A Popular History of the Art of Music

I have here endeavored to provide a readable account of the entire history of the art of music, within the compass of a single small volume, and to treat the luxuriant and many-sided later development with the particularity proportionate to its importance, and the greater interest appertaining to it from its proximity to the times of the reader.

The range of the work can be most easily estimated from the Table of Contents (pages 5-10). It will be seen that I have attempted to cover the same extent of history, in treating of which the standard musical histories of Naumann, Ambros, Fetis and others have employed from three times to ten times as much space. In the nature of the case there will be differences of opinion among competent judges concerning my success in this difficult undertaking. Upon this point I can only plead absolute sincerity of purpose, and a certain familiarity with the ground to be covered, due to having treated it in my lectures in the Chicago Musical College for five years, to the extent of about thirty-five lectures yearly. I have made free use of all the standard histories--those of Fetis, Ambros, Naumann, Brendel, Gevaert, Hawkins, Burney, the writings of Dr. Hugo Riemann, Dr. Ritter, Prof. Fillmore, and the dictionaries of Grove and Mendel, as well as many monographs in all the leading modern languages.

I have divided the entire history into books, placing at the beginning of each book a general chapter defining the central idea and salient features of the step in development therein recounted. The student who will attentively peruse these chapters in succession will have in them a fairly complete account of the entire progress.

W. S. B. MATHEWS.

Chicago, May 5, 1891.

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

PAGE.

Chart of Greatest Composers 11

Chart of Italian Composers 12

Chart of German Composers 13

Pianists and Composers for Piano 14

King David Playing the Three-stringed Crwth 24

Egyptian Representations, 4th Dynasty 28

Bruce's Harpers 30

Harp and Musicians of 20th Dynasty 32

Lyres Found in Tombs 33

Women, Street Musicians 34

Shoulder Harps 35

Kinnor 42

Larger Jewish Harp 43

Assyrian Harps 45

Assyrian Banjo 46

Assyrian Psaltery 47

Greek Lyres 64

Music to Ode of Pindar 69

Hindoo Vina 71

Ravanastron 72

Chinese Ke 74

Japanese Ko-Ko 76

Old Breton Song 88

Old Welsh Song 92

Welsh Song in Praise of Love 94

Harp of Sir Brian Boirohen 97

Facsimile "Sumer is Icumen In" 101

The Same Written out 102

Saxon Harp 104

Saxon Harp 105

Crwth 107

Scotch Pentatonic Melody 108

Arab Rebec 112

Arab Eoud 113

Arab Santir 114

Song by Thibaut, 13th Century 122

Reinmar, the Minnesinger 124

Frauenlob 125

Minstrel Harps 126

Gregorian and Ambrosian Scales 132

Hucbald's Staff 141

Diaphony 141

Diaphony in Fourths 142

Guido of Arezzo 144

Table of the Schools of the Netherlands 162

Orlando di Lassus 167

Music by Palestrina 173 to 175

Roman Letter Notation of Guido 181

Neumae of 10th Century 181

Neumae of 11th Century 182

Neumae with Lines 183

Lament for Charlemagne 184

Early Staff of Five Lines 185

Lute 191

Tuning of the Lute 192

Early Forms of Rebec 195

Angel Playing Rebec, 13th Century 196

Viol da Gamba 197

Barytone 198

Stradivarius Violin 200

Old Organ 202

Portable Organ 204

Bellows Bags at Halberstadt 206

Concert of 7th Century 208

Extract, Peri's "Eurydice" 225

Aria, Monteverde's "Arianna" 230

Aria, Cavalli's "Erismena" 231

Aria, Scarlatti's Cantata 232

Aria, Lulli's "Roland" 240

Heinrich Schuetz 246

Jean Pieters Swelinck 251

Samuel Scheidt 252

Johann Adam Reinken 254

John Sebastian Bach 266

Geo. Friedrich Haendel 274

Joseph Haydn 286

The Mozart Family 293

Mozart (Miss Stock) 300

Mozart 302

Beethoven 311