On Purity in Musical Art

Name: On Purity in Musical Art
Brand: Braunfell Books
Price: 3.49 EUR
Availability: OnlineOnly

Anton Friedrich Justus Thibaut(Autor*in)

Braunfell Books (Verlag)

Erschienen am 27. Januar 2023

148 Seiten

E-Book

ePUB mit Adobe-DRM

Systemvoraussetzungen

978-1-80523-011-3 (ISBN)

3,49 €inkl. 7% MwSt.

Systemvoraussetzungen

für ePUB mit Adobe-DRM

E-Book Einzellizenz

Als Download verfügbar

Beschreibung

Weitere Details

Personen

Inhalt

Intro
TABLE OF CONTENTS
DEDICATION.
PREFACE.
ON THE CHORALE.
History the ground-work of knowledge.
Neglect of this principle in music at the present day, and disregard of the example of the most distinguished musicians.
Musical treasures difficult of acquisition. Old music shunned by the profession, who guide the public. Vicious elements in music easily masked. Consequent depravity of modern taste.
Abuse of music in the Church intolerable. Folly of neglecting the ancient melodies.
The Russian Church alone has adhered to the ancient tunes.
The music of the Sistine Chapel is of a later date. The Ambrosian and Gregorian melodies ignored in Germany. Inferior hymn-books issued by authority.
Admirable character of the Hussite Chorales. Strangely neglected by Lutherans.
Luther's passion for singing. Subsequent deterioration of the Chorale. Bach's treatment of the Chorale not designed for popular use. Acquiescence in ignorance made reform impossible. Though the means were at hand.
Similar corruption of the Calvinistic tunes.
Add to all this the secular proclivities of modern organists, in Italy as well as Germany.
Reaction in favour of reform.
Such reform should be bold and thorough.
No religious prejudice must stand in the way. Adoption of Catholic tunes by Luther.
Difficulty of ascertaining the Ambrosian and Gregorian chant. Important MS. at St. Gall.
Question as to the congregation singing in harmony. Under favourable circumstances the people should sing in harmony
but, in the absence of favourable circumstances, in unison.
Necessity of a check upon organists.
Suggestion of an approved compilation of church-music for general use.
ON CHURCH MUSIC OTHER THAN THE CHORALE.
Natural fondness for good music.
Gregory the Great's foundations. Gradual secularization of church music as manipulative skill increased.
The principle that ought to pervade church music is that of moderation. Example of a preacher.
Church music various in style, but uniform in sobriety of character.
The church essentially the place of religion.
Three great branches of music.
Church music one thing
secular music another, equally or even more engrossing.
Historical survey of ancient church music. Josquin. Senffel. Orlando di Lasso. Palestrina. His "Responsoria."
Morales. Vittoria. Scarlatti. Lotti. Jomelli.
Tendency, after Palestrina, towards the Oratorio style not unnatural. Caldara, Durante, Leo, etc. The spirit of the older style still retained.
Oratorio the chosen field of Handel and Bach, who always observed its proper limits.
Low state of modern music, as seen in the Church, the Oratorio, and the Opera. Practical comparison suggested.
Mozart and Haydn not Church writers.
The plea of progress and modern improvement.
The supposed superiority of modern music no reason for neglecting ancient.
Improvement in certain ways undeniable. Palestrina not to be compared with Handel or Bach as a fugue writer.
Every reason to look for superlative merit in the early composers. No excuse for our ignorance of their works.
The highest works are due to genius rather than to cultivation
and often possess more force than polish.
They are not likely to be appreciated by those who abandon themselves to the sensuous music of the day.
Stiffness of old opera music as compared with modern. Reversal of relations of the church and the stage.
Intrinsic merits of the old opera.
Handel's operas full of beauties.
ON POPULAR MELODIES.
The virtues of childhood.
Art a supreme delight, yet liable to failure. Popular airs the artless expressions of national youth.
Interest attaching to the study of the popular songs of all countries.
Advantage of the amateur. Difficulties in the way of a collector.
Ineffectual search for Israelitish songs.
Scant remains of Greek music.
Airs of the Troubadours, Minnesänger, Meistersänger. Austrian Melodies. Swiss Melodies. Troubadour songs. Difficulty of deciphering these last.
British Airs.
Russian Airs.
Danish Airs.
Swedish and Finnish Airs.
Italian Airs.
Spanish Airs.
Brazilian Airs.
Indian Airs.
Foreign airs not always easy to appreciate.
Value of a compilation of National Melodies.
ON THE INSTRUCTION TO BE DERIVED FROM GOOD MODELS.
Music, as now practised, abounds in difficulties, but is deficient in zest.
A living principle essential to Music, as to other arts. The essence of Music is expression of feeling, not conformity to rule.
Music pleases according to accidental tastes and habits.
