Shakespeare and Music Part 6

_Winter's Tale_ I, ii, 125. Of _Hermione_, Queen of Leontes, King of Sicilia, and _Polixenes_, King of Bohemia.

_Leon._ ---- still _virginalling_ Upon his palm?

The Virginal (generally known as 'a _pair_ of virginals') was most commonly used by ladies for their private recreation, and from this circ.u.mstance is supposed to derive its name. Queen Elizabeth was fond of playing on it, but as it was in vogue before her time, there is no need to connect the name with the Virgin Queen. (Elizabeth's own Virginal is in South Kensington Museum.[10]) Its keyboard has four octaves, and the case is square, like that of a very old pianoforte.

The strings of the virginal were plucked, by quills,[11] which were secured to the 'jacks' [see Sonnet cxxviii.], which in turn were set in motion by the keys. The strings were wire. The oldest country dance known, the Sellenger's (St Leger's) Round, of Henry VIII.'s time, was arranged by Byrd as a Virginal 'lesson' for 'Lady Nevell's booke.'

Another well-known Virginal Book, that at the Fitzwilliam Museum at Cambridge, commonly known as 'Queen Elizabeth's Virginal Book,' is being published by Breitkopf & Hartel.

[Footnote 10: See Frontispiece.]

[Footnote 11: Plectra of leather were also in use, as well as those of quill.]

The first music ever printed for the Virginals was 'Parthenia,'

published in London, 1611. This collection contains princ.i.p.ally Pavans and Galliards by Byrd, Bull, and Gibbons. The t.i.tle 'Parthenia, or the Maydenhead of the firste musicke,' etc., with a picture of a young lady playing on the virginal, seems to confirm our explanation of the name of this instrument.

Next to the viol, the lute[12] was the most popular stringed instrument. It was used both as a Solo instrument on which to play sprightly 'Ayres,' or as an accompaniment for the voice, or 'in consort' with other instruments. Naturally, it figured frequently in 'serenading' especially when a love song had to be sung outside a lady's window. The general shape of a Lute was that of a mandoline, but about four times as big. Like the mandoline, it had a flat belly, and a great basin-shaped back. But in every other respect it was entirely different. It was used more in the fashion of a guitar, and its strings (which were of gut) were plucked with the fingers.

[Footnote 12: See Frontispiece.]

Adrian Le Roy's book, published in Paris about 1570, says the six strings were tuned as follows--1st (minikin), C in third s.p.a.ce, treble staff; 2nd (small mean), G on second line; 3rd (great mean), D under the staff; 4th (counter-tenor), B flat over the ba.s.s staff; 5th (tenor), F on fourth line; and 6th (base), C in second s.p.a.ce.

Scipione Cerreto, however (Naples 1601), gives quite a different account of the Italian Lute of eight strings, the tuning of which seems to have extended the compa.s.s downwards to C under the ba.s.s staff. Thomas Mace (Musicks Monument, 1676) tells of several objections against the lute, the most noteworthy of which were--1st, that it was a costly instrument to keep in repair; 2nd, that it was out of fashion; and 3rd, that it _made young people grow awry_. Mace refutes these calumnies, the last of which no doubt was set about on account of the very awkward shape of the lute back, and the considerable size of the instrument. Hawkins (Hist. of Music, pp. 730 and 731) gives two pieces for the lute by Mace, or, rather, the same piece twice, first for one lute, then arranged for two. [Appendix.]

The five lower strings of the lute were 'doubled'--_i.e._, there were two of each pitch, duplicates, which helped the tone of the chords by 'sympathetic' vibration. So there were really eleven strings, but only six different pitches. There were eight frets on the fingerboard.

Other varieties were the Arch-Lute[13] and the Theorbo-Lute, both of which had very long double necks, and a large number of strings. One Archlute in South Kensington Museum has as many as 24, eleven of which are duplications.

[Footnote 13: See Frontispiece.]

_H. 6. A._ I, iv, 92.

_Talbot_ (of Salisbury dying).

'He beckons with his hand, and smiles on me, As who should say, "When I am dead and gone, Remember to avenge me on the French."-- Plantagenet, I will; and _like thee, Nero, Play on the lute_, beholding the towns burn.'

_Hen. 4. A._ III, i, 206. Mortimer to Lady Mortimer.

_Mort._ ... for thy tongue Makes Welsh as sweet as _ditties_ highly penn'd, _Sung_ by a fair queen in a summer's bower, With _ravishing division_, to her _lute_.

For 'ravishing division,' see the remarks on the third of the foregoing pa.s.sages, the speech of Juliet about the lark's song [p.

28].

The Lute leads us quite easily from Musical Instruments and Technical Terms to the second division.

II

MUSICAL EDUCATION

The following pa.s.sages give a lively picture of what a music-master might have to put up with from young ladies of quality.

_Shrew._ II, i, 142. Re-enter HORTENSIO with his head broken.

_Bap._ How now, my friend? why dost thou look so pale?

_Hor._ For fear, I promise you, if I look pale.

_Bap._ What, will my daughter [Kate] prove a good musician?

_Hor._ I think, she'll sooner prove a soldier: Iron may hold her, but never _lutes_.

_Bap._ Why, then thou canst not _break her_ to the lute?

_Hor._ Why, no, for _she hath broke the lute to me_.

I did but tell her she _mistook her frets_, And bow'd her hand to _teach her fingering_, When, with a most impatient, devilish spirit, "_Frets_ call you these?" quoth she; "I'll _fume_ with them;"

And with that word she struck me on the head, And _through the instrument my pate made way_; And there I stood amazed for a while, _As on a pillory, looking through the lute_, While she did call me _rascal fiddler_, And, _tw.a.n.gling Jack_, with twenty such vile terms, As had she studied to misuse me so.

_Shrew_ II, i, 277.

_Bap._ Why, how now, daughter Katherine? in your _dumps_?

_Shrew._ Act III. i. Hortensio and Lucentio, the sham musical and cla.s.sical tutors, give a lesson to Bianca. They quarrel which is to start first.

_Lucentio._ _Fiddler, forbear_: you grow too forward, sir.

_Hortensio._ But, wrangling pedant, _this is The patroness of heavenly harmony_; Then give me leave to have prerogative, And _when in music we have spent an hour_, Your lecture shall have leisure for as much.

_Luc._ Preposterous a.s.s, that never read so far To know the cause why music was ordained!

Was it not to refresh the mind of man, _After his studies_, or his usual pain?

Then give me leave to read philosophy, And _while I pause, serve in your harmony_.

Bianca settles the question, and orders Hortensio (l. 22):

Take you your instrument, _play you the whiles_; His lecture will be done, _ere you have tun'd_.

_Hor._ You'll leave his lecture, when I am in tune?

_Luc._ _That will be never_: tune your instrument.

Lucentio now goes on with his 'cla.s.sics'; further on--

_Hor._ [Returning]. Madam, _my instrument's in tune_.

_Bianca._ Let's hear. [_Hor._ plays.] O fie! the _treble jars_.

_Luc._ _Spit in the hole_, man, and tune again.