Popular Technology Volume II Part 1

Popular Technology.

Volume 2.

by Edward Hazen.

THE MUSICIAN, AND THE MUSICAL INSTRUMENT MAKER.

THE MUSICIAN.

1. The word _Music_, in its modern application, has reference to the science which treats of the combination of sounds. It is founded upon the law of our nature, that every leading pa.s.sion has its peculiar tone or note of expression understood by all human beings. Music, therefore, may be supposed to have been practised in the earliest ages; although it must have been a long time before it arose to the importance of a science.

2. According to the Mosaic records, Jubal, one of the descendants of Cain, played upon musical instruments, many hundred years before the flood. In the early period of the nations of antiquity, and in fact among all semi-barbarous people of later periods, the character of poet and singer were united in the same individual; and the voice was frequently accompanied by musical instruments. The oldest song which has descended to our times, and which is stated to have been exhibited in this manner, was that sung by Miriam, the sister of Moses, on the occasion of the pa.s.sage of the Red Sea by the children of Israel.

3. The Hebrews employed music in their celebration of religious worship, which consisted, in part, in chanting solemn psalms with instrumental accompaniments. It was also used by them on the occasion of entertainments, as well as in the family circle. It reached its greatest perfection amongst the Jews, in the days of David and Solomon. It is supposed, that the priests of Egypt were versed in music, before the settlement of the family of Jacob in that country; but how far the Israelites were indebted to them for a knowledge of this pleasing art, is altogether uncertain.

4. Music was held in very high estimation among the Greeks, who attributed to it incredible effects. They even a.s.sure us that it is the chief amus.e.m.e.nt of the G.o.ds, and the princ.i.p.al employment of the blessed in heaven. Many of their laws, and the information relative to the G.o.ds and heroes, as well as exhortations to virtue, were written in verse, and sung publicly in chorus to the sound of instruments.

5. It was the opinion of the philosophers of Greece, that music was necessary to mould the character of a nation to virtue; and Plato a.s.serts, that the music of his countrymen could not be altered, without affecting the const.i.tution of the state itself. But in his time and afterwards, complaints were made of the degeneracy in this art, and a deterioration of national manners through its influence.

The degeneracy probably consisted in its application to the expression of the tender pa.s.sions; it having been previously applied, in most cases, to awaken patriotic and religious feeling.

6. The invention of music and of musical instruments, as in the cases of most of the arts and sciences among the Greeks, was attributed by the poets to some of the G.o.ds, or else to individuals of their own nation. It appears, however, from their traditions, that they received this art, or at least great improvements in its execution, from Phoenicia or Asia Minor. It began to be cultivated scientifically in Greece about 600 years before the advent of Christ.

7. The Romans seem to have derived the music which they employed in religious services from the Etruscans, but that used in war and on the stage from the Greeks. At an early period of their history, it was a great impediment to the progress of the art, that it was practised only by slaves.

8. The Roman orators pitched their voice, and regulated the different intonations through their speech, by the sound of instruments; and on the stage, the song, as well as part of the play itself, was accompanied with flutes. Wind-instruments of various kinds, comprised under the general name of _tibiae_, and sometimes the cythera and harp, accompanied the chorus. In all these applications of music, the Romans had been preceded by the Greeks.

9. The Hebrews employed accents to express musical tones, but most other nations of antiquity used letters of the alphabet for this purpose; and, as they had not yet conceived the idea of the octave or parallel lines, to express a variety of tones in a similar manner by the aid of a key, they required a number of notes that must have been exceedingly perplexing.

10. The Greeks are said to have had about one thousand notes, half of which were for vocal, and the other half, for instrumental music. All these were expressed by placing the letters of their alphabet, or parts of them, in different positions. Accents were also used, partly by themselves, and in connexion with the letters.

11. The lines of a poem, set to music, were placed under the letters expressing the tones. The letters for the instrumental part were placed first, and under them those for the voice. The notes of the Greeks and Romans were not required to indicate the time in which they were to be p.r.o.nounced, since in general the syllables of their language had a natural and distinct quant.i.ty. In the cases in which there was a liability to mistake, the syllables were marked with A, if long, and with B, if short.

12. The Romans expressed the fifteen chief tones of the Greeks with the fifteen first letters of the Latin alphabet; and these were reduced to seven, by Pope Gregory I., towards the end of the sixth century; so that the first seven capital letters were used for the first octave, the small letters for the higher octave, and the small letters doubled, for the highest octave. Parallel lines were soon after invented, on which the letters were written.

13. Musical sounds were expressed in this manner until the year 1024, when, according to some authors, Guido Aretine, a monk of Arezzo, invented points and rhombuses. He also introduced the use of five parallel lines, upon and between which his notes were written. The seven letters which had formerly been used as notes, now became clefs.

