Reflections upon Ancient and Modern Learning/Chapter 24
CHAP. XXIV.
Of Ancient and Modern Musick.
Sir William Temple having assured us (x)(x) Pag. 45., that it is agreed by the Learned, that the Science of Musick, so admired by the Ancients, is wholly lost in the World: And that what we have now, is made up of certain Notes that fell into the Fancy of a poor Friar, in chanting his Mattins. It may seem improper to speak of Musick here, which ought rather to have been ranked amongst those Sciences, wherein the Moderns have, upon a strict Enquiry, been found to have been out-done by the Ancients. I have chosen, however, to speak of it in this Place, for these following Reasons.
1. That whereas all Modern Mathematicians have paid a mighty Deference to the Ancients; and have not only used the Names of Archimedes, Apollonius and Diophantus, and the other Ancient Mathematicians, with great Respect; but have also acknowledged, that what further Advancements have since been made, are, in a manner, wholly owing to the first Rudiments, formerly taught: Modern Musicians have rarely made use of the Writings of Aristoxenus, Ptolemee, and the rest of the Ancient Musicians; and, of those that have studied them, very few, unless their Editors, have confessed that they could understand them; and others have laid them so far aside, as useless for their Purpose; that it is very probable, that many excellent Composers have scarce ever heard of their Names.
II. Musick has still, and always will have very lasting Charms. Wherefore, since the Moderns have used their utmost Diligence to improve whatever was improvable in the Writings of all sorts of Ancient Authors, upon other equally difficult, and very often not so delightful Subjects, one can hardly imagine but that the World would, long ere now, have heard something more demonstrably proved of the Comparative Perfection of Ancient Musick, with large Harangues in the Commendation of the respective Inventors, if their Memory had been preserved, than barely an Account of the fabulous Stories of Orpheus or Amphion, which either have no Foundation at all; or, as Horace of old understood them (y)(y)Silvestres homines,
sacer interprésq; Deorum,
Cadibus & victu fœdo
deterruit Orpheus:
Dictus ob hoc lenire Tigres
rabidósq; Leones.
Dictus & Amphion, Thebana
conditor arcis,
Saxa movere sono Testudinis,
& prece blandâ,
Ducere quo vellet.
Art. Poet., are allegorically to be interpreted of their reducing a Wild and Salvage People to Order and Regularity. But this is not urged against Sir William Temple, who is not convinced of the Extent of Modern Industry, Sagacity, and Curiosity; though to other Admirers of Ancient Musick, who, upon Hear-say, believe it to be more perfect than the Modern, and yet are, for other Reasons, sufficiently convinced of the unwearied Diligence, and answerable Success of the Modern Learned, in retrieving and improving other Parts of Ancient Knowledge, it will not appear inconsiderable.
III. Musick is a Physico-Mathematical Science, built upon fixed Rules, and stated Proportions; which, one would think, might have been as well improved upon the old Foundations, as upon new ones, since the Grounds of Musick have always been the same: And Guido's Scale, as Dr. Wallis assures us, is the same for Substance with the Diagramma Veterum.
IV. The Ancients had not, in the Opinion of several who are Judges of the Matter, so many Gradations of Half-Notes and Quarter-Notes between the Whole Ones as are now used; which must of necessity introduce an unspeakable Variety into Modern Musick, more than could formerly be had: Because it is in Notes, as it is in Numbers; the more there are of them, the more variously they may be combined together.
V. Excessive Commendations can signifie nothing here, because every Man gives the highest Applauses to the perfectest Thing he ever saw, or heard, of any Kind. And if he is not capable of inventing any Thing further in that Way himself, he can form no Idea of it, beyond what himself was at that Time affected with.
VI. It is very probable that the Ancient Musick had all that which still most affects common Hearers. Most Men are moved with an excellent Voice, are pleased when Time is exactly kept, and love to hear an Instrument played true to a fine Voice, when the one does not so far drown the other, but that they can readily understand what is sung, and can, without previous Skill, perceive that the one exactly answers the other throughout; and their Passions will be effectually moved with sprightly or lamentable Compositions: In all which Things the Ancients, probably, were very perfect. To these Men, many of our Modern Compositions, where several Parts are sung or played at the same Time, would seem confused, intricate, and unpleasant: Though in such Compositions, the greater this seeming Confusion, the more Pleasure does the skilful Hearer take in unravelling every several Part, and in observing how artfully those seemingly disagreeing Tones joyn, like true-cut Tallies, one within another, to make up that united Concord, which very often gives little Satisfaction to common Ears; and yet it is in such sort of Compositions, that the Excellency of Modern Musick chiefly consists. For, in making a Judgment of Musick, it is much the same Thing as it is of Pictures. A great Judge in Painting does not gaze upon an exquisite Piece so much to raise his Passions, as to inform his Judgment, as to approve, or to find fault. His Eye runs over every Part, to find out every Excellency; and his Pleasure lies in the Reflex Act of his Mind, when he knows that he can judiciously tell where every Beauty lies, or where the Defects are discernable: Which an ordinary Spectator would never find out. The chiefest Things which this Man minds, is the Story; and if that is lively represented, if the Figures do not laugh when they should weep, or weep when they should appear pleased, he is satisfied: And this, perhaps, equally well, if the Piece be drawn by Raphael, as by an ordinary Master, who is just able to make Things look like Life. So likewise in Musick; He that hears a numerous Song, set to a very moving Tune, exquisitely sung to a sweet Instrument, will find his Passions raised, whilst his Understanding, possibly, may have little or no Share in the Business. He scarce knows, perhaps, the Names of the Notes, and so can be affected only with an Harmony, of which he can render no Account. To this Man, what is intricate, appears confused; and therefore he can make no Judgment of the true Excellency of those Things, which seem fiddling to him only, for want of Skill in Musick. Whereas on the contrary, the Skill or Ignorance of the Composer serve rather to entertain the Understanding, than to gratifie the Passions of a skilful Master; whose Passions are then the most thoroughly raised, when his Understanding receives the greatest Satisfaction.
VII. It will be difficult to form a just Idea of the Pleasure which the Ancient Musick afforded, unless one reflects upon the confessedly unimitable Sweetness of the Ancient Poetry, the Greek especially; which, when sung by clear and sweet Voices, in such a manner, as that the Hearer never lost a Syllable, could scarce fail of producing those Emotions of Soul which the Poet intended to raise. And, indeed, the great End of Musick, which is to please the Audience, was anciently, perhaps, better answered than now; though a Modern Master would then have been dis-satisfied, because such Consorts as the Ancient Symphonies properly were, in which several Instruments, and perhaps Voices, played and sung the same Part together, cannot discover the Extent and Perfection of the Art, which here only is to be considered, so much as the Compositions of our Modern Opera's.
From all this it may, perhaps, be not unreasonable to conclude, that though (z) Pag. 45.(z) those Charms of Musick, by which Men and Beasts, Fishes, Fowls and Serpents, were so frequently enchanted, and their very Natures changed, be really and irrecoverably lost; yet the Art of Musick, that is to say, of Singing, and Playing upon Harmonious Instruments, is, in it self, much a perfecter Thing, though, perhaps, not much pleasanter to an unskilful Audience, than it ever was amongst the Ancient Greeks and Romans.