Bad taste must be borne with. Music cannot make a man
it presupposes a healthy nature.
Musical taste not to be imparted by Lectures. Classical authors the great teachers. Personal experience of their influence.
Works of less than the highest order have their legitimate use.
Superficial knowledge likely to mislead. Good judgment in Music accrues by degrees, and from mature experience.
ON EFFECT.
The production of effect not a proper function of art. Yet effect, in one shape or another, is what attracts the many.
Sensational Music significant of absence of real power.
Debasing tendency of Effect.
Effect less objectionable in Oratorio and Opera than in Church music.
Musicians themselves an obstacle to reform of church music.
Even acknowledged masterpieces are flouted
such as the Misereres of Allegri and Bai. The conception underlying music of this character explained.
The prevalence of this conception attests its truth and value.
ON THE USE OF INSTRUMENTS.
High estimation of the orchestra in the present day.
Advantages of instruments over the voice.
Few instruments well adapted for large spaces. Vocal sound of fine quality injured by instruments. The tongue the real organ of the soul. Special instrumental efforts not requisite for devotional purposes.
Anecdote showing matchless effect of vocal music.
Presumption against use of instruments in Church music from their omission by the old writers. Purely vocal music still preserved at Rome and St. Petersburg.
Instruments invaluable for certain purposes: but their associations essentially secular.
Instances of extreme abuse in this respect. Showing utter forgetfulness of the nature of worship.
Amazing effect of the congregational voice. St. Chrysostom's view of the singers' office.
Choirs neglected.
Instrumentation in general.
Too constant use of the whole orchestra.
Each instrument has its proper character. Illustration: Handel's Dead March.
Modern accompaniments not always creditable. Mozart has sinned in this respect in his additions to the "Messiah."
Handel's Oratorios should be represented as intended by him.
A bad band the worst accompaniment. An intelligent pianoforte accompaniment to Handel's Oratorios preferable to a bad orchestra.
Overpowering of voices by Instruments. Cherubini an offender in this respect.
ON A CAREFUL JUDGING OF GREAT MASTERS' WORKS.
Execution now the chief object of study.
As such it is merely lost labour, and without any moral influence for good.
Modern straining of instrumental and vocal compass. Confusion of means and ends in this respect.
Neglect of thorough-bass.
To judge of a composer rightly the scrutiny must be thorough and complete. Inequality a trait of the greatest genius. E.g. with Palestrina and Handel.
Unaccountable ignorance of old composers. Of Senffel for instance
of Orlando di Lasso
of Lotti
and of Handel.
Versatility of his genius.
His Oratorios. Busby's estimate of Handel.
Unjustifiable treatment of Handel at the hands of Editors. As in the "Messiah
" and in "Samson."
Selections good for particular purposes, but insufficient for real knowledge.
ON A LIBERAL JUDGMENT.
Evil of addiction to particular authors, and particular styles.
Different composers have different points of excellence.
German exclusiveness
Folly of depreciating Italian music.
Imputation of effeminacy to Italian music misplaced.
All jealousy to be put aside.
ON MISADAPTATIONS OF TEXT.
Alliance of words and music.
Mutilation of the hymn "Stabat Mater." Pergolesi's setting of which is also open to exception
departing, as Chateaubriand points out, from the monotony proper to grief.
Text of Beethoven's "Mount of Olives
" of the Mass in C.
Character of Mozart's "Misericordias Domini" ruined by the German text.
Faults of prosody in the old church music. Accent not to be too much insisted on.
ON CHORAL SOCIETIES.
Public concerts unsatisfactory.
Value of private societies.
Better, as a rule, exclusively vocal or exclusively instrumental.
Vocal societies superior in moral influence.
Personal experience on the subject.
Essential difference between two types of choral societies.
Necessary conditions of a good society. Regular attendance. Earnestness and good music.
Necessity of a large library for sake of variety.
Certain works recommended.
Method of conducting practices.
Frequent performances in public better avoided, if the society has a high musical aim.
Obstacles, such as prejudice and bad training, requiring patience to surmount.
The choice of a conductor all-important. Caution as to conductors' own compositions.
Opera should be excluded.
Marks of expression to be inserted in score of old music.
Translations sometimes necessary.
Bars to be numbered. Cleffs to be uniform.
Attention to details well worth the trouble.
Pleasures of classical music infinite, enduring, and divine.

Systemvoraussetzungen

Als PDF speichern Als Link merken