14. Still, however, the means of determining the duration of sound belonging to each note, without consulting the quant.i.ty of syllables in the verses to be sung, were yet to be provided. This desideratum was supplied by one Franco, a German of Cologne, who lived towards the end of the eleventh century. Some, however, attribute this improvement to John de Murs. The division of one note into others of less value was invented, in the sixteenth century, by Jean Mouton, chapel-master to King Francis I. of France.

15. The knowledge of music, as a science, was preserved in Europe, after the overthrow of the Western empire, through the influence of the Church. The apostles, and Hebrew converts generally, had been accustomed to the sacred music of the Jews; and, on this account, it was easy to continue the use of the same psalms and hymns in the Christian Church.

16. Many of the Grecian and Roman melodies were also set to words adapted to Christian worship. In regard to the manner of singing, in the early days of the Church, it was sometimes in _solo_, sometimes in _alternate strains_, and at other times in _chorus_; in which the whole a.s.sembly joined, repeating what had been before sung or read. In the fourth century, with the view of securing the proper execution of this part of divine worship, _precentors_ were inst.i.tuted, who were considered regular officers of the Church.

17. Pope Gregory I., surnamed the Great, distinguished himself by establishing a new singing-school, which became a model for many others, in the western division of the Church. In consequence of these schools, the singing became more artificial; and this, together with the circ.u.mstance that the hymns were in Latin, which had become obsolete, at length excluded the people from any partic.i.p.ation in this part of the public worship.

18. Gregory also made a selection of the existing songs of the Church, and introduced a _chant_, which, through his influence, and that of his successors, was at length extended throughout Europe. It received the appellation of the _Gregorian chant_ from his name. It was also called the _choral song_, because it was sung by a choir. This chant is said to be the foundation of our present church-music.

19. Music, in distinct parts, was not known until after the introduction of the improved method of writing music, invented, as before stated, by Guido Aretine and Franco. The development of harmony, in four parts, was a.s.sisted by the _choral_; but it was more particularly advanced by musical instruments, and especially by the organ. In the fifteenth century, music began again to be treated scientifically.

20. The Reformation produced great changes in the character of sacred music. Before that event took place, this part of religious worship was confined to a few fixed forms of texts, as in the ma.s.s, and this is still the case in the Roman Catholic Church; but the Protestants allow great variety both in the poetry and music. Luther's agency in the production of these changes was very considerable. During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, church music became continually more brilliant, and always more corrupted, by the intermixture of profane music.

21. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, there grew up, at the courts of the European monarchs, the free chamber style, from which arose that which was afterwards used in the theatre. The opera, which originated with three young n.o.blemen at Florence in 1594, has contributed especially to the splendor and variety of modern vocal music, the advancement of which is claimed particularly by the Italians, as that of the instrumental kind is claimed by the Germans and French.

22. The composition of music, and its execution either vocally or instrumentally, as well as the business of imparting a knowledge of it to others, are embraced in the employment of the musician; although it is seldom, that all these branches are practised by one and the same individual. Music is one of the fine arts, and, during the middle ages, was one of the branches of what was then considered a learned education.

23. Since the scientific revival of music, the art has had so many distinguished professors, that we will not even attempt to give a list of their names. Their number was increased, and the art greatly perfected, by the singing-schools, called _conservatories_, established especially in Italy, either at the public expense, or by the liberality of individuals.

MUSICAL INSTRUMENT-MAKER.

1. This artist unites in his business some of the operations of the cabinet-maker, turner, and brazier. He also is dependent upon the wire-drawer, and the tanner and currier, for some of his materials. So great, however, is the number of musical instruments, and so different their nature and construction, that the business of making them is divided into several branches, all of which are never pursued, or carried on, by one person. But, without reference to the several divisions of this business, we will proceed to mention or describe the princ.i.p.al instruments which are now in most common use.

2. The _organ_ is the largest of all musical instruments, and, in its improved state, so complex that a mere description of it cannot be well understood. Nevertheless, we will endeavor to give the reader some idea of the general principles on which it is constructed.

3. The most essential and prominent parts of this machine are the _wind-chest_, the _pipes_, and the _bellows_. The former of these is an oblong box, made perfectly air-tight, and placed in a horizontal position. The top of this chest is perforated with several rows of holes of different sizes, and into these are inserted the pipes. Those for the higher notes are of a cylindrical form, and are made of a mixture of metals, chiefly of tin and lead; but those designed for the expression of the lowest notes of the base are made of wood, in a square form. The dimensions of these pipes are regulated by a _diapason_, or _scale_.

4. There are as many of these rows of pipes, which are called _stops_, as there are kinds of tones in the organ; and to every row or stop is a plug, attached to a slide, which is denominated a _register_, and which is designed to regulate the admission of wind into the pipes.

The pipes are also furnished with valves, which can be opened at pleasure, by means of keys similar to those of the piano-forte. Some organs have few, others have many stops; and, in order to regulate the force of sound, most church organs have two or three rows of keys, whereby a greater or less number of pipes may be filled, and the powers of the instrument may be controlled in what is called the _small organ_, or let loose, so as to become the _full organ_.

5. The fingering of an organ is similar to that of the piano-forte, so far as relates to the position of the keys; but, on account of the great number of holding notes in organ music, and the manner in which the sound is produced, the fingers are more kept down; whence it is considered injurious for performers on the piano-forte to practise on the organ, lest that lightness of touch, so necessary for the former instrument, be affected. It is hardly necessary to remark that, during the performance on the organ, the wind-chest is filled by means of the bellows.

6. The structure of the organ is lofty, elegant, and majestic; and its solemnity, grandeur, and volume of tone, have obtained for it a pre-eminence over every other instrument for the sacred purposes to which it has been applied. The largest organ known is in St. Peter's Church, at Rome. It has one hundred stops.

7. The church organ was probably suggested by the _water organ_ of the Greeks, which was invented five or six hundred years before our era.

At what period, organs began to be employed in churches, cannot now be ascertained. By some, it is said that Pope Vitelia.n.u.s caused them to be used in Rome in the seventh century. Others are of opinion, that they were not introduced until three hundred years later. But, be this as it may, the church organ was not in common use until the fourteenth century; and now it is very different in its construction from that of early times. It has received many additions and improvements since the beginning of the fifteenth century.

8. The _hand_ or _barrel organ_ consists of a moveable cylinder, on which, by means of wires, pins, and staples, are marked the tunes which it is intended to perform. These pins and staples, by the revolution of the barrel, act upon the keys within, and give admission to the wind from the bellows to the pipes. The hand organ is so contrived that the revolution of the barrel gives motion to the bellows.

9. There are several instruments belonging to the cla.s.s of _horns_, all of which are made of bra.s.s or silver. Those of the latter kind of metal are by far the softest in tone, but bra.s.s is the material most commonly employed. The chief instruments belonging to this cla.s.s are the trumpet, the French horn, the bugle, the Kent bugle, the trombone, and the ba.s.s-horn. The _serpent_ seems to be the connecting link between the trumpet and the flute.

10. The instruments cla.s.sed with the flute, are the common flutes of various keys, German flutes, and several kinds of flageolets. Nearly allied to these are the clarionet, the hautboy, and ba.s.soon. The breath is applied to the flageolet through an ivory tube at the end; and, in the three last named instruments, a thin reed, capable of a free vibration, is a part of the mouth-piece.

11. Of the instruments which produce musical sounds by the vibration of strings, there are a great number, of which the following are the princ.i.p.al;--the lyre, the harp, the guitar, the lute, the dulcimer, the harpsichord, the spinnet, the piano-forte, the violin, the violincello, and the base-viol. The strings of the three last are agitated with a bow; but those of this cla.s.s first mentioned, are vibrated by the thumb and fingers, by some little instrument held in the hand, or by little hammers, moved by keys, as in the piano-forte.

12. The _piano-forte_ is said to be the invention of Gottlieb Schroder, of Hohenstein, in Saxony, born in Dresden, about the year 1717. Before the introduction of this instrument, the clavichord, harpsichord, and spinnet, supplied its place. On all of these instruments complete harmony can be produced by a single performer, and the most difficult series of tones can be executed with rapidity, by means of a simple mechanism.

13. The _piano-forte_ has been gradually improved, until it has become one of the most elegant instruments in the whole compa.s.s of musical practice. In firmness and strength of tone, the English piano-fortes formerly surpa.s.sed all others; but, within a few years, they have been equalled, and in some respects excelled, by those of American workmanship. The manufacture of this instrument const.i.tutes the most extensive branch of musical instrument-making.

14. The instruments of percussion are the military drum, base-drum, kettle-drum, tabor, tamborine, and the triangle. The kettle-drum has received its name from its conformation. It has but one head, and is used in orchestres, and by the cavalry of modern armies, especially in Europe. The tabor has two heads, about three inches apart, and is beaten with one stick. The tamborine has one head, drawn over a hoop, to which are attached small bells and bits of tin, to make a jingling sound. The time is beaten on the head with the hand.

15. The _bag-pipe_ is a wind instrument of high antiquity among the northern nations of Europe; but it has been so long a favorite with the natives of Scotland, that it may be considered their national instrument. It consists of a leather bag and three pipes. The first of the pipes is that by which the droning noise is produced, the second emits wind from the bottom of the bag, and the third is that on which the music is made.

16. During the performance on the bag-pipes, the bag is placed under the arm, and worked like a bellows, while the notes are modulated as on a flute or hautboy, by stopping and opening the holes, nine in number, with the ends of the fingers and thumb. The bag is filled by means of the breath blown into it through a pipe. In Rome, at the time of Advent, the peasants of the mountains express their veneration for the Virgin by playing on this instrument before her image.

[Ill.u.s.tration: The SCULPTOR.]