is an implication of E minor, in measures seven and eight there is a distinct modulation to D major, the Dominant, and in the ninth measure to C major, the Subdominant. This acceptance of other tonal centres--distant a fifth from the main key-note--doubtless arose from their simplicity and naturalness, and was later sanctioned by acoustical law; the interval of a perfect fifth having one of the simplest ratios (2-3), and being familiar to people as the first overtone (after the octave) struck off by any sounding body--such as a bell or an organ pipe. The Venetian composers, notably Willaert, had also quite fully developed this principle of Tonic, Dominant and Subdominant harmony in order to give h.o.m.ogeneity to their antiphonal choruses. Even to-day these tonal centres are still used; for they are elemental, like the primitive colors of the spectroscope. But modulation, in the modern sense of a free shifting of the centre of gravity to _any one_ of the twelve semitones of our chromatic scale, was not developed and accepted until after the acoustical reforms of Rameau, and the system of tuning keyed instruments embodied in that work called the _Well-tempered Clavichord_ of Sebastian Bach. Both these men published their discoveries about the year 1720.

[Footnote 25: In counting the measures of a phrase always consider the first _complete_ measure,--_never_ a partial measure--as _one_.]

As we have just used the term _modal_, and since many Folk-songs in the old modes sound peculiar or even wrong (hence the preposterous emendations of modern editors!) because our ears can listen only in terms of the fixed major and minor scales, a few words of explanation concerning the nature of the medieval modes should here be given.

Their essential peculiarity is the freer relationship of tones and semitones than is found in the definite pattern of our modern scales.

It is of great importance that the music-lover should train himself to think naturally in these modes; for there has been a significant return to their freedom and variety on the part of such modern composers as Brahms, Tchaikowsky, Dvo[vr]ak, d'Indy, Debussy and others, and some of their most individual effects are gained through the introduction of modal types of expression. The following modes are those most commonly employed in the formation of Folk-songs.

[Music: DORIAN]

[Music: PHRYGIAN]

[Music: LYDIAN]

[Music: MIXOLYDIAN]

[Music: AEOLIAN]

[Music: IONIAN]

The Dorian mode, at the outset, is identical with our modern minor scale; its peculiarity lies in the _semitone_ between the 6th and 7th degrees and the _whole_ tone between the 7th and 8th. An excellent example of a modern adaptation of this mode may be found in Guilmant's March for organ (see Supplement, Example No. 7). The mysterious opening measures of Debussy's opera _Pelleas et Melisande_ also owe their atmosphere to this mode, _e.g._

[Music]

The Phrygian mode is one of the most individual to our modern ears with its first step a _semitone_ and with the _whole_ tone between the 7th and 8th degrees. Under the influence of harmonic development there was worked out a cadence, known as Phrygian, which is often found in modern music, _e.g._

[Music]

The opening measures of the slow movement of Brahms's _Fourth Symphony_ are an excellent example of a melody in the Phrygian mode, _e.g._

[Music]

The contrast between these measures, with their archaic flavor, and the sudden change in measure four to the modern tonality of E major, is very striking. Bach's well-known choral, _O Sacred Head now wounded_ also begins in the Phrygian mode, _e.g._

[Music]

For a beautiful modern example of this Phrygian mode see the introduction to F.S. Converse's _Dramatic Poem Job_, for voices and orchestra.

The Lydian mode is identical with our major scale except for the semitone between the 4th and 5th degrees. That this change, however, gives a very characteristic effect may be seen in the pa.s.sage by Beethoven from his String-Quartet op. 132--_Song of Thanksgiving_ in the Lydian mode (see Supplement Ex. No. 8). The Mixolydian mode is also identical with our modern major scale except for the _whole_ tone between the 7th and 8th degrees. This mode has had very slight usage in modern music; because, with the development of harmony,[26] the instinct became so strong for a leading tone (the 7th degree)--only a semitone distant from the upper tonic--that the original whole tone has gradually disappeared. The Aeolian Mode, mainly identical with our customary minor scale, has the characteristic whole tone between the 7th and 8th degrees. Examples of this mode abound in modern literature; two excellent instances being the first theme of the Finale of Dvo[vr]ak's _New World Symphony_, _e.g._,

[Music]

and the following pa.s.sage from the _Legend_ for a capella voices of Tchaikowsky, _e.g._

[Music]

The Ionian mode corresponds exactly with our modern major scale, and the common people among all nations early showed a strong predilection for its use. The Church, in fact, because of this popularity with the people, named it the "modus lascivus" and prohibited its use in the ecclesiastical liturgy. One of the very earliest Folk-tunes extant--"Sumer is ic.u.men in" (already referred to)--is in the Ionian mode and, according to Cecil Sharp,[27] the majority of English Folk-tunes are in this same mode.

[Footnote 26: The chief reason for this leading tone, in addition to the natural tendency of singers to raise their voices as near as possible to the upper tonic, was so that the dominant chord, the third of which is always the 7th degree, might invariably be a _Major_ Triad.]

[Footnote 27: For many suggestive comments on the whole subject see his book _English Folk-Song_.]

We now cite a few typical folk-songs (taken from national sources) which, in their structure, show a natural instinct for balance of phrase and oftentimes for that organic unity of effect gained by restatement after contrast.

[Music: THE TRUE LOVERS' FAREWELL

Old English]

The pattern of this song, in the Aeolian mode, is A, A, A, B. Unity is secured by the three-fold appearance of the first phrase; and a certain balance, by having the second phrase B twice as long (four measures) as A.

[Music: THE SHIP IN DISTRESS

Old English]

The formula of this characteristic song in the Dorian mode is A, A, B, A; merely an extension, through repet.i.tion, of the simple type A, B, A which, in turn, is the basis of the fundamental structure known as the three-part form. This will later be studied in detail. It is evident to the musical sense how complete a feeling of coherence is gained by the return to A after the intervening contrast of the phrase B; evident, also, that this song is a perfect example of the principle of unity combined with variety.

We further cite a few examples from Scottish, Irish, French, Hungarian and Russian sources. They all ill.u.s.trate quaint melodic intervals and an instinct for balance and symmetry.

[Music: WANDERING WILLIE

Here awa', there awa', Wanderin' Willie, Here awa', there awa', haud awa' hame.

Come to my bosom, my ain only dearie, O tell me thou bring'st me my Willie the same.]

This song[28] expresses that note of pathos often found in Scottish folk-music and is noteworthy also because the lyric poet, Robert Burns, wrote for it words of which we give the first stanza.

[Footnote 28: The example quoted, together with others equally beautiful, may be found in the collection edited by the Scottish composer, Hamish MacCunn. See, as well, the _Cycle of Old Scotch Melodies_ arranged for four solo voices with pianoforte accompaniment by Arthur Whiting.]

[Music: WOULD G.o.d I WERE THE TENDER APPLE BLOSSOM]

This Irish tune[29] is certainly one of the most perfect that can be imagined, remarkable alike for its organic unity, gained by the frequent use of the first ascending motive, and for the manner in which the successive crises are reached. Note in particular the intensity of the final climax, in measure 13, attained by a repet.i.tion of the preceding phrase.

[Footnote 29: For Irish folk-songs the best collections are the one by Villiers Stanford and a _Cycle_ by Arthur Whiting, prepared in the same way as that just cited on Scottish melodies.]

[Music: EN Pa.s.sANT PAR LA LORRAINE AVEC MES SABOTS]

This charming song[30] from Lorraine exemplifies that rhythmic vivacity and lightness of touch so characteristic of the French.

[Footnote 30: Taken from an excellent collection of _Chansons Populaires_ edited by Julien Tiersot.]

Observe the piquant effect, in the final phrase, produced by the elision of a measure; there being in the whole song 31 measures instead of the normal 32 (16 + 16).

[Music: Old Hungarian Folk-